On Thursday, the Mountain Valley Pipeline received a little good news to mix with recent legal hurdles: The U.S. Forest Service approved the pipeline to pass through Jefferson National Forest along the West Virginia-Virginia border from Monroe County to Giles County.

The Forest Service decision impacts about 3.5 miles of the 303-mile project, which is said to be 94% complete.

The 42-inch pipeline is needed, proponents say, to transfer natural gas from the rich, fertile Marcellus and Utica Shale fields in West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Ohio to markets farther south in the Carolinas.

However, while the Forest Service has once again given its blessing, the decision must be approved by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

It was that court which vacated the Forest Service’s prior approval in a ruling on Jan. 25, 2022, saying it didn’t meet federal standards.

The Forest Service now says the pipeline is in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act.

Opponents of the pipeline, including the Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN), criticized the recent Forest Service ruling.

“We are gravely disappointed in the Forest Service’s decision to allow the Mountain Valley Pipeline to rip through the cherished Jefferson National Forest,” said Anne Havemann, general counsel for CCAN.

“With this decision, the Forest Service is not fulfilling its mission to ‘sustain the health of the nation’s forests’ so as to ‘meet the needs of present and future generations,’” Havemann said.

“Present and future generations need a pristine environment and a stable climate, not a fracked-gas pipeline that destroys forests, pollutes waterways and exacerbates global warming. CCAN is committed to ensuring that no gas ever flows through the Mountain Valley Pipeline,” Havemann said.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Richmond, Virginia, is the same court that pulled a key water permit needed for construction of the pipeline about a week ago.

The court found that the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection had not done proper due diligence in vetting the permit, the latest in a series of setbacks, challenges and cost increases for the embattled pipeline project.

“Mountain Valley continues to review the Court’s decision; however, we are disappointed that MVP’s West Virginia 401 Water Quality Certification has once again been vacated,” said Natalie Cox, vice president of communications and corporate affairs for project developers Equitrans Midstream Corp. “We appreciate the diligent efforts of the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection and will continue to work with the agency on a path forward to completing this critical infrastructure project safely and responsibly.”

Total project work is “nearly 94% complete,” according to Cox.

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., condemned the ruling during an interview with WV News.

“It’s just so mind-boggling why the 4th Circuit has seemed like they’ve done everything in their power to make sure that we don’t have necessary resources to be energy independent,” he said.

The project’s developers are “concerned,” Manchin said.

“They’re only going to go so long,” he said.

Still, he sees the project as a much-needed component of the nation’s energy infrastructure, Manchin said.

“There’s not another project in America that would put this much product in the marketplace this quick — I understand that within six months they can be in operation,” he said. “The Carolinas need this product; the country needs the flow of the product; and West Virginia needs to be able to move the product. It’s a win-win from that standpoint.”

“Once again, a key natural gas pipeline project is needlessly being held up in court,” said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., in a tweet Tuesday afternoon. “This most recent roadblock of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, which is 94% complete, underscores the need for real reforms to our permitting and judicial review processes.”