Category: Environment
-
What’s the Hold-up on the Surry-Skiffes Permit?
by James A. Bacon In the late summer of 2015, Dominion Virginia Power issued grave warnings that residents and businesses of the Williamsburg-Newport News area could face electricity blackouts if the power company didn’t quickly receive permits to build the proposed 500 kV Surry-Skiffes Creek transmission line. When Dominion shuts down its aging, coal-fired units…
-
Dueling Polls on the Pipeline Issue
A month ago, the Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN) published the results of a poll that found that 55% of Virginians opposed Governor Terry McAuliffe in his backing of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) and the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP). Only 28% of respondents endorsed the pipeline plans. Yesterday the Virginia Chamber of Commerce released a…
-
More Monitoring of Possum Point Groundwater
The Department of Environmental Quality has told Dominion Virginia Power to add nine new monitoring wells at its Possum Point Power Station and submit samples on a bi-weekly basis to get a better read on whether groundwater from its coal ash pits is contaminating neighbors’ drinking water. Tests in private wells near the power station have…
-
Amidst Abundant Rain, Eastern Virginia Still Faces Water Shortages
by James A. Bacon After getting soaked with rain over the past two weeks, most Virginians would find it difficult to imagine that the Old Dominion could ever face a water shortage. But the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) has been thinking beyond next week’s weather forecast, and while there are no immediate threats to…
-
How Solar Subsidies Might Backfire in Accomack
by James A. Bacon Back in April, John VanKesteren told the Accomack County Board of Supervisors that he and his family wanted to build an 80-megawatt solar facility on their family farm. The 200-acre site they had selected was an ideal location: less than 1,000 yards from a power station. The family, organizing under the name of…
-
The Economics of Coal Ash Disposal
To cap coal ash pits in existing locations or to haul it off to landfills is the multibillion dollar question facing the electric utility industry. by James A. Bacon The debate over coal ash hasn’t gone away — it’s just morphed. For much of the year, public attention focused on how to de-water millions of tons of coal-combustion residue…
-
Gas Pipeline Approvals Out of His Hands, Guv Says
Governor Terry McAuliffe says he can’t stop the planned Atlantic Coast Pipeline even if he wanted to — and he really doesn’t want to. Responding to a question on WTOP’s “Ask the Governor,” McAuliffe said he supports the project as a boon to manufacturing jobs and as an alternative to transporting natural gas over roads…
-
Can Industrial Energy Efficiency Help Virginia Meet Its Clean Power Plan Goals?
by James A. Bacon By investing more aggressively in industrial efficiency, Virginia manufacturers could reduce carbon-dioxide emissions by 2.6 million tons annually by 2030 while saving themselves a cumulative $4.1 billion. That’s the conclusion of a new study, “State Ranking of Potential Carbon Dioxide Emission Reductions through Industrial Energy Efficiency,” published earlier this month by the…
-
Regulators Grant Water Permit for Chesterfield Power Station
by James A. Bacon The State Water Control Board approved today the reissue of a waste-water permit at the Chesterfield Power Station, the largest fossil-fueled power plant in Dominion Virginia Power’s generating fleet. Among other features, the permit covers the de-watering of coal ash as the utility moves toward a long-term disposal of the potentially…
-
A Matter of Public Necessity
Eastern Virginia and eastern North Carolina need more natural gas, and the Atlantic Coast Pipeline is the most cost-effective way to to deliver it, say the four pipeline partners. by James A. Bacon Two years ago, four electric and gas utilities announced the formation of a joint venture, the Atlantic Coast Pipeline. The 600-mile project, the partners…
-
Should Terry McAuliffe Heed This Poll?
by James A. Bacon A poll commissioned by the Chesapeake Climate Action Network shows strong public opposition to the Atlantic Coast Pipeline and strong support for tougher restrictions on the disposal of coal ash. Twenty-eight percent of Virginia voters support Governor Terry McAuliffe’s backing of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline and the Mountain Valley Pipeline while 44%…
-
Atlantic Coast Pipeline Hires Construction Contractor
A decision by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) regarding the Atlantic Coast Pipeline isn’t expected until next year. But Atlantic Coast Pipeline LLC, a joint venture whose managing partner is Richmond-based Dominion, announced today that it has signed a construction contract with Spring Ridge Constructors International (SRC) to build the 600-mile project. SRC, a…
-
Testing the Impact of Solar
Virginia has been slow to embrace small-scale solar energy, but Dominion’s Solar Partnership Program could show how to integrate variable solar generation into local distribution systems. by James A. Bacon The biggest solar farm built in Virginia to date isn’t very big by anybody’s standards — only 2.5 megawatts, enough to power about 500 homes. But Dominion Virginia…
-
Solar Farm 101
A book entitled “Solar Farms for Dummies” would never sell. Once constructed, solar farms are so simple to maintain that the biggest job is cutting the grass. by James A. Bacon Does anyone wonder how a solar farm works? From an electro-mechanical standpoint, it’s remarkably simple — nothing like a gas-fired power plant with its…
-
Bacon Bits
There are so developments today in stories that Bacon’s Rebellion has been following that I am compelled curtail my usual bloviating and turn the commentary over to readers. A wise policy. The University of Virginia’s College at Wise has earned a worthwhile distinction: It is ranked 1st nationally in public liberal arts colleges for graduating…