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Va. lawmakers agree to extend moratorium on coal ash cleanup permits

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Va. lawmakers agree to extend moratorium on coal ash cleanup permits

Virginia regulators and utilities would have another year to evaluate the "clean closure" of coal ash ponds and the potential for beneficial reuse under legislation approved by the Virginia General Assembly.

The Virginia House of Delegates voted unanimously on March 6 to approve a substitute version of S.B. 807. The Senate on March 7 agreed to the substitute, which now is in the hands of Gov. Ralph Northam.

The bill requires the director of the state Department of Environmental Quality to "suspend, delay, or defer" issuing any permit tied to the close of coal ash ponds until July 1, 2019. This would not impact the ability to issue a permit for closing impoundments where the coal ash has already been removed, is currently being removed or is being processed for recycling or any beneficial use project.

Specifically, this impacts Dominion Energy Virginia's closure plans for coal ash impoundments at its Possum Point, Bremo Bluff, Chesterfield and Chesapeake power stations.

The amended version of the legislation requires Dominion Energy Virginia to issue a request for proposals by July 15 tied to studying the amount of coal ash suitable for recycling, the cost of recycling coal ash and "the potential market demand for material recycled from such coal ash." The Dominion Energy Inc. subsidiary must report these findings by Nov. 15 in the form of a business plan presented to top state lawmakers, including the governor, as well as the directors of the departments of Environmental Quality and Conservation and Recreation.

The new bill comes after the General Assembly in April 2017 adopted then-Gov. Terry McAuliffe's recommendations to temporarily halt permitting for coal ash pond closures until at least May 2018 in order to address "tremendous public concern."

The law directed Dominion Energy Virginia, known legally as Virginia Electric and Power Co., to assess groundwater or surface water pollution, evaluate the excavation and potential recycling or reuse of coal ash residuals, and evaluate the potential of moving the coal ash to "dry, lined storage in an appropriately permitted and monitored landfill."

Dominion Energy Virginia on Dec. 1, 2017, released an independent assessment that concluded closing ash ponds in place at three of the four sites is the least-cost and lowest-risk option. More than 25 million tons of ash is stored in ponds at Dominion's Possum Point, Bremo Bluff and Chesterfield power stations, according to the report.

Dominion Energy is one of several utilities that recently released data showing groundwater contamination at coal ash ponds, but said it is moving forward to clean and close these sites "as quickly as we can."