Bill Requiring Dominion to Clean Up Coal Ash Sent to Governor’s Desk

Richmond, VA - Today, in a sweeping 98-2 victory, Virginia passed legislation that will protect Virginia’s water by requiring responsible cleanup of more than 28 million tons of coal ash in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. The bill requires Dominion Energy to permanently deal with the toxic legacy of fossil fuels. The law is now on its way to the Governor’s desk.

The bill requires that the coal ash at four sites – Chesapeake, Chesterfield, Bremo and Possum Point – be recycled into building material or excavated to lined landfills. In recognition of the threat coal ash poses to water, SB1355 also requires Dominion Energy, who owns all four sites, to offer municipal water hookups or water testing to residents within one-half mile of the coal ash basins, in addition to biennial reporting on progress, plans and water quality. Furthermore, the bill requires the prioritization of local workers and supports local manufacturing through the required recycling of at least 6.8 million cubic yards, or approximately one quarter of the coal ash in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.

In response, Kate Addleson, Director of the Sierra Club Virginia Chapter, stated:

“Affected community members and activists' tireless work led to today’s legislative victory, which will begin to put an end to Dominion’s insidious pollution of iconic Virginia rivers and the groundwater of local communities. For too long monopoly utilities have gotten away with inadequately dealing with toxic coal ash, at the cost of the communities living around the leaking pits. In the future, we must work to strengthen the standards passed today and expand them to the remaining coal ash sites in Virginia.

We will stay vigilant as this cleanup proceeds, to ensure that public health and the environment are protected and that customers are properly considered by the State Corporation Commission.”