Montgomery County rescinds deal with DEQ over Mountain Valley Pipeline

A deal between Montgomery County and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality surrounding the Mountain Valley Pipeline has been called off, for now.

The deal, which was unanimously agreed to on September 11, would have allowed County officials to go along with DEQ on site visits and inspections and make comments or raise concerns over the construction of the pipeline.

But it was found the item was not on the September 11 agenda that was emailed out to citizens who signed up for those, even though it was on the agenda on the County's website.

So on September 25, the agreement was rescinded, as it was never signed, and tabled until October 10, so members of the public could give their input.

Board of Supervisors Chair Christopher Tuck said some citizens wanted to see a better agreement, others wanted DEQ to hire a County Engineer to go with DEQ.

However, Tuck explained, "DEQ has made it clear that they are not going to negotiate, this is an opportunity for the County in their mind, and because of that they're not negotiating. It's the same agreement that they have offered to a lot of localities."

Roanoke County also opted away from this deal, Tuck said.

Because of all that, the Board voted unanimously Tuesday to indefinitely table the deal, effectively ending it.

However, Tuck said if DEQ was willing to negotiate with a new deal, the County would be open to talking again.