Supporters of Mountain Valley Pipeline make two important errors when they argue that people support their project. (“Poll shows support for pipeline in Southwest Virginia,” Roanoke Times, January 25, 2021).
An independent polling company conducted a recent survey that found the majority of Southside residents support the construction and completion of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, the natural gas pipeline with a southern terminus slated at the Transco compression station in Chatham.
The survey, conducted by Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy out of North Florida, involved 625 registered Virginian voters interviewed via telephone. The Virginians span all demographic categories through a random selection process that FiveThirtyEight ranks as almost completely unbiased with a below-par simple average error.
Southside Virginia, composing one of six major regions of the commonwealth designated in the poll, pledged support for completion of the MVP by a margin of 57 percent, with an additional 11 percent undecided.