Though some pipeline opponents and affected landowners had urged the board to turn down the applications and face the pipeline developers in court, the board and its staff didn’t see much promise in that route.

“There exists the possibility that nobody gets anything but a few pennies on the acreage,” Ridder said.

And while numerous speakers at the foundation’s meetings said the move would undermine the confidence that landowners place in the foundation when they put property under its protection, Monday’s decision doesn’t cede any power the foundation has previously held, board members said.

Though the applications by ACP and MVP don’t meet the requirements of Virginia law, “FERC’s issuance of the certificate operates to supersede and pre-empt any authority of VOF to evaluate the project,” the board’s resolutions say.

“Since the time of Alexander Hamilton, federal has always trumped state and local,” said board member Elizabeth Obenshain. “I don’t think there should be landowners who put conservation easements on their land who think it is a shield against everything. ... This has been a difficult decision for all of us. None of us like gas pipelines.”

Rather, Ridder said, refusing to approve the conversions could have set a different precedent.