THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, March 26, 1996 TAG: 9603260004
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A12 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Short : 34 lines
``Pipeline progress'' (editorial, March 21) was tempered by the implicit acknowledgment of the extraordinary risk Virginia Beach City Council is taking by beginning construction of its pipeline project before the federal appeal by North Carolina and the Roanoke River Basin Association is resolved. We are confident the federal appellate court in Washington will overturn the decision of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission allowing Virginia Beach to go ahead.
If and when the court strikes down the FERC decision, we have no doubt that Virginia Beach and The Virginian-Pilot will blame North Carolina and RRBA for the city's water and financial problems. We hope your readers will remember that Virginia Beach acknowledged that it was going forward at its own risk.
The risk is not just a political one for members of City Council. And it is more than a risk of destroying the city's credit. The greatest risk is having a drought occur without an adequate water supply because City Council foolishly put all its eggs in the Lake Gaston Pipeline basket.
Should City Council really be commended for ``dogged determination,'' or should it be condemned for blind stubbornness? Time will tell.
W. EWELL BARR
President
Roanoke River Basin Association
Danville, March 22, 1996 by CNB