Northam Photo Petition:
A year ago, then Lieutenant Governor Northam wrote a letter to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality demanding that these pipelines “should be held to the highest of environmental standards.” But the DEQ bungled the process of reviewing the permits for these projects, leaving our streams, rivers and drinking water vulnerable to permanent damage. Now that Northam is in office, he has the authority to ensure that DEQ’s work lives up to his words. He needs be reminded of what is at stake and who carries the burden of this imminent and lasting harm to Virginia waters and communities. Please share your story, and a photo or two of your home and family, for us to deliver to Northam’s office in March.
Please post photos on the Wild Virginia Story Map:
And if you are doing this as a part of the photo petition to Northam, please add the hashtags #waterislifeVA and #peopleoverpipelines to the description.
A number of partners are also working on getting photos and an open letter from directly impacted landowners and communities straight to the Northam administration.
Sign the letter here (Google Form).
Our plan is to deliver photos of the families and places threatened by the pipelines construction and the letter from landowners to the Northam Administration – specifically Secretary of Natural Resources – on Monday, March 12. Since many landowners are far away from Richmond are also feeling the need to stay close to home because of eminent domain cases and the likelihood of construction happening soon, we are working to get just 2-4 landowners to the meeting to speak on behalf of all the rest that have sent in photos and signed the open letter.
(Landowner Letter to Northam PDF)
Tree of the Week Submission:
History is chronicled in many forms — books, folk stories, buildings. But there is a living history that dwells not in anything constructed by humans, but rather in the surrounding world. Trees can live for hundreds of years after the humans who grew up with them. They become a part of the lives of families and communities, and help to chronicle both human and environmental history.
Want to tell a story about a significant tree that will be cut down if the Mountain Valley Pipeline is constructed? We are seeking photos of trees that are considered old growth or otherwise generally significant to communities impacted by MVP to remind others of exactly what we’re fighting to protect.
Send us a photo of the tree you want to include, as well as information about the county in which it is located and a short description or story about why the tree is significant to you, your family, or your community. Stories will be posted on a rolling basis on the POWHR blog and Facebook page.
Please send submissions to coordinator.powhr@gmail.com.
You must be logged in to post a comment.