The federal government has extended the public comment period on the Mountain Valley Pipeline.
The controversial project needs to cross three and a half miles of the Jefferson National Forest along the border between West Virginia and Virginia.
Public comment on a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement was supposed to end this week. But the U.S. Forest Service has extended the comment period to Feb. 21.
The 303-mile natural gas pipeline is a top priority for state leaders. But environmental groups have succeeded in slowing it down in court.
The Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia, has overturned prior permitting decisions favorable to the pipeline.
Last year, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission gave the pipeline’s builders another four years to complete the project.