Johnstonian News
From staff reports
SELMA — Mayor Cheryl Oliver on Monday welcomed a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the Atlantic Coast Pipeline.
The 7-2 decision will allow the pipeline to cross under a 600-foot section of the Appalachian Trail.
The ruling, Oliver said, “is great news for Johnston County and its municipalities.”
The pipeline will bring natural gas from West Virginia to homes and businesses in Eastern North Carolina, including Johnston.
“I have been a strong supporter of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline for years,” Oliver said in a statement. “My reasons have been straightforward. We need more natural gas in Selma and Johnston County. Our supply is constrained, and that’s bad news for our energy bills at home and even worse news for our ability to attract new job creators.”
Oliver serves on the county’s Economic Development Advisory Board.
“The majority of requests for information that come through our Johnston County Economic Development Office from a variety of industries are requiring access to natural gas,” she noted.
The pipeline will pay taxes that will benefit Johnstonians, Oliver said. “From 2021-2027 alone, Johnston County is estimated to receive over $12.5 million in property tax revenue from the pipeline,” she said. “That revenue can be used to support additional economic-development ventures that will improve our quality of life.”
Oliver said it was past time for the pipeline to move forward. “The Atlantic Coast Pipeline has been delayed time and time again by political forces largely from outside Selma, outside Johnston County and outside North Carolina,” she said. “The Supreme Court decision ends those delays. Now the pipeline can be built, thousands of good jobs can be created, and we can get the domestically produced natural gas our economy desperately needs. This is exciting news for Selma and Johnston County. Our future is brighter because of this decision.”
Read more in the Johnstonian News.