Biden admin clears major West Virginia gas pipeline after weeks of criticism from Joe Manchin
FOX NewsMay 16, 2023
The Facts
On Monday night, the Biden administration permitted the $6.6B Mountain Valley natural gas pipeline to run through the Jefferson National Forest which runs between West Virginia and Virginia.
This comes after the US Forest Service earlier in the day reissued its approval to construct the long-delayed pipeline across a 3.5-mile (5.6 km) forest corridor in Monroe County, W.Va., and Giles and Montgomery Counties,Va.
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
The construction of new wind, solar, and other renewable energy projects is part of the Biden admin.'s ambitious climate agenda. As extreme weather events strain the US energy system, adequate natural gas pipeline — such as the Mountain Valley Pipeline — and transmission capacity are critical to maintaining energy reliability, availability, and security. This project will help to increase America's energy security.
Establishment-critical narrative
The Mountain Valley Pipeline violates regulations to control erosion and sedimentation, threatens endangered species and waterways, and can potentially destroy sensitive land and ecosystems. It will generate tens of millions of metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions each year. The US must stop its construction if Biden's top priority is to constrain global warming and advance environmental justice. This project puts the thirst for energy ahead of the health of our planet.
Nerd narrative
There's a 50% chance that fossil fuels will make up less than 50% of the United States' primary energy consumption by August 2043, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
