Cow Knob Salamander poses problem for Atlantic Coast Pipeline

Cow Knob Salamander. Photo by Steve Johnson, VWC board member

The Oct. 13, 2015 edition of Richmond Times-Dispatch features an article by Rex Springston about the Cow Knob Salamander, found almost exclusively on Shenandoah Mountain in the GWNF.  This rare creature has been protected by a Conservation Agreeement between the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service since 1994.  This Conservation Agreement is now  being put to a test.  The proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline route would cut right through Cow Knob Salamander habitat as it crosses Shenandoah Mountain south of Rt. 250, violating the agreement and the GWNF management plan.

Read "Salamander found nowhere else in the world lies in path of proposed pipeline" by Rex Springston, Richmond Times-Dispatch, Oct. 13, 2015

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