Supreme Court rules that controversial, dirty Atlantic Coast Pipeline can proceed
Friends of the Earth and other groups are fighting against the polluting and unnecessary projectWASHINGTON – In a 7-2 decision the Supreme Court today overturned the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ finding that the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) cannot cross the Appalachian Trail. Currently at least six additional permits for the pipeline are tied up in litigation. If completed, the ACP would be a 600-mile fracked gas pipeline owned by Dominion Energy and Duke Energy. The project is now three and one-half years behind schedule, with estimated costs at $7.8 billion and climbing.
Donna Chavis, senior fossil fuel campaigner Friends of the Earth, issued the following statement in response:
Today’s Supreme Court decision was about more than the Atlantic Coast Pipeline. It was about the integrity of our national forests and parks and how they are protected. Today the court chose to ignore our communities and our environment in favor of the fossil fuel industry and this unnecessary and risky project that reeks of environmental racism.
But our fight is not over, and we will push to ensure that this climate-wrecking project is never completed. We will take it to the courts, to the halls of power, and to the streets. The court of public opinion will be heard, and that opinion differs from the US Supreme Court.
For additional background on the ACP and the multiple factors that make the years-delayed gas pipeline a risky, unnecessary investment, please see It’s Time to Abandon the Atlantic Coast Pipeline.
Communications Contact : Aisha Dukule, [email protected], 202-893-3502
Expert Contact: Donna Chavis, [email protected]