On Monday, April 4, 2022, Dominion Energy will hold a meeting to discuss the closure of toxic coal ash ponds near Dumfries.
The meeting will be held from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Potomac Shores Middle School, 17851 Woods View Drive near Dumfries. Dominion Energy tells us Prince William County Potomac District Supervisor Andrea Bailey will share a livestream of the meeting.
In January, Dominion outlined details of a $347 million landfill to be built at Possum Point Power Station, the site of the toxic ponds. Dominion would install a double-liner system in the proposed landfill to hold the coal ash in place forever and take eight years to construct.
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Dominion is required by law to remove coal combustible residuals from their ash ponds; Possum Point has stored in its ponds four million cubic yards of toxic coal ash that will have to be removed.
Then-Gov. Ralph Northam signed that law in 2019, requiring the safe disposal of over 27 million cubic yards of coal ash that are spread out between four sites across Virginia.
Before becoming a gas-fired power plant, Possum Point burned coal to generate electricity from the late 1940s to 2003. Coal ash in the toxic byproduct left over after the coal is burned.
Dominion favors the landfill option and says other coal-ash removal options like recycling or hauling it away by truck or railroad would cost an estimated $1.2 billion and take 10 to 12 years to remove the ash. No timetable has been set for the creation of the landfill should it be approved.
In December, Potomac Local News reported the Washington Commanders is considering Possum Point and Potomac Shores as a possible home for its new football stadium.
Potomac Shores, the neighborhood that has gained the franchise’s attention, would be located seven miles from the coal ash landfill proposed by Dominion Energy.
The discussion has also been made about the possibility of extending Metro’s blue or yellow line from Fairfax to Woodbridge. This possible option has been discussed by transportation authorities in Prince William County as recently as November 2021. The project was estimated to be $30 million to build.
The Commanders plan to decide on its move sometime before 2026 or 2027.
