Below is the letter Rev. Dr. Jennifer Copeland, Executive Director of the NC Council of Churches has delivered to Governor Roy Cooper, DEQ Secretary Michael Regan, and NC policy staff.
Following is contact information for you to take action. You are invited to share this and please amplify NCCC’s Governing Board Policy Statement opposing fracked gas pipelines.
As people of faith, we proclaim our belief that our world is God’s creation, that God sees it as good, and that it is ours to protect and maintain.
May it be so!
January 25, 2018
Friends,
As pressure mounts and decisions are imminent in the Atlantic Coast Pipeline process, I write to share the perspective of the North Carolina Council of Churches, the 18 denominations and 6200 congregations we represent.
It should come as no surprise that we do not look favorably on this pipeline proposal. Much of what we think can be extrapolated from the Policy Statement opposing fracked gas pipelines since the Atlantic Coast Pipeline will be full of fracked gas. The NC Council of Churches has a long history of standing in the breach for the environment, predating even the landmark Clean Water and Clean Air Acts. Our opposition to this pipeline is consistent with the values we have long held. So, if you’re looking for some high “moral” ground on which to stand in opposing it, we’re happy to help with that.
Here is part of speech I delivered at a press conference last year opposing the pipeline:
We start with the believers, the believers in climate change, the believers in renewable energy, the believers in environmental justice, the believers in responsible regulation. We work with these people to help us advocate with and educate on behalf of the others. And for my part as the leader of the NC Council of Churches, representing 18 distinct denominations and over 6200 congregations, I start with people of faith.
As people of faith and in my case, the Christian faith, we have a God-given responsibility to care for creation. It is the single greatest gift of the creator to the creatures. Without it, we don’t exist. Without respecting and maintaining the precarious and tender balance that allows life on this planet, we won’t survive. Make no mistake, the creation would be far better off without humans running other creatures into extinction well before their time and devouring plant life at a record pace. Studies have shown the environment will do just fine without us.
So, my appeal for us today is selfish in some ways. I want humans to survive, which means we’ve got to take care of the gift of creation we’ve been given. If we don’t, God and the creation will go on without us. This is a fact, my friends, and we need to start telling people this truth.
I’m a firm believer in the truth. But if I don’t know the truth, then I’m not really choosing between right and wrong, good and bad; I’m just doing what I do without knowing the moral implications of my actions. In blissful ignorance, I continue supporting the disastrous use of fossil fuels by my habits, my investments, and my commitments. But when people know the truth, really know it, then they have to make a choice. When I know that methane — the element that leaks from natural gas pipelines — is 84 times more detrimental to the atmosphere than carbon dioxide, I must make a choice. When I know that fracking — the method used to obtain the natural gas that will flow through this pipeline — causes irreparable damage to drinking water and creates seismic instability, I must make a choice. When I know that pipelines cut through pristine landscapes and across tribal lands, I must make a choice. I can keep doing what I’m doing, for sure, but now I know that what I am doing is an affront to creation, a violation of the gift of creation. Now I know that what I’m doing is a sin.
We need to tell people this truth. We need to know the truth about the choices we make. May God empower us all to choose life, now and forever more. Thank you.
We hope all of you and Governor Cooper will continue to work diligently to protect the people of North Carolina by protecting the environment they call home.
Best, j
Jennifer E. Copeland, Ph.D.
Executive Director
North Carolina Council of Churches
919-828-6501
http://www.ncchurches.org
Rev. Dr. Jennifer Copeland’s leadership is prophetic and now we must all put our FAITH INTO ACTION to stop this pipeline!
Please make phone calls today in addition to emails and letters. The timing is very critical in the next hours and days.
Blessing upon us all!
Address all requests to Gov. Roy Cooper with copies to the additional officials:
Governor Roy Cooper
Office of the Governor
20301 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-0301
NOTE: To call the Governor and the Governor’s staff, call the Governor’s office request to be connected to the Governor and particular staff listed below: 919-814-2000
Jenny Owen
Director of Policy
Office of the Governor
20301 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-0301
jenni.owen@nc.gov
Sadie Weiner
Director of Communications
Office of the Governor
20301 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-0301
sadie.weiner@nc.gov
Jeremy Tarr
Energy Policy Director
Office of the Governor
20301 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-0301
jeremy.tarr@nc.gov
Secretary Michael S. Regan
N.C. Department of Environmental Quality
217 W. Jones Street
Raleigh, NC 27603
919-707-8622
Michael.Regan@ncdenr.gov
Assistant Secretary Sheila Holman
N.C. Department of Environmental Quality
217 W. Jones Street
Raleigh, NC 27603
919-707-8619
sheila.holman@ncdenr.gov
Director Linda Culpepper
N.C. Division of Water Resources
512 N. Salisbury Street, 7th floor
Raleigh, NC 27604
919-707-9014
linda.culpepper@ncdenr.gov
Dan Hirschman
Senior Deputy Attorney General
114 W. Edenton Street
Raleigh, NC 27603
(919) 716-6600
DHirschman@ncdoj.gov
Blake Thomas
Deputy General Counsel
114 W. Edenton Street
Raleigh, NC 27603
(919) 716-6414
Bthomas@ncdoj.gov
