20200702-5094 FERC PDF (Unofficial) 7/2/2020 10:25:38 AM

July 2, 2020

Kimberly D. Bose
Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
888 First Street NE, Room 1A
Washington, DC 20426

Re: Docket Nos. CP15-554-000 et. seq.

Dear Secretary Bose:

As members of the Virginia General Assembly each representing tens of thousands of

Virginians, we respectfully request that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission deny an
extension of the Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline
(ACP). Further, we also request that the Commission deny any requests from Atlantic Coast
Pipeline, LLC, for permission to cut trees, clear land, or install pipe in the Commonwealth.

For years, we have heard from residents and constituents about the real and significant harm that
the ACP would inflict on their property, drinking water, local streams, quality of life, and much,
much more.

The Commission should deny both the extension of the Certificate and permission for tree-
felling, land-clearing, or pipe installation for multiple reasons, including:

• Petitions for review of the ACP’s Certificate, filed by affected landowners and
conservation groups, are pending before the United States Court of Appeals for
the D.C. Circuit.

Multiple parties have challenged the substance of the Commission’s 2017 Certificate of Public
Convenience and Necessity for the ACP. These cases are fully briefed, and the D.C. Circuit is
expected to schedule oral arguments when its term resumes in September. The final judgment in
these cases will have sweeping implications for the future of the project. The Commission should
extend or advance nothing while these suits are still before the court.

• The ACP is missing eight required permits from state and federal agencies.
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Kimberly D. Bose
July 2, 2020
Page Two

Since May 2018, Atlantic has lost eight required permits for the ACP. These include: a U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service permit to harm endangered species; a U.S. Forest Service permit to cross
the Monongahela and George Washington National Forests; a Virginia permit to emit air
pollution at the proposed Buckingham compressor station; a National Park Service permit to
cross the Blue Ridge Parkway; and four U.S. Army Corps of Engineers authorizations under
Nationwide Permit 12 to construct across wetlands, streams, and rivers. In addition, a federal
court in Montana recently invalidated Nationwide Permit 12 across the country for all oil and gas
pipelines—meaning this permit is not currently available for the ACP.

Atlantic must resolve these eight missing permits before the Commission grants permission to
cut trees, clear land, or install pipe. Court decisions invalidating permits halted all construction
activity in December 2018 with less than 6% of the project complete and zero miles of pipe laid
in Virginia. Construction must not proceed until all of these outstanding permits are finalized.

• The ACP’s final route is unknown because a federal agency, the U.S. Forest
Service, has not completed its review of alternatives.

The ACP’s multiple missing permits raise significant uncertainty about the finality of the
project’s route. The U.S. Forest Service must still complete an evaluation of alternative routes
that avoid national forest lands, a process that could significantly change the final route of the
project. With the route in question, pipeline construction risks unjustified harm to private
property and the environment. It makes no sense to allow construction activity to begin before a
final route is in place and approved.

• The ACP is obsolete; the Virginia Clean Economy Act and other legislation
dramatically undercuts Atlantic’s claim that the pipeline is needed to run power
plants in the Commonwealth.

Dominion Energy announced the Atlantic Coast Pipeline in 2014, with the justification that it
was critical to supply gas-fired power plants in Virginia. A lot has changed in six years. In 2017,
state regulators stated that Dominion Energy has consistently overstated energy demand.
Moreover, the Commonwealth is rapidly transitioning away from fossil fuel generation toward
renewable energy. In March 2020, the General Assembly passed the Virginia Clean Economy
Act, which requires Dominion’s electricity generation to be carbon-free by 2045. Governor
Ralph Northam signed this legislation in April, and it goes into effect July 1, 2020. In response to
the new law, Dominion told state regulators that the “significant build-out of natural gas
generation facilities is not currently viable” in Virginia. With these important changes, the ACP
is the wrong investment for the Commonwealth.
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Kimberly D. Bose
July 2, 2020
Page Three

We respectfully request that the Commission (1) deny Atlantic’s application for an extension to
the ACP Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity and (2) deny any request from Atlantic
for permission to cut trees, clear land, or install pipe in the Commonwealth of Virginia, while the
project lacks numerous required permits, its final route is unknown, and the Certificate itself is
pending review by a federal court of appeals.

Thank you for your time and attention to this critical matter.

Sincerely,

R. Creigh Deeds John J. Bell

Senator, 25th District Senator, 13th District

Jennifer B. Boysko John S. Edwards

Senator, 33rd District Senator, 21st District

Ghazala F. Hashmi Betsy B. Carr

Senator, 10th District Delegate, 69th District

Elizabeth R. Guzman Patrick A. Hope

Delegate, 31st District Delegate, 47th District

Chris L. Hurst Mark L. Keam

Delegate, 12th District Delegate 35th District
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Kimberly D. Bose
July 2, 2020
Page Four

Kenneth R. Plum Sam Rasoul

Delegate, 36th District Delegate, 11th District

Danica Roem Ibraheem S. Samirah

Delegate, 13th District Delegate, 86th District

Kathy Tran
Delegate, 42nd District
20200702-5094 FERC PDF (Unofficial) 7/2/2020 10:25:38 AM
Document Content(s)

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