By Ken Ward Jr. and Alexa Beyer, Mountain State Spotlight
From his Summers County, West Virginia, farmhouse, Mark Jarrell can see the Greenbrier River and, beyond it, the ridge that marks the Virginia border. Jarrell moved here nearly 20 years ago for peace and quiet. But the last few years have been anything but serene, as he and his neighbors have fought against the construction of a huge natural gas pipeline.

Jarrell and many others along the path of the partially finished Mountain Valley Pipeline through West Virginia and Virginia fear that it may contaminate rural streams and cause erosion or even landslides. By filing lawsuits over the potential impacts on water, endangered species and public forests, they have exposed flaws in the project’s permit applications and pushed its completion well beyond the original target of 2018. The delays have helped balloon the pipeline’s cost from the original estimate of $3.5 billion to $6.6 billion.
But now, in the name of combating climate change, the administration of President Joe Biden and the Democratic leadership in Congress are poised to vanquish Jarrell and other pipeline opponents. For months, the nation has wondered what price Democratic West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin would extract to allow a major climate change bill. Part of that price turns out to be clearing the way for the Mountain Valley Pipeline.
“It’s a hard pill to swallow,” said Jarrell, a former golf course manager who has devoted much of his retirement to writing protest letters, filing complaints with regulatory agencies and attending public hearings about the pipeline. “We’re once again a sacrifice zone.”
Recent Posts
There Are Easier Ways To Talk About War And Peace
September 27, 2023
Take Action Now We live in a very strange age in which spending money on death and destruction is understood as philanthropy… By David…
How America Hides The Human Toll Of Its Forever Wars, With Norman Solomon
September 27, 2023
Take Action Now A recent study from the Costs of War Project at Brown University found that the post-9/11 wars have been responsible for some 4.5…
Supreme Court Justices Have Financial Interest In Major Tax Case
September 27, 2023
Take Action Now John Roberts and Samuel Alito own shares of companies that could score billions in tax relief from the outcome of Moore v. United…
Depleted Uranium In Ukraine Will Only Ensure Long-Term Suffering
September 27, 2023
Take Action Now As a radioactive material, depleted uranium enters a human body through inhalation or as fragments puncturing the body. by Danaka…