Growth Management & The Environment

Cumulative Environmental Effect Bill Passed in Virginia

There are nearly two dozen proposed merchant plants announced or under construction in Virginia. The Virginia Legislature already made sure each of those plants meet strict environmental standards. Now, they are making sure they are meeting a cumulative standard as well. Virginia's governing body passed a bill authorizing two state environmental agencies to asses the cumulative impact of power plants on air quality when reviewing applications to build new power plants. The Virginia Air Pollution Control Board and the Department of Environmental Quality will equally share environmental analyses with the State Corporation Commission.

Environmental Costs Rising at Southern Company

Atlanta-based Southern Company, one of the South's largest energy suppliers, has spent over $1 billion in the past five years to bring its coal-burning power plants into compliance with federal Clean Air Act regulations. In addition, the company has created a committee that will advise top-level executives within the company on environmentally friendly initiatives. Yet, according to a study made by the National Resources Defense Council, Southern Company was the nation's second-greatest contributor of four pollutants -- carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, mercury and sulfur dioxide -- behind only Columbus, Ohio-based American Electric Power, which owns and runs many power plants in the South. For years Southern Company has promoted itself as one of the lowest cost producers of electric power in the country. That may change soon. The company expects to spend $4 billion over the next 10 years cleaning up is coal-fired power plants as even more strict Clean Air Act laws come into effect.

Duke to Spend $325 Million on Emission Cuts in Triad

A $325 million catalytic reduction project to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions at Duke Energy's Belews Creek Steam Station, the company's largest coal-fired electricity generation facility, is underway. The plant is located in the Piedmont Triad region of North Carolina. Part of the reduction plan includes two structures, each about 25 stories tall, to be built alongside both units of the power plant. Company officials believe the development will reduce the smog component coming from the plant by 80 percent.

Attorney Wants More

The Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) has done a poor job of enforcing environmental laws in Alabama, says Montgomery-based attorney Jere Beasley. Beasley has filed suit in Birmingham federal court on behalf of residents in Anniston, Ala., claiming Monsanto (now Solutia) illegally dumped PCBs in waterways in east Alabama in the 1960s and 1970s. Beasley has asked Gov. Don Siegelman to provide an immediate funding increase for ADEM so that the agency can successfully investigate illegal dumping of toxins by manufacturers in the state.

Group Names Missouri River Most Endangered

The environmental group American Rivers has named the Missouri River the nation's most endangered river for the second consecutive year. The group claims that six dams on the river are endangering fish and wildlife to the point of extinction.

Environmental Group Files Suit

The Missouri Coalition for the Environment has filed suit in federal court to overturn a Corps of Engineers permit allowing the elimination of 29 acres of wetlands so that a 1.2 million-square-foot shopping center can be built. The Coalition maintains the destruction of the wetlands is a violation of the Clean Water Act, which prohibits the Corp to issue permits to destroy wetlands if there are alternative sites for a project.

Texas Water Wars

The San Marcos River Foundation is seeking ownership of about 400 billion gallons of water annually from the Guadalupe River Basin so as to ensure flow through the area to the Texas coast on the Gulf of Mexico. The group maintains the water is needed to support estuaries and other watersheds located near the coast. However, central Texas business leaders, including those in Austin and San Marcos as well as 10 other water organizations disagree with the foundation's request. The foundation's application with the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission was filed in 2000 and targets 1.3 million acre-feet of water per year for conservation.