The debate continues over the Mountain Valley Pipeline slated to run through parts of southwestern Virginia, carrying natural gas. Some say it will be a benefit to the region and others disagree.
This Sunday, the anti-pipeline group, Preserve Giles is holding an informational session at Newport Recreation Center. It’s part instructional and part fundraiser for the organization.
The workshop part of this will include helping people file their comments on line with Federal Regulatory Commission known as FERC. Rick Shingles is one of the organizers of Preserve Giles, formed to give the county a voice in the debate. Shingles is a retired professor of political science from Virginia Tech, who says he sort of came out of retirement to fight the pipeline. He points out that the ultimate decision concerning the project lies with the FERC.
"As an individual, if you want to make an argument about your own property you know, you want here or you don’t want it there or you don’t, and you want to for example challenge the arguments the operator wants to make in this case, that it is in the public benefit, and that it’s necessary,that there’s a demand for it, you’ve got to make all those through the FERC process."
The fundraising portion of the evening features Kat Mills, Johnny Irion and Sarah Lee Guthrie - granddaughter of Woody Guthrie.
