The State Water Control Board officially approved Dominion’s permit to dump wastewater into two Virginia rivers January 14.
The wastewater will come from coal ash pits at the Bremo Power Station on the James River and the Possum Point plant on the Potomac River. The board took two separate votes, tallying 5-1 for each permit.
In a previous C-VILLE report about the Bremo Power Station in Fluvanna County, Dominion spokesperson Dan Genest said as soon as the permit was issued, the company would start building two treatment facilities on the property. All wastewater will be treated before it’s discharged, he said.
The Department of Environmental Quality had previously issued the permit, but allowed public comment until December 14.
“We are disappointed that the board voted to approve a lax permit that fails to protect the health of the James River,” says Brad McLane, a senior attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center in Charlottesville. “We are seriously considering an appeal of the permit.”