100+ Groups Call on Bank of America to Drop Support for Atlantic Coast Pipeline

More than 100 organizations today called on Bank of America to publicly commit to no further financing for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline and for Bank of America to urge others not to invest in the pipeline project.

In a letter to Bank of America's CEO, the coalition of groups wrote, "As lead arranger and bookrunner for a loan to Atlantic Coast Pipeline, LLC, and especially as a multinational corporation that calls North Carolina home, Bank of America has a special responsibility to drop its support for this reckless project. Therefore, ahead of Bank of America's annual general meeting (AGM) in Charlotte, we call on Bank of America to publicly commit to no further financing for the ACP, and to urge other investors to do the same."

The letter articulates the dwindling demand and financial viability of the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline, the onslaught of legal and regulatory challenges and losses, the project's environmental racism, its threats to livelihoods and public health and its devastating effects on the climate and the environment.

"The proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline is neither needed nor wanted, and it reeks of environmental injustice," said Donna Chavis, senior campaigner at Friends of the Earth. "Bank of America will share blame for the environmental disruption caused by this project. The pipeline would devastate diverse communities, cultures, ecosystems and the climate along its route."

The proposed ACP is two years behind schedule and substantially over budget. Duke Energy recently estimated the project cost at $7 billion-$7.8 billion -- some one-third higher than the original $5.1 billion -- with full operation pushed back to 2021.

If completed, the ACP would be a 600-mile, 42-inch diameter pipeline carrying fracked gas from the Marcellus Shale of West Virginia through Virginia to North Carolina.

Organizations that signed the letter include the North Carolina Poor People's Campaign, Ecological Devastation Committee; Friends of the Earth U.S.; Oil Change International; Sierra Club; Hip Hop Caucus; Christians For The Mountains; Natural Resources Defense Council; and United Labor Unions Local 100.