Elliston, VA: Pipeline Fighter Locks Onto Mountain Valley Pipeline Helicopter!

pic via Appalachians Against Pipelines.

cross-posted from Appalachians Against Pipelines

Yesterday, a pipeline fighter has locked themselves to a Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) helicopter near Elliston, VA. The banner on the helicopter reads “DOOM TO THE PIPELINE.”

The pipeline fighter taking action, going by Squirrel, stated: “I took action today in an attempt to slow the construction of this destructive pipeline project. If completed, the MVP will ship billions of cubic feet of natural gas to be burned every single day. This pipeline will inevitably leak, and many natural gas pipelines have exploded, killing people and wildlife.

“In times such as these, with the catastrophic effects of global warming accelerating at an alarming pace, it is imperative to act now. The planet is in crisis, and the ruling class would rather continue the genocidal and ecologically destructive projects of capitalism, imperialism, and colonialism, than address the largest existential threat in human history. It’s up to us to intervene — they won’t stop unless we make them stop. For a world and a future without exploitation, capitalism, and the destruction of the wild! No compromise!”

pic via Appalachians Against Pipelines

MVP uses helicopters for a few purposes, including surveillance and large scale hydroseeding. Hydroseeding is a process in which they drop proprietary pellets on the pipeline easement (and everywhere else they happen to hit within a mile or so) as part of their bogus, destructive attempt at “environmental remediation.” In 2018, MVP dropped “erosion control” pellets on Neal Laferriere’s organic farm Blackberry Botanicals in Summers County, WV, a quarter mile from the easement, hitting Neal’s children in the face and causing the family to lose their organic certification and livelihood. Hydroseeding has been proven worldwide to be incredibly damaging to native plant communities and long term ecosystem stability.

The action took place just down the road from the Yellow Finch tree sits, which have been preventing construction and defending some of the last remaining trees on the pipeline route for 398 days and counting!

DONATE to support Squirrel and the tree sits: bit.ly/supportmvpresistance

 

Pipeline Fighter Blocks Mountain Valley Pipeline Construction

Cross-posted from Appalachians Against Pipelines

Report from Appalachians Against Pipelines on recent action that shut down construction on the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP).

Montgomery County, VA — Yesterday, pipeline fighter Phillip Flagg locked himself in the path of the Mountain Valley Pipeline near Elliston, VA. MVP has been clearing and grading this section of the pipeline’s path in preparation to lay pipe. Phillip laid his body in the easement and locked his body to an underground concrete blockade directly in the path of the pipeline. His action stopped MVP work at the site for 7 hours, preventing the company’s progression towards the nearby Yellow Finch tree sits. Around 5:30 pm, Phillip was extracted from his blockade and arrested. He was charged with misdemeanor obstruction and released on $1,000 bail.

Phillip, who previously spent months living in a tree sit blocking the MVP, stated: “I cherished the time I spent in the tree sit, and I think back on it fondly. But I’m not too proud to admit that the time I spent in the oak simply isn’t enough to stop this pipeline. The forces we are facing will not be dissuaded by any individual effort. Each of us has our piece to contribute — when one person steps up, others will follow.”

A banner near the site of Phillip’s blockade read “STOP THE MVP — BLOCK THE PATH — NO PIPELINES ON STOLEN LAND.” The latter part of this message refers to the fact that Indigenous people inhabited the hills and hollers of this region for thousands of years — including Monocan, Moneton, Cherokee, and other Native peoples — before white settlers arrived (bringing with them genocide and forced relocation). Extraction and fossil fuel infrastructure are a continuation of the legacy of colonization; Appalachians Against Pipelines stands in solidarity with Indigenous-led fights against pipelines, from Unist’ot’en to the fight against Line 3 and beyond.

In the holler adjacent to Phillip’s action, the Yellow Finch tree sits have been blocking the path of the Mountain Valley Pipeline for 313 days and counting. In support of Phillip’s action, one of the anonymous tree sitters stated: “Every day, MVP’s construction work gets close and closer to the Yellow Finch sits, decimating acres of Appalachian forests, mountains, and waterways in its wake. Today and every day, we are putting our bodies on the line to stop it. Now is the time to stand up and fight back against the destruction of the earth. Join us! We’re still here. We won’t back down.”

The Mountain Valley Pipeline is a 42-inch diameter, 303-mile fracked gas pipeline that runs from northern West Virginia to southern Virginia. Earlier this month, a 70-mile extension into North Carolina (which was proposed in 2018) was denied its Section 401 Water Quality Certification by the NC Department of Environmental Quality. The Mountain Valley Pipeline endangers water, ecosystems, and communities along its route, contributes to climate change, increases demand for natural gas (and as a result, fracking), and is entrenched in corrupt political processes.

Resistance to the pipeline has only grown since the pipeline’s proposal in 2014. Grassroots-led pipeline monitoring and a nonviolent direct action campaign are ongoing. On June 17, 2019, builders admitted that the project’s budget has ballooned to $5 billion and that completion date has been delayed by 1.5 years at least.

The pipeline is in a state of uncertainty. MVP currently lacks permission to cross many water bodies and has been forced to explore alternate approaches in crossing through the Jefferson National Forest. The coming months will show whether construction is able to move forward in those areas, and whether investors will continue to believe in the pipeline’s ever-distant goal of completion.

Pipeline Fighter Barricades Inside Mountain Valley Pipeline, Charged with “Threat of Terrorism”

The pipeline fighter who barricaded themself inside the Mountain Valley Pipeline this morning has been extracted, arrested, and bailed out of jail. They were charged with two misdemeanors (trespassing, obstruction) and two felonies (threats of terrorist acts, property destruction).

Help us support this brave person and ongoing pipeline resistance: bit.ly/supportmvpresistance

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: blockades and lock downs are not terrorism! The unfounded, trumped-up charges that the state is bringing against this peaceful protester are an extreme attempt to silence resistance to this disastrous project.

As today’s pipeline fighter stated, “The terrorism I see is hidden in plain sight. Is a pipeline carrying explosives through your front yard not terrorism? What about the ongoing eradication of non-human species? Or the creation of a planet that is uninhabitable? What about the police occupations of poor, black, and brown neighborhoods, and the military occupations around the world? The millions of humans who are locked in cages? The need to sell our labor to survive? The surveillance and commodification of everyday life? Those with limited imagination say this subtler terrorism keeps us safe. Yet, at best, it leaves us isolated, anxious, and depressed. At worst, it leaves us dead.”

The anonymous pipeline fighter was extracted before 10 am this morning after spending over 3 hours blocking construction and welding from their place locked within the pipe. Another supporter was detained by police, driven off site and released without charges.

Neal Laferriere of Blackberry Springs Farm and Blackberry Botanicals, an affected land and small business owner from Summers County, WV, stated the following in support of today’s direct action: “We have discovered the hard way that the agencies and organizations put in place to protect us spend most of their resources ensuring that the projects that are polluting our waters, our air, and ruining our farms, can be completed. This leave us with only one option: to stand up for our families, our neighbors, and our communities via peaceful protests and direct actions. This is the only option we have left. We have to stand up, or we just get run over.”

SUPPORT ONGOING RESISTANCE TO THE MOUNTAIN VALLEY PIPELINE! Show up, and donate: bit.ly/supportmvpresistance

Virginia: Pipeline Fighter Locks Down to Mountain Valley Pipeline Worksite

Cross-posted from Appalachians Against Pipelines

Yesterday, a pipeline fighter locked themself to a horizontal drill at a Mountain Valley Pipeline worksite in Pittsylvania County, VA. This site is at the tail end of the 300-plus-mile pipeline route. Work was STOPPED and has been for over an hour.

We do this for all life on earth, for the ones not yet brave enough to take a stand against the injustices of this world,” stated the anonymous pipeline fighter who took action this morning. “We do this for each other, for every living being on this planet, because we all need clean water and clean air to live.

Eventually, this  brave pipeline fighter was extracted from their spot, arrested, charged with trespassing, and released!

The action coincided with DAY 150 of the Yellow Finch tree sits outside of Elliston, VA. Two aerial blockades have been preventing tree clearing and protecting some of the last standing trees in the pipeline’s path for 150 days! We are currently awaiting a ruling by a federal judge regarding MVP’s request for an injunction against these tree sitters and their supporters.

DONATE to support resistance to the Mountain Valley Pipeline! bit.ly/supportmvpresistance — or donate enough to get yourself a handmade t-shirt from our fundraiser (limited supplies remaining) bit.ly/shirtrequestAAP