Lynn and Bill Limpert bought a house in Bath County, VA six years ago for their retirement. Now, they fear that the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) will incinerate them.

The ACP is a proposed 42-inch diameter pipeline slated to carry fracked marcellus shale gas from West Virginia through Virginia down into Robeson County, North Carolina. The project is led by Dominion and Duke Energy.

Behind the Limperts’ house is Miracle Ridge, an old-growth virgin forest covered with trees that predate the US Constitution. The steep, narrow mountain ridge has a side slope exceeding 70% in many areas.

Pipelines on steep slopes like Miracle Ridge have an increased susceptibility to landslides, ruptures and explosions. On June 7th, the newly installed Leach Xpress Pipeline exploded in Marshall County, WV due to a landslide.

(Explosion of the new Leach Xpress Pipeline in West Virginia. Picture source: The Intelligencer)

The Limperts have already seen multiple landslides near the ACP’s proposed route. Bill and Lynn fully expect an explosion in their backyard to incinerate them if they keep living in their home through completion of the ACP.

“In the last three years there have been several landslides on our property, all in close proximity to the proposed pipeline route,” Bill said.

(Leach Xpress Pipeline built on steep slopes before exploding. Picture Source: Huffington Post )

Landslides can cause pipes to rupture and explode in what Bill describes as “hell on earth”. The pipes for the ACP have already been sitting out exposed for over two years, giving the Limperts additional reason to fear for their safety.

“The protective coating that they have around the outside of the pipe is what they call a fusion-bonded epoxy. It doesn’t protect the pipe against UV sunlight degradation. That can damage that cover and make it ineffective,” Bill said.

Bill asked the pipe manufacturer Dura-bond what their recommendations are for pipe storage. Dura-bond refused to tell him. 3M, the company that worked on the pipeline coating, won’t return his calls.

“Dominion would have had the option to add a second coating that would have prevented UV degradation of the initial coating, but apparently they didn’t,” Bill added.

Bill’s investigation into the pipes’ safety has been blocked by various agencies, which has caused him to become suspicious of the pipes’ safety. “It seems like they’re covering this stuff up. If everything was okay, why aren’t they talking to me and giving me this information?” he asked.

Having witnessed landslides and been given no information by the pipe manufacturers, Bill has an idea of what may be coming.

“If the pipes are put into the ground then they can corrode and rupture. Failure of the external corrosion protection is the second-leading cause of pipeline failure,” Bill said.

If the pipe ruptures in this area, the accompanying explosion will likely kill Bill and Lynn.

“This gas pipeline has a zone of incineration or a ‘blast zone’ that’s 2,200 feet wide. One-thousand and one hundred feet on each side of the pipe. If it explodes, everything in that area will be incinerated pretty much instantly,” Bill said.

If they survive a nearby explosion, the Limperts lack a feasible evacuation route. If they try to escape the area, they will be cut off by the exploding pipeline.

“We’re 600 feet from the proposed pipeline, so we’d probably be incinerated more or less instantly. If somehow we were able to escape that, we and six other families here in the upper part of the valley would be trapped in the evacuation zone with no chance of escape or rescue. The exploding pipeline would block any egress we had out of the valley,” Bill said.

(The aftermath of the explosion in Marshall County. Picture Source: The Intelligencer)

Virginia Governor Ralph Northam received nearly $200,000 in donations from Dominion during his election campaign. Lynn Limpert thinks that he should listen to his constituents’ concerns about this project.

“He was elected to serve the people, not just the corporations,” Lynn said.

Northam has remained silent on the issue of the ACP, to the disappointment of the Limperts and many others.

“We’ve been in close contact with the federal government, the state government, and the local government and all of them have failed us. None of them are regulating this pipeline as they should be. They’re promoting the pipeline, and it’s absolutely disgusting. I’m completely shocked that our democratic government would let us down in this way,” Bill said.

Duke Energy has claimed that the ACP will increase property values along the proposed route. There exists no evidence to suggest that this is true.

“Our real estate agent here in Bath County said we’re losing at least 50% of our property value. Most people make the biggest investment of their lives in their home and their land, and now this becomes the biggest loss of their lives because of the pipeline,” Bill said.

Many have questioned the necessity of this pipeline. While Dominion and Duke energy operate as utilities, the gas they are transporting appears destined for other countries.

“There’s an existing liquid natural gas import facility near Savannah, and that’s being retrofitted into an export facility. We think that the gas will go there and ultimately be shipped overseas,” Bill said.

The ACP would link to the existing Transco line, which connects to various export facilities in the Southeast.

“Both Virginia and North Carolina have reduced their energy consumption over the last decade. The US Department of Energy projects that until 2030, energy consumption in those areas will remain flat so there’s not really any need,” Bill said.

Pipeline fighters have been portrayed as anti-energy, but the Limperts are not opposed to new energy sources. They do think, however, that these new energy sources should be cleaner. They suggested solar, wind, and geothermal as alternatives to fracking.

“There are coal-fired power plants now that are in the so-called ‘market area’ for this gas pipeline that are probably going to be retired. That energy needs to be made up in some way, but clean renewable energies could easily do that. Fossil fuels are extreme energy. They’re toxic in every way,” Bill added.

