The bill would encourage methods such as recycling coal ash or building special landfills for the waste.

Waste360 Staff, Staff

April 5, 2017

1 Min Read
Virginia Legislature Weighing Coal Ash Legislation

The Virginia General Assembly is considering legislation that would require power companies to study other methods for closing the coal ash ponds such as recycling the coal ash or moving it to specially designed landfills.

Recommendations from Gov. Terry McAuliffe in the bill would put a one year ban on the closing of coal ash ponds in the state by power companies to allow times for studying the alternatives.

WTOP.om has the story:

Lawmakers in Prince William County have been battling with Dominion Virginia Power over the disposal of tons of the toxic waste at Dominion’s Possum Point Power Station in Dumfries. The power station stopped burning coal in 2003.

“This is an extremely important environmental matter and the Board of County Supervisors has advocated for over a year that we need additional information in order to determine what the best choice is with regard to the forever storage of this coal ash,” said Prince William Supervisor Frank Principi (Woodbridge District).

He said right now the 4 million tons of coal ash sit in holes in the ground at the power station.

“We don’t know today whether or not any of those ponds have caused any groundwater contamination. We don’t have those facts yet.”

Read the full story here.

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