A public hearing to receive comment from the public regarding 1) a draft permit from the State Water Control Board that will allow the filling of wetlands and streams in Giles, Craig, Montgomery, Roanoke, Franklin, and Pittsylvania Counties, Virginia and (2) the Board’s intent to provide Section 401 Water Quality Certification for activities authorized by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC has applied for a new permit for the Mountain Valley Pipeline Project. The project is a 42-inch natural gas pipeline located along an approximate 107-mile-long corridor from the Virginia-West Virginia state line in Giles County southeast through Craig County, Montgomery County, Roanoke County, Franklin County, and Pittsylvania County to the Transco Village (located approximately three miles east of Chatham, Virginia). The public comment period is from August 28, 2021 to October 27, 2021. The permit will allow the applicant to work in surface waters consisting of wetlands and streams. The proposed activity would permanently affect 1.19 acres of palustrine forested wetland (PFO), 0.76 of an acre of palustrine scrub-shrub wetland (PSS), 0.04 of an acre of palustrine emergent wetland (PEM), and 63 linear feet of streams. The proposed activity would temporarily affect 3.91 acres of palustrine emergent wetlands (PEM) and 17,065 linear feet of streams. The activity proposed in the permit will affect surface waters in the Middle New, Upper James, Upper Roanoke and Banister watersheds. To compensate for the surface waters affected, the applicant would provide 7.114 wetland mitigation credits and 298 stream mitigation credits, and restore temporarily impacted areas to their original condition. The State Water Control Board’s preliminary decision is to issue the permit. The public may review the draft permit and application on the DEQ website at https://www.deq.virginia.gov/get-involved/topics-of-interest/mountain-valley-pipeline/-fsiteid-1. The public may request copies of the documents from the contact person listed below. The public hearing will adjourn when everyone present has had an opportunity to speak, or the facility closing time, whichever occurs first. Persons planning to attend the public hearings are advised to check the DEQ website at the link below for any changes to the meeting format or public health protocols.  

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http://www.deq.virginia.gov