Dominion Virginia Power pipeline in Augusta County

By David Karaffa, Contributor
Supervisor, Beverley Manor District, Augusta County

On August 13th at the Board of Supervisors regular meeting, we had representatives from Dominion Virginia Power come and give a presentation about their proposed underground natural gas pipeline that will transect Augusta County. There were over 350 citizens in attendance at the meeting.

First, I would like to say thank you to Dominion and to all of those that showed up for the meeting. All of the information and input was helpful to better understanding the proposal, answer some very important questions, and allow for our citizens to express their concerns about the project.

Second, it is important to understand that while the Augusta County Board of Supervisors is the publicly elected body charged with the responsibility of looking out for the best interests of our county, we have no power or authority to approve or alter Dominion’s plan. These projects are federally approved and require no input from the communities in which the pipelines are buried.

With the above being said about our lack of authority, the federal government does take comment from the citizens that are impacted and from the local leaders who represent them.  Therefore, I have the following concerns about this proposed pipeline.

• The proposed route of the pipeline brings it dangerously close to some of our public schools.
• The proposed route cuts right through the Stuarts Draft community in a high density residential area. This will cause disruption for many families, their homes, and our community.
• The proposed route doesn’t take into account our county comprehensive development plan which the citizens and county leaders spent countless hours over many years painstakingly developing and follows as it looks to future development of our county.
• The proposed route and project doesn’t have any direct positive impact on Augusta County.

I have requested that Dominion Virginia Power look at the route and take these concerns into consideration as they move forward with their project. I will also be transmitting these concerns in written form to our leaders both in Richmond and in Washington. I would encourage citizens in the county who feel strongly about this issue to contact your federal and state representatives and express your thoughts.

As always, I am available to you for question or comment at DavidKaraffa@comcast.net. Thank you.

Originally posted August 25, 2014.

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See also Special Issue: LynnRMitchell.com writers, guests discuss Atlantic Coast Pipeline:

• Atlantic Coast Pipeline: Better ways to the same end by Supervisor Tracy Pyles
• Dominion, environmentalists, and pipeline hypocrisy by Joel Salatin
• Augusta County: Too valuable and vulnerable for this pipeline? by former Supervisor Nancy Sorrells
• Dominion’s Growth – What, Why, How, and Controlling Features by Calvin Lucy
• The Dominion Pipeline Maze by Kurt Michael
• Schedule for 2015 Dominion Atlantic Coast Pipeline open houses from Dominion
• Myths & facts about Atlantic Coast Pipeline from Dominion
• Dominion Virginia Power pipeline in Augusta County by Supervisor David Karaffa
• Augusta County residents organize against pipeline by Supervisor David Karaffa

Previous articles on the pipeline:

• What if Dominion Virginia Power ran high speed internet with Atlantic Coast Pipeline? by Lynn R. Mitchell
• Governors McAuliffe, Tomblin, McCrory provide bipartisan support for Atlantic Coast Pipeline by Lynn R. Mitchell
• Business community, public officials support Atlantic Coast Pipeline by Lynn R. Mitchell
• Augusta supervisors deliver resolution asking for more info, Dominion says 75% of landowners in pipeline path agree to surveying  by Lynn R. Mitchell

Cross-posted