MOUNTAIN VALLEY PIPELINE

Critics of Mountain Valley Pipeline continue to have safety concerns months after its opening.

A hotly contested East Coast natural gas pipeline has been given the go-ahead to start operating.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has authorized the Mountain Valley Pipeline to begin service.

Community concerns over safety and the environment continue to grow as the Mountain Valley Pipeline nears completion.

A protestor was arrested Wednesday for blocking access to the Mountain Valley Pipeline on Yellow Finch Road in Montgomery County Wednesday morning, according to Virginia State Police.

The natural gas project's developers now say they expect the pipeline to start operations in early June.

The natural gas project's developers now say they expect the pipeline to start operations in early June.

Protestors gathered at the Mountain Valley Pipeline site on Thursday to send a powerful message to pipeline leaders, and police ended up arresting one of them.

The controversial Mountain Valley Pipeline project that will span more than 300 miles has continued to hit roadblocks throughout the years.

A local fish that has complicated plans for the Mountain Valley Pipeline over the years is no longer at risk of extinction.

Community concerns about water safety are growing in Giles County as work on the Mountain Valley Pipeline continues.

Virginia State Police charged protesters near a Mountain Valley Pipeline construction site in Montgomery Co. Thursday morning.

Three people from out of state are in custody after they used “sleeping dragons” to halt construction on the Mountain Valley Pipeline in Elliston Monday morning.

Dozens of people have descended upon a Mountain Valley Pipeline construction site in Elliston in an attempt to halt work, according to Appalachians Against Pipelines.

A protestor of the Mountain Valley Pipeline was arrested Saturday for halting work on the Virginia side of Peters Mountain in the Jefferson National Forest.

A Mountain Valley Pipeline protester has locked herself to a buried lockbox at a worksite on Poor Mountain in Roanoke County, where workers are working on clearing vegetation on the mountain, according to the Appalachians Against Pipelines.

Virginia State Police has placed charges on protestors who halted work at the Mountain Valley Pipeline worksite in Montgomery County Tuesday morning.

With construction on the Mountain Valley Pipeline now in full swing, many in our region are taking a stand against the controversial project.

Virginia State Police is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying those responsible for setting fire to construction equipment being used by the Mountain Valley Pipeline project in Franklin County.

One protester demonstrating at the pipeline construction site in Elliston Saturday was arrested, according to the Appalachians Against Pipelines.

A federal appeals court has granted a motion to dismiss a challenge to construction permits for a controversial natural gas pipeline in Virginia and West Virginia after Congress mandated that the project move forward.

Two opponents to the Mountain Valley Pipeline project locked themselves to construction equipment at a worksite on Poor Mountain Friday morning in protest of the construction of the pipeline.

Weeks after the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court is allowing construction to resume on a contested natural-gas pipeline that is being built through Virginia and West Virginia.

Environmental groups have appealed the federal move to greenlight the Mountain Valley Pipeline.

The controversial Mountain Valley Pipeline project has been given the green light after years of pushback.

The bill would approve the remaining permits for the controversial Mountain Valley Pipeline.

The project has been held up in court, but now, the USDA Forest Service has issued a Record of Decision signed by USDA Undersecretary Wilkes to allow for the plan to move forward in a 3.5-mile corridor of the Jefferson National Forest.

A push by West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin to speed permits for natural gas pipelines and other energy projects has failed in the current Congress, but could come back as soon as next month.

Language in Manchin's proposal was tied to the Mountain Valley Pipeline, which would run through West Virginia and Virginia for more than 300 miles. The bill would have effectively approved the pipeline and steered legal challenges to a different federal court.

Sen. Joe Manchin made a deal with Democratic leaders as part of his vote pushing the party's highest legislative priority across the finish line last month.

There has been an extension to a project that’ll affect thousands of people in the region.

A Virginia board has granted a waterbody crossing permit for the Mountain Valley Pipeline.

Six landowners in Franklin County have settled their lawsuit against Mountain Valley Pipeline, which they originally filed after they claimed a mudslide at a construction site damaged their property.

Two Mountain Valley Pipeline protesters have attached themselves to equipment at a site in West Virginia, according to Appalachians Against Pipelines.

The Mountain Valley Pipeline is trying to find it who some of its very public online critics are.

Ten protesters have locked themselves to Mountain Valley Pipeline equipment in Montgomery County, according to the group Appalachians Against Pipelines.

More mountain valley pipeline protestors are facing charges after locking themselves to drilling equipment in West Virginia.

Three Mountain Valley Pipeline protesters have locked themselves to a broken down car in Roanoke County, according to Appalachians Against Pipelines.

Four people have been charged after a protest against the Mountain Valley Pipeline in Giles County Wednesday morning.

A person locked inside of a broken-down vehicle has blocked access to a Mountain Valley Pipeline construction site, according to Appalachians Against Pipelines.

A Montgomery County man is in custody after attaching himself to a truck in an attempt to delay work on the Mountain Valley Pipeline.

A protester has chained herself to construction equipment at a Mountain Valley Pipeline site in Giles County, according to Appalachians Against Pipelines.

3:48 p.m. Wednesday updateAuthorities arrested the second and final tree-sitter from a Montgomery County tree on Wednesday. 12:55 p.m. Wednesday updateAuthorities have removed the second and final tree-sitter from a Montgomery County tree on Wednesday. 10:12 p.m updateAuthorities announced the arrest of a 23-year-old Vermont woman they removed from a Montgomery County tree on Tuesday. AdWhile are has been closed for safety purposes, authorities have arranged site visits for Montgomery County Board of Supervisors member Sara Bohn and Commonwealth’s Attorney for Montgomery County Mary Pettit. #nomvp #doomtothepipeline pic.twitter.com/ax1GMciYPn — Appalachians Against Pipelines (@stopthemvp) March 23, 2021Authorities said they are extracting tree-sitters protesting the Mountain Valley Pipeline in Montgomery County in a multi-day operation.

The Mountain Valley Pipeline is tied up after regulators came to a standstill during a meeting earlier this week. During a meeting on Tuesday, the Federal Energy Regulatory Committee came to a tie in a 2-2 vote over Mountain Valley Pipeline’s request to go under streams and wetlands along the project’s path in West Virginia. Below is a statement from Natalie Cox, a spokeswoman for the project:

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Va. – A judge has imposed a daily fine for the tree sitters blocking the Mountain Valley Pipeline and is holding them in contempt of court. According to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, each tree sitter will be fined $500 for each day they stay. This comes after a judge issued a temporary injunction, ordering the three protesters to leave by Monday. Authorities say some of the protesters on the ground left, but others chose to stay in the trees. Authorities say they have the authority to remove the protesters.

ELLISTON, Va – It’s been more than two years since the tree sitters on Yellow Finch Lane in Montgomery County took post opposing the efforts to build the Mountain Valley Pipeline. The proposed pipeline is set to cut through the land where the tree sitters are located. According to Appalachians Against Pipelines, an injunction was filed in Montgomery County calling for the tree sitters to vacate by Monday. A tree sitter against the Mountain Valley Pipeline on Yellow Finch Lane in Montgomery County. Most opponents of the pipeline worry about the long-term impacts on the environment and the safety of those who live near the site.

RICHMOND, Va. – Mountain Valley Pipeline has another two years to finish a natural gas pipeline. The Roanoke Times reports that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission also lifted a stop-work order for all but a 25-mile segment of the interstate transmission line that includes the Jefferson National Forest and adjacent land. While acknowledging problems with erosion and sedimentation during the first two years of construction, FERC found that allowing the pipeline to be completed is best for both the environment and the public. In a 2-1 decision, the commission wrote that the presence of equipment, personnel, and partially completed construction is disruptive to landowners. However, new legal challenges could limit the scope of work.

RICHMOND, Va. – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has reissued permits for a natural gas pipeline project in Virginia and West Virginia nearly two years after a federal appeals court invalidated them. The Roanoke Times reports that the new permits issued on Friday will allow construction to resume on the Mountain Valley Pipeline’s path across nearly 1,000 streams and wetlands. In 2018, a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that a corps-issued permit violated a West Virginia regulatory requirement that pipeline stream crossings must be completed within 72 hours to limit environmental harm.

WASHINGTON, DC – On Monday the Supreme Court started on what could be a landmark case affecting pipelines in our area and across the East Coast. An environmental group is challenging the permit issues to the Atlantic Coast Pipeline to cross the Appalachian Trail, and it could affect the Mountain Valley Pipeline because it, too, crosses the Appalachian trail on federal land. Protesters rallied outside the Supreme Court, while inside lawyers got just one hour to argue before the judges. His land is slated to be crossed by the Mountain Valley Pipeline and he wants that to change. “I’m not counting on the supreme court to win this fight for us," Satterwhite said.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Va. - Virginia State Police say they arrested a Mountain Valley Pipeline protester Monday morning. Police found the protester attached to a contracted pipeline helicopter at a work site on Cove Hollow Road, near Route 460 in Montgomery County, according to the Virginia State Police. Pipeline security found Grabowski masked and attached to the rotor mast of the helicopter by a Sleeping Dragon device, refusing to leave. There was a banner on the helicopter that said, "DOOM TO THE PIPELINE," according to Appalachians Against Pipelines. Grabowski is the 18th "pipeline fighter" to lock his or her body to Mountain Valley Pipeline equipment in 2019, according to Appalachians Against Pipelines.

FRANKLIN COUNTY, Va. - Two protesters have been arrested after attaching themselves to Mountain Valley Pipeline equipment in Franklin County, according to the sheriff's office. Authorities say that shortly after 7 a.m., Mountain Valley Pipeline security officials contacted the Franklin County Sheriff's Office to report that two protesters had chained themselves to equipment. Deputies, as well as officers from Virginia State Police, responded to the scene. The protesters chained to the equipment seemed tired, so deputies called in the Department of Public Safety to check them for any medical issues. A specialized team with Virginia State Police that is trained to remove protesters from equipment safely responded to the scene and removed the protesters from the equipment, according to the sheriff's office.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Va. - State police arrested another Mountain Valley Pipeline protester Thursday. Police arrived at Reese Mountain in Montgomery County after a report that a woman had suspended herself from a piece of construction equipment belonging to the Mountain Valley Pipeline. Eleanor Rose-Nason Davis, 19, of Ann Arbor, Michigan, was hanging from a piece of welding equipment using a device known as a "Sleeping Dragon." Police responded and removed Davis from the piece of equipment. The construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline has been controversial and is facing opposition.

Violet blocked the pipeline easement for five hours before being extracted and arrested. The spot where Violet locked herself in is not far from where another pipeline protestor, Phillip Flagg, was arrested on July 13. Violet locked into her campsite about halfway up the hillside. Photo courtesy of Appalachians Against PipelinesThe Mountain Valley Pipeline is a fracked gas pipeline that will span over 300 miles from northern West Virginia to southern Virginia. Violet is the seventh person in 2019 to be arrested for locking into the path of the pipeline, according to Appalachians Against Pipelines.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Va. - A 26-year-old Blacksbug man faces multiple charges after police say he locked himself to Mountain Valley Pipeline construction equipment. At 7 a.m. Friday, Virginia State Police troopers and Montgomery County Sheriff's Office deputies responded to reports of individuals securing themselves to equipment being used for the Mountain Valley Pipeline construction. State police spent several hours trying to negotiate Michael James-Deramo's surrender as he had secured himself to an excavator at the pipeline work site in the 3000 block of Bradshaw Road. He complied and released himself from the "sleeping dragon" device he was using to secure himself to the construction equipment. With the assistance of two troopers and a mechanical lift, he was lowered to the ground.

Protesters have been blocking Mountain Valley Pipeline construction crews above the treeline for around 250 days. Copyright 2019 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.