Chesapeake City Council Reverses Course, Approves Controversial Rezoning for Virginia Gas Compressor Station 

Council’s unusual revote and restricted public comment draw accusations of exclusion and environmental injustice

CHESAPEAKE, VA — In a contentious and racially divided decision, the Chesapeake City Council voted 6-3 on Tuesday night to approve a controversial rezoning request from Virginia Natural Gas (VNG), paving the way for a new compressor station 900 feet from several historically Black and working-class neighborhoods. Before the council meeting, dozens of Chesapeake residents and community advocacy groups rallied outside City Hall, holding signs and chanting demands for environmental justice. The demonstration brought together neighbors — including impacted residents, faith leaders, and civic league members —  who all made clear their strong opposition to the proposed compressor station.

The council’s decision follows an unusual revote that was held to accommodate the applicant, VNG. This dramatic reversal overturned the council’s previous decision to reject the rezoning in June, when an overwhelming number of residents filled city chambers to voice their opposition, but VNG failed to appear. However, in a rare move, councilmembers brought the matter back for reconsideration, giving it a second public hearing and vote. Councilmembers changed the rules at this second hearing to limit public input in a way that favored VNG. 

“Tuesday evening, the Chesapeake City Council demonstrated what injustice to communities of color looks and feels like: gut-wrenching,” said Lynn Godfrey, Environmental Justice Community Leader. “After voting to deny the rezoning just two weeks ago, they came back and betrayed the people in impacted communities, who showed up to standing-room-only capacity and expressed their valid and passionate concerns for their community and family to a cold council. However, three councilmembers stood with the community, the three and only Black councilmembers, King, Smith, and Ward, we say thank you.” 

Residents and advocacy groups have condemned the council’s move to approve the rezoning as a blatant disregard of environmental justice for the community. Despite overwhelming public opposition and impassioned testimony from residents of Georgetown, Crestwood, and Eva Gardens, councilmembers advanced the VNG proposal. Community members argued to no avail that the compressor station will further burden their neighborhoods — already carrying disproportionate levels of industrial pollution — with even greater health and environmental risks.

“This vote sends a disturbing message: that the voices of Black and working-class residents can be ignored to make room for corporate agendas,” said Leianis Gunn, Hampton Roads Organizer at Chesapeake Climate Action Network. “We showed up and hotly spoke out against this project at every single hearing, and even had a short-lived victory. But when it mattered the most, the council silenced our voices to give a gas company another chance. We are disappointed by the council’s choice to prioritize the convenience of a gas company over the well-being of the people they were elected to serve.”

Adding to the controversy, councilmembers voted to suspend their usual procedures, capping discussions of agenda items at just one hour and drastically reducing the number of residents who were allowed to speak. Many were turned away without the opportunity to voice their concerns about the facility’s impacts on their health, safety, property values, and quality of life. Residents and civic leagues argue that this move further disenfranchised affected neighborhoods, calling into question the council’s commitment to environmental justice and meaningful public participation.

“We saw blatant racism, miscarriage of justice, a lack of humanity and compassion firsthand for the last hearing at the city council,”  said Joseph Davis, Eva Gardens Civic League’s President. “The time constraint of an hour placed on the compressor station rezoning discussion left three-fourths of the speakers without an opportunity to voice their concerns. Many studies continue to show an increase in many respiratory, heart diseases, and cancers with a decrease in average life expectancy for all residents within a 1 – 2-mile radius of polluting facilities. This will place greater issues on current and pre-existing medical and health costs already in these communities, which are already strapped for resources for their families. This is poor leadership and a miscarriage of justice within our city council and elective officials, who are given the task to protect the welfare and morale of our citizens. We, the communities, prayer warriors, and advocates, must push on harder in this fight so our voices will be heard and not be silent for wrongdoers of the poor and the injustices of our health, communities, and democracy.”

###

Chesapeake Climate Action Network is the first grassroots organization dedicated exclusively to raising awareness about the impacts and solutions associated with global warming in the Chesapeake Bay region. Founded in 2002, CCAN has been at the center of the fight for clean energy and wise climate policy in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC.

Dominion Energy’s IRP Misses the Mark on Clean Energy Commitments 

SCC orders Dominion to adopt a 20-year outlook and include scenarios for retiring fossil fuel plants in next energy roadmap

RICHMOND, VA – The Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) issued an order yesterday accepting Dominion Energy’s latest Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) as “legally sufficient,” while pointing out several shortcomings of the Plan that the SCC expects to be corrected in the Company’s next IRP.

The SCC’s order includes several important directives aimed at improving Dominion’s future planning. Notably, the SCC highlighted that Dominion’s current IRP covers only a 15-year horizon, falling short of the 20-year timeframe necessary to fully account for the requirements of the Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA) to reach 100% carbon-free electricity by 2045. The SCC also directed Dominion to produce at least one scenario fully aligned with the VCEA, including the scheduled retirements of fossil fuel plants. 

The IRP’s shortcomings are compounded by failures to model Commission-mandated energy efficiency targets and unnecessary build limits on battery storage. The SCC also noted that “land use challenges” are limiting the deployment of solar energy. Currently, 57 counties and cities in Virginia have bans or severe restrictions that make utility-scale solar development difficult or impossible. Local restrictions on solar development are systematically hindering the state’s progress toward a clean energy future and undermining the cost-effective transition required by law. 

Victoria Higgins, Chesapeake Climate Action Network’s Virginia Director, released the following statement: 

“The Commission’s order makes clear that Dominion’s plan, while ticking enough boxes to be deemed legally sufficient, falls far short of the mark in terms of providing a roadmap towards the least-cost and most efficient clean electricity portfolio required by law. At the end of the day, Dominion plans to build tens of billions of dollars worth of gas infrastructure to primarily serve the needs of Big Tech’s massive data center campuses. It’s a bad deal for Virginia.”

###

Chesapeake Climate Action Network is the first grassroots organization dedicated exclusively to raising awareness about the impacts and solutions associated with global warming in the Chesapeake Bay region. Founded in 2002, CCAN has been at the center of the fight for clean energy and wise climate policy in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC.

Standing Strong for Chesapeake: How Community Voices Are Defeating Polluting Projects

A blog by Michelle Ueltschi, CCAN’s Carol Brantley Environmental Justice Fellow

As I approached the Chesapeake City Hall, heart pounding, I had no idea what to expect. The closest I’d ever been to a City Council meeting was watching Leslie Knope on Parks and Recreation! Entering the chamber, I was immediately shocked. A sea of Chesapeake residents, all wearing bright red and proudly sporting “No Data Center” stickers, took me by surprise.

I knew the council was voting on the data center that night, but I had no idea how much the community was strongly united against it. But my real focus was the first agenda item of the night: the proposal for a Chesapeake compressor station that would bring more toxic pollution to our community. 

Why the Dangers of This Compressor Station Hit Close to Home

Virginia Natural Gas (VNG) is proposing to build a new compressor station in a residential neighborhood in Chesapeake. Compressor stations are facilities placed along natural gas pipelines to boost pressure and keep gas moving over long distances. These stations release toxic air pollutants and greenhouse gases, including methane and cancer-causing gases like benzene. This compressor station is planned to be located within five miles of a school where my mom works, making it a very personal issue for me.

As I’ve been talking to people about this project while canvassing and at festivals, I’m inspired by the passion and energy Chesapeake residents have shown in fighting to protect our community. I’ve heard stories from longtime residents longing for the preservation of their rural communities.

I’ve listened to grandparents recount stories of their childhoods, sharing how they have seen the city become more polluted, storms getting worse, and that they fear the future for their families. During these conversations, CCAN and other organizations gathered hundreds of signatures from Chesapeake residents telling the city council that they do not want this project built in their community. 

A Landmark Victory: Chesapeake City Council Rejects Polluting Projects

That night, after hours of testimony and debate, the Chesapeake City Council made a landmark decision: they voted to deny Virginia Natural Gas’s sweeping rezoning request! This request would have paved the way for the compressor station and the data center. Its rejection was a huge win for residents, civic leagues, and environmental groups that raised environmental justice concerns about pollution, safety, and the disproportionate burden these projects would place on already disadvantaged communities. 

I thought we had won that fight. I celebrated, closed my research tabs, and shifted my focus to other priorities. But the next morning, I received an email: Virginia Natural Gas had requested a reconsideration from the City Council. Suddenly, we were back at square one. I was confused and angry; why does one company get endless opportunities, while we have to block every single door just to stay safe? 

Nevertheless, we got back to work. With only a month to act, our coalition put together a bold plan to urge the City Council to stand firm and listen to the voices of Chesapeake residents who oppose this project.

Join Us to Protect Chesapeake’s Future

Here’s the bottom line: the only way we can ensure this project does not harm our communities is to pack the city council chamber on July 15th at 6:30 PM. We need to show the city council how many of their constituents are against this project, and remind them we are watching their vote closely. 

Before the meeting, at 5:15, CCAN will be holding a mini rally to prepare residents to speak out against the project. We will be providing shirts, coaching residents on how to address their representatives, and we will have free snacks! Can you make it out to the mini rally or the city council meeting on July 15th? Sign up here to let us know you’re coming and bring a friend!

We’ve beat this thing before. Let’s beat it again!

RSVP Here to Attend the Rally and Hearing

About the Author: Michelle Ueltschi (she/her) has been working in Hampton Roads, Virginia as a Carol Brantley Environmental Justice Fellow for the summer of 2025. She has recently graduated from Columbia University with a degree in sustainable development.

As a Hampton Roads native, Michelle found her passion for the environment at a young age and spent many years in high school advocating for the local environment and working to protect her hometown of Virginia Beach.

Now, after finding her passion for climate justice at Columbia, Michelle is bringing the knowledge and experience she gained in New York City back to the Chesapeake Bay!

IMG_0580 (1)

Texas’s Deadly Floods: Failure to Warn

Guadalupe River flood.

A Deadly Storm as a Bellwether for Climate Change

For three days from July 4, a tropical storm brought a deadly deluge to a region of central Texas known as Hill Country, which is considered one of the deadliest places in the US for flash flooding. The worst of it happened in Kerr County, including, tragically, in summer camps with many children. 

Fueled by remnants of Tropical Storm Barry, torrential rainfall surged the river by 25 to 30 feet in under an hour. At times, the water rose one inch every 25 seconds. At the time of writing, more than 100 people are dead, including more than 35 children, with 170 people still missing.

Unfortunately, this is not new. Central Texas – especially the Hill Country – is known as “Flash Flood Alley” due to steep terrain, shallow soils and intense rainfall and has flooded nearly once every decade over the past 100 years.

Even so, it’s getting worse with climate change, and events like this will become more common in this region and elsewhere. Humidity and heat are rising in the Gulf, bringing more moisture. Meanwhile, drought dries out soil, making it less absorbent. When rain does fall, it floods faster and more violently. A new UN report calls worsening droughts “a slow-moving global catastrophe.”

The Need to Be Prepared

But it’s not just about climate change. It’s about emergency preparedness. The region has poor cell service, so warnings from the National Weather Center can sometimes not get through. For years, Texas debated a $1-million flood alert system for Hill Country to prevent disasters just like this. But it was never funded, despite the area’s 50,000 residents and thousands of young campers.

Meanwhile, the Trump Administration is taking aim at every possible agency involved in emergency preparedness, with mass budget cuts and layoffs at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which runs the National Weather Service, the Federal Emergency Management Administration, and more. US National Weather Service budget cuts meant that a veteran warning coordination meteorologist for the region retired early this spring. His role was to work with local communities to help them prepare for events like this, to get the national weather alerts to the community members in need. But he was not replaced, leaving a critical gap just months before the flood. 

In times like this, I often turn to books for advice and understanding. Here are a few recommendations for your own reading. And then, once you’re fired up to do something, join CCAN as an Action Member to plug into your local climate movement.

Books to Deepen your Understanding

The Deluge

By: Stephen Markley
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Year: 2023

The Deluge is a climate thriller. And it is a political epic. And it is so much more.

At nearly 900 pages, spanning a range of decades and characters, it showcases a world responding too slowly to environmental breakdown. There are scientists desperately lobbying for reform, activists risking their lives for visibility and ordinary people watching the weather change everything, including a truly terrifying — and too real scene of a wildfire in downtown Los Angeles.

Markley shows how systemic failure creeps forward through inertia, denial and political dysfunction. Stephen King called it this generation’s Grapes of Wrath.

Choice quote:

As bureaucrats have rediscovered again and again from time immemorial, getting people to do what is in their best interest is often more difficult than unleashing their worst natures.

The Ministry for the Future

By: Kim Stanley Robinson
Publisher: Orbit
Year: 2020

Sometimes, though I wish it weren’t the case, a crisis is needed to catalyze action. The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson opens with a harrowing heatwave in India that kills millions yet leads to the formation of an international agency under the UN, nicknamed the “Ministry for the Future.” Its mandate: to advocate for future generations and protect life on Earth.

What follows is a fascinating mix of fiction and speculative policy, as Robinson explores economic restructuring, geoengineering, climate migration, eco-terrorism, and radical diplomacy. The novel follows a mosaic of voices—scientists, refugees, central bankers, insurgents, bureaucrats—as the world shifts from a state of emergency to one of sustainability.

The novel doesn’t shy away from collapse, but insists that coordinated global action is still possible—even if it’s messy, compromised, and contested. The Ministry for the Future reads like a hybrid of climate fiction and future history, and has become a touchstone for policy thinkers and climate advocates alike. It doesn’t just ask what might happen. It asks what we’re willing to do.

Choice quote:

As bureaucrats have rediscovered again and again from time immemorial, getting people to do what is in their best interest is often more difficult than unleashing their worst natures.

Timefulness

By: Marcia Bjornerud
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Year: 2018

How fast are things changing? To get some perspective, it’s worth going back to the beginning of time. Or at least, the beginning of the earth.

In clear yet gorgeous prose, geologist Marcia Bjornerud introduces readers to the idea of “timefulness” — a sense of planetary history that extends far beyond human timescales. She argues that modern society is “chronically short-sighted,” and that our inability to grasp deep time has left us blind to the consequences of our actions, particularly when it comes to environmental stewardship.

The book blends field stories, geological insight and philosophical reflection, making complex concepts easy to understand. She doesn’t offer doom; she offers perspective.

Choice quote:

It is also not the “end of nature” but, instead, the end of the illusion that we are outside nature. Dazzled by our own creations, we have forgotten that we are wholly embedded in a much older, more powerful world whose constancy we take for granted. As a species, we are much less flexible than we would like to believe, vulnerable to economic loss and prone to social unrest when nature—in the guise of Katrina, Sandy, or Harvey, among others — diverges just a little from what we expect.

The Unmapping

By: Denise S. Robbins
Publisher: Mareas
Year: 2025

Yes, I’m including my own book in this list. But writing it really did help me work through my personal experience of what climate change feels like, and I hope it can do the same for others. My debut novel explores life in a state of emergency through a surreal phenomenon known as “the unmapping”. At 4 am in New York City, all the city’s buildings mysteriously swap places. The Empire State Building ends up on Coney Island and K-town bars are in Queens. The next night, it happens again. It’s a disaster that breaks down the utility grid and leads to thousands of people becoming lost.

The story follows two workers at the city’s Emergency Management Department, tasked with holding the city together as the crisis escalates. As attention slowly turns to stopping the unmapping, the book’s characters navigate a restructured landscape in search of loved ones, safety and meaning.

Many believe it’s a bizarre side effect of global warming, an era when the highly improbable becomes disturbingly routine. I wrote this surreal story with the hope that it would allow the reader to experience how climate change feels. With Texas waters rising at 25 inches per minute, nothing feels stable and everything familiar has become strange — it seems quite possible that the laws of physics will change beneath our feet.

As climate emergencies grow more frequent, the role of emergency workers becomes more vital. In the book, the workers confront the limitations of the systems in place and work to improve them. Ultimately, their job is about saving lives. The real-life decision by Texas officials to forgo a flood warning system that could have saved lives only reinforces the story’s relevance.

Choice quote:

It is hard to say when things started turning around for the better. Is it possible to pinpoint a particular moment when everyone stopped running around trying to live in a broken world and started instead trying to fix it?

What’s Next

YOU can get involved to stop climate change where you live. Join CCAN as an Action Member today. 

Join the Climate Movement

 

Photo at top from Flickr user Richard Masoner with a Creative Commons license

A version of this post was initially published on “This Week, Those Books,” which links the big international story to the world of books. Their aim is to provide crucial context —  from fiction and non-fiction  —  to the shouty, doomscroll news cycle. Read it here.

As RGGI States Forge Ahead on Climate, Will Virginia Get Left Behind?

Climate group praises stronger rules while criticizing Governor Youngkin’s unlawful move to remove Virginia

RICHMOND, VA – Ten Northeast states have agreed to triple the rate of power sector emissions cuts under the Regional Gas Initiative (RGGI), committing to reduce carbon emissions by as much as 10 percent annually from 2027 to 2033. The updated RGGI targets, finalized last week, will require participating states to slash carbon emissions by at least 60% by 2037 compared to 2025 levels, a move widely praised as a demonstration of strong state leadership in the face of federal backsliding on pollution. 

Maryland is among the ten states bound by these new rules, which mark the third major upgrade to RGGI. The program has already helped participating states cut power sector emissions 50 percent since 2005, almost twice as fast as the national average, while raising billions for local investments, including clean energy programs and energy bill assistance. 

Maryland’s Southern neighbor, Virginia, stopped participating in RGGI in 2023, following a directive from Governor Glenn Youngkin, a move that a Floyd County court deemed unlawful and is currently subject to appeal. While Virginia was in RGGI, power plant emissions dropped by more than 22%. In addition, RGGI generated over $800 million in the Commonwealth, supporting flood resilience and energy efficiency programs that directly benefited low-income families and communities vulnerable to flooding. Since withdrawing from RGGI, Virginia is leaving hundreds of millions of dollars on the table each year and has seen emissions rise, while critical funding for these programs dries up.  

Virginia’s Democratic candidate for Governor, Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger, has already stated an intention to rejoin RGGI. 

In response to the new rules, Chesapeake Climate Action Network’s Executive Director, Mike Tidwell, released the following statement:

“For decades, RGGI has delivered results. We are thrilled to see our strong regional partnership take the next step to meet this urgent moment on climate, particularly in the face of catastrophic backsliding in Washington – backsliding that will make energy more expensive for everyday families and saddle communities nationwide with dirtier air and worse health outcomes. And while Marylanders will benefit from the new rules through cleaner air and critical electricity cost-saving programs, Virginians will continue to fall behind as floods worsen and extreme heat sends electricity bills soaring. Leaving RGGI was an illegal, costly mistake.”

#   #   #

Chesapeake Climate Action Network is the first grassroots organization dedicated exclusively to raising awareness about the impacts and solutions associated with global warming in the Chesapeake Bay region. Founded in 2002, CCAN has been at the center of the fight for clean energy and wise climate policy in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC.