State Water Control Board to Discuss Mountain Valley Pipeline 401 Certification at Special Board Meeting on 3/1/19

See below for an interesting news release from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Is the State Water Control Board actually planning to assert its extensive authority under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act?  Even more shockingly, could Virginia DEQ actually be planning to do its job (protecting Virginia’e environment) for a change? For now, I’ll remain skeptical, but one can always hope I suppose…

STATE WATER CONTROL BOARD TO DISCUSS MOUNTAIN VALLEY PIPELINE 401 CERTIFICATION AT SPECIAL BOARD MEETING 
Board to convene special meeting on Friday, March 1  

RICHMOND, VA – At the State Water Control Board (Board) meeting on Dec. 13, 2018, a motion was approved to conduct a hearing to consider the revocation of Virginia’s Upland 401 Water Quality Certification for the Mountain Valley Pipeline project.  

A special Board meeting to discuss this action has been scheduled for Friday, March 1, at 10 a.m. The meeting will take place at the DoubleTree By Hilton Hotel located at 1021 Koger Center Blvd., in Richmond.  

“We fully understand the level of intense public interest in the hearing that was discussed in December,” said State Water Control Board Chair Heather Wood. “This is a unique situation and we need to ensure the proper legal process is followed. The Board will consider and discuss the next steps as a matter of law to ensure transparency and due process.” 

Please note: 

— The hearing referred to at the Dec. 13, 2018, Board meeting will not occur at this special meeting on March 1; however, it will be discussed by the Board. 

— Public comments are not received at special Board meetings. 

— The Board reserves the right to revise agendas without notice unless prohibited by law. 

The full March 1, meeting notice and agenda is available on the Virginia Regulatory Town Hall website at http://townhall.virginia.gov/L/meetings.cfm?time=future.