BLUE RIDGE ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE LEAGUE
4617 Pearl Rd ~ Raleigh NC 27610 ~ Phone (919) 345-3673 ~ Email: therese.vick@gmail.com

PRESS RELEASE

For Immediate Release
February 11, 2019

Contact:
Therese Vick, therese.vick@gmail.com

Documents Reveal North Carolina Governor Colluding with Atlantic Coast Pipeline to Monitor Pipeline Opponents

Raleigh- Documents obtained through the North Carolina Public Records Act by Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League (BREDL) show that the Cooper administration is collaborating with the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) in their surveillance of opponents statewide and in communities impacted by the pipeline. The records came from the Department of Public Safety (DPS).

BREDL community organizer Therese Vick requested the records from DPS in June 2018. The over 200 pages of emails describe how ACP has coordinated numerous meetings with state and local law enforcement, monitored social media accounts of individuals and organizations, events at academic institutions and even suggested that state law enforcement also monitor Mountain Valley Pipeline-Southgate opponents.

After reviewing the records, Vick observed that “Governor Cooper seems more concerned about protecting the Atlantic Coast Pipeline than the farmers and families in its path. BREDL sent him a letter last March asking him to protect people in communities from pipeline security personnel (March letter). We are still waiting for his response. Cooper should be protecting people, not pipelines.” The documents also detail surveillance of pipeline opponents in Virginia.

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Copies of DPS records available on request