Molly Ward Wrote that it is important for the permitting process to be collaborative but unbiased.
Attempts by Dominion Energy to sway regulators in the Atlantic Coast Pipeline permitting process prompted a top official under Gov. Terry McAuliffe to notify the utility that state agencies would not heed those efforts.
An April 19 letter from Molly Ward, Virginia’s secretary of natural resources, advised Dominion that state agencies involved in permitting for the proposed 600-mile line “will not base their decisions on requests or suggestions from an applicant
.”Ward’s letter is addressed to Ann Loomis, senior director for federal affairs and environmental policy for Dominion.
A major partner in the controversial Atlantic Coast Pipeline, Dominion Energy is known for its political clout in Virginia, where it is consistently said to be the state’s top corporate political donor.
Ward cites three dates of communications with Dominion — March 21, April 10 and April 12 — in her letter to Loomis.
Ward observed that the pipeline “is a project of enormous scope and complexity and deserves close, objective scrutiny.” She wrote that it is important for the permitting process to be collaborative but the process “must … remain impartial.”
The Roanoke Times – Duncan Adams – 06/24/2017
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