Forest Service's 'Independent' Report on Atlantic Coast Pipeline Written by Pipeline Company Contractor

Vardi, Itai
http://www.desmogblog.com/2017/04/25/forest-service-independent-report-atlantic-coast-pipeline-contractor-dominion
Date Written:  2017-04-25
Publisher:  Desmog
Year Published:  2017
Resource Type:  Article
Cx Number:  CX20658

The U.S. Forest Service recently published an assessment of the proposed Atlantic Coast pipeline, calling the report "independent." In reality the assessment was performed and written by none other than a contractor working for the pipeline company.

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Rick Webb, coordinator for the Dominion Pipeline Monitoring Coalition, an association of regional environmental groups, said that once he learned of the use of Dominion’s contractor, he expressed his concerns to the Forest Service over possible conflicts of interest.

"I was surprised to learn they had hired GAI Consultants,"he said. "It was out of character for them since the Forest Service has done its job well up to this point. I really do not understand why they used this contractor."

It should be noted that in early 2016 the Forest Service rejected Dominion’s original proposed pipeline path, saying that it failed to align with its forest management plans. The agency is continuing to address a variety of issues and concerns related to the project.

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