Court Rules Dominion Virginia Coal Plant Permit Illegal

RICHMOND, Virginia, August 11, 2009 (ENS) - Clean energy advocates in Virginia are declaring victory, after a Richmond Circuit Court judge ruled today that the State Air Pollution Control Board violated federal environmental law in permitting Dominion Virginia Power's coal-fired power plant in Wise County in the southwest corner of the state.

Judge Margaret P. Spencer agreed with a coalition of environmental groups that the "escape hatch" in Dominion's Maximum Achievable Control Technology, MACT, permit rendered that permit unlawful.

The Clean Air Act's MACT program regulates emissions of hazardous air toxics such as mercury, which can cause neurological deficits in fetuses, infants and young children.

Judge Spencer ruled that the "mercury emission limit ... must be set 'irrespective of cost or achievability,'" and that the "escape hatch" was "violative of the laws addressing pre-construction mandates."

The judge's ruling granted the coalition's requested relief, which was to invalidate the MACT permit.

Dominion, which says it started construction a week after the Virginia air board approved the permits in June 2008, has said the plant is about 20 percent complete.

Construction equipment at the site of Dominion's proposed Wise County Power Plant. September 7, 2007. (Photo by Matt Wasson)

"This is an important victory for the health and welfare of Virginians. Once a coal plant is completed, it may prove very difficult to retrofit after the fact to remedy violations of the Clean Air Act. So this decision is essential for assuring that the Clean Air Act's most stringent health-based standards will be met before a coal plant is constructed, said attorney Cale Jaffe of the Southern Environmental Law Center, who represented the Wise Energy for Virginia Coalition in court.

The coalition's goal is to prevent new coal-burning power plants from being built, end the destructive practice of mountaintop removal coal mining in Virginia, and re-power the Commonwealth with cleaner, less expensive, sustainable energy sources.

"We hope Dominion will take this ruling as a sign that it needs to leave expensive coal-fired power plants in the past, and move quickly toward developing sustainable, clean energy sources for a 21st century green economy," said Jaffe.

But Dominion spokesman Dan Genest said the company has no intention of abandoning its partially completed power plant.

"Dominion is pleased that today’s decision upholds virtually all of the conditions in both air permits, which may be the most stringent in the country," said Genest. "We expect the remaining issue regarding mercury emissions will be resolved in a manner that will allow the Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center to be completed on schedule."

In addition to the challenge on the mercury permit, the coalition also sued the Air Pollution Control Board in July 2008 for issuing a permit that failed to adequately limit emissions from the coal plant of 5.4 million tons a year of carbon dioxide, small particles of soot, and other so-called "conventional" pollutants.

On this issue, the court upheld the "Prevention of Significant Deterioration" permit, regulating conventional pollutants.

The coalition says that although it is promoted as a state-of-the-art clean coal facility, the power plant "uses outdated technology that will result in annual emissions of 5.4 million tons of carbon dioxide - equivalent to the annual carbon output of all the vehicles on the road in metropolitan Richmond."

The Wise County plant also will intensify the environmental destruction wrought by mountaintop removal mining, in which companies blast the tops off Appalachian mountains to expose coal seams and dump rock, rubble and slurry in nearby valleys, destroying hundreds of streams and ecosystems, according to the plaintiff groups.

Some 42,500 Virginians signed petitions and sent letters and comments to state and company officials opposing the project.

Tom Cormons of Appalachian Voices said, "Today's ruling is cause for celebration for Virginians all over the state who've opposed the permitting of this plant from the beginning. It underscores the dangers and costs of increased reliance on coal and we hope it will help spur an aggressive move toward clean energy that supplies electricity needs without polluting Virginia's air or destroying its mountains."

The Wise Energy for Virginia Coalition has raised a host of concerns about the Wise County coal plant, including air pollution and the health of the local community, water quality, mountaintop removal coal mining, and the impacts of the plant's carbon emissions on global warming.

Speaking for coalition member Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards, Kathy Selvage said, "For the citizens of southwest Virginia this ruling today will provide a longer and healthier life. The Commonwealth should be moving swiftly toward producing the energy we need through non-polluting means like the BP-Dominion wind farm proposed for Wise County to further strengthen the health of the people and the environment."

Glen Besa of the Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club said, "We would urge Dominion to reassess its decision to build this coal plant. The ruling today is related to air pollution, but Dominion really needs to consider alternatives such as efficiency and renewable energy. Now would be a good time."

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