On 20 April 2024, environmental activist and educator Rachel Berkrot was arrested while protesting the Mountain Valley Pipeline, which spans approximately 300 miles (480km) from northwestern West Virginia into southern Virginia in the United States. Environmental advocates have spent a decade fighting the construction of the pipeline, which started in 2018. Since the construction began, the Mountain Valley pipeline has been cited for hundreds of violations and was blocked by court orders until it was pushed through by the Biden administration in mid-2023.

Approval was followed by a wave of peaceful protests and civil disobedience actions, with almost 50 defenders being arrested in multiple counties in both West Virginia and Virginia, some facing charges ranging from trespass and obstruction to conspiracy and abduction.

Rachel Berkrot was charged with three misdemeanors including trespass on a critical infrastructure facility, after chaining herself to an excavator on a mountain in the Jefferson national forest as the project was drilling under the Appalachian trail.

In early December 2024, Rachel Berkrot was spared jail time after a last-minute plea deal in which the critical infrastructure charge was dropped by prosecutors. She received a $500 fine after pleading no contest to trespass and obstruction charges.

In 2024, EQT Corporation became the majority shareholder and operator of the Mountain Valley Pipeline. EQT did not respond to requests from the Guardian to comment on allegations related to attacks on people protesting the pipeline.