Federal officials halt Atlantic Coast pipeline construction

Federal officials have ordered that construction be halted on the Atlantic Coast pipeline, days after a federal appeals court threw out two key permits for building the 600-mile natural gas pipeline.

On Monday, a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service permit was "arbitrary and capricious" regarding its effect on five threatened or endangered species.

The judges also vacated a right-of-way permit for the pipeline to pass underneath the Blue Ridge Parkway.

The pipeline is slated to start in West Virginia and run through Virginia and North Carolina.

In a statement, Dominion Energy said it is working to resolve the issues holding up construction.