Supreme Court allows construction of Mountain Valley Pipeline through Jefferson National Forest

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) — Today the U.S. Supreme Court granted an emergency stay of an order from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit that had halted construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline through the Jefferson National Forest in Virginia and West Virginia.  

In response to today’s decision, Jamie Williams, President of The Wilderness Society expressed disappointment. 

“Allowing construction of this destructive and unnecessary fracked gas pipeline to proceed puts the profits of a few corporations ahead of the health and safety of Appalachian communities. The Mountain Valley Pipeline is a threat to our water, our air, and our climate. We will continue to argue that Congress’ greenlight of this dangerous pipeline was unconstitutional, and will exhaust every effort to stop it.” 

The company seeking to complete construction of the pipeline filed an application to the Supreme Court for an emergency stay earlier in July following the Fourth Circuit’s grant of a stay to that stopped construction.  

On behalf of The Wilderness Society, the Southern Environmental Law Center filed a brief on June 26 opposing motions to dismiss from the Federal Government and a pipeline company in two cases involving the MVP arguing that Section 324 of the Fiscal Responsibility Act violates the separation of powers and is unconstitutional.  

“We are very disappointed by this latest development, but will continue this important fight,” said SELC Executive Director DJ Gerken. “We stand by our argument that the MVP rider—Congress’s reckless attempt to bless a single gas pipeline—violates the separation of powers and is unconstitutional.”