VA DEQ, EPA, and USACE … last hope to block largest coal plant in Virginia?
Well, after February 1st Dendron Town Council (DTC) Meeting where they approved everything that ODEC Old Dominion Electric Cooperative) wanted, and February 4th Surry Board of Supervisor (BoS) Meeting where they approved everything ODEC wanted, and the Sussex Meeting the same night where they approved everything ODEC wanted … see a trend here? … It looks like the VA DEQ (Department of Environmental Quality), the EPA, and the USACE (US Army Corp of Engineers) may be the last best hope for the folks who are concerned about ODEC’s plans to build Virginia’s largest coal fired baseload 24/7 power plant in the tiny town of Dendron in Surry County, Virginia.
I sometimes wonder at any kind of logic being used in rural counties that are experiencing revenue challenges in the economic turn down we have been experiencing.
I see totally unbelievable decisions being made by our local governments with no thought to how it will affect the Hampton Roads area, the Chesapeake Bay and James River, or the farms that naively think that they will be able to continue farming safely after this plant is operational, or even our little town. Or their thinking that somehow the blood money they have taken and will continue to take from ODEC will protect them against the economic bad times and keep the county going forward, or give them any kind of good sleep at night. Yeah, maybe in the short term, but what about the long term?
What about the downwind and downline affects to people, including children at the Surry County School system? What about the affects upon those who are ill from the particulate matter, mercury, sulfur dioxide, ozone, and more that will be spewed by such a huge plant that makes our town look like it’s a dwarf by comparison? There are so many issues that are not addressed, and all I heard from the proponents of the Cypress Creek Power Plant is that they trust our government and ODEC to do the right thing?!?!
Well, the floodgates are open now. All that stands in their way now is the VA DEQ, the EPA and the USACE.
I have always believed that even in the face of terrible things — because life is full of all kinds of things; good, bad and indifferent — that God is able to take the worst lemons that are dealt to us, and somehow make the best lemonade out of them. I pray that somehow, in some way, that will happen with this situation. I can’t see it now, but I sure hope so.
But I did learn something important about this situation. You can’t fight dollar signs. Logic and facts mean nothing when huge amounts of money are thrown at local governments, churches and people who are suffering from economic turn down.
I will be hoping and praying for that lemonade … because these are the bitterest and most rotten lemons I have every seen.
January 2010 Snow Storm in Virginia
Well, had to cut the time with my family a day short due to the pending snow storm since they were calling for the once a decade or two snow storm here in Virginia. They are calling for a combined accumulation of a 12 inches or more here in our area between overnight last night and overnight Sunday.
Many in the north wouldn’t think twice about that kind of snow storm, but here in the ‘Sunny South’ you don’t get them very often and the State and local governments and the utilities are generally not particularly well prepared for these types of events in the South.
When I lived in up north at the Jersey Shore we had many, many snow storms and ice storms over the years that I lived there, and I can only remember a few in all those years as being particularly dangerous – one was an ice storm in early 70s (beautiful!!! but the black ice was very scary and solid and you had to go about 5mph or less inching along so you didn’t hit the other cars on your way to work), and another was a snow storm while I was pregnant with our second daughter in Feb/March ‘77 – I remember that one because I fell on my hip in a parking lot of solid ice/snow when I was 8 months pregnant (no problems with the fall but I was afraid there might be).
As far as this storm goes for today and tomorrow — January 30 and January 31 2010 — so far, there was a dusting on the roof when we went to sleep late last night but this morning, the roof was heavy with snow, somewhere between 4-6 inches already on the ground when we got up, and the snow was coming down heavy.
Should be an interesting weekend. Picked up some things that can be eaten without much fuss just in case the electricity goes out like it did in the snow storm a decade ago.
We do tend to get some big winter type storms once every decade or so. Here are a couple notable snow/ice storms in Virginia since I moved to Virginia in the mid 80s.
February 1989: This was a month of big swings in the weather for Southeast Virginia. Twice, Norfolk saw record high temperatures in the mid 70°s followed by a significant snowfall. The two storms dumped a record 24.4 inches of snow in Norfolk. Over 14 inches occurred during one 24-hour period. It was the most snow to occur in one month in southeast Virginia in the last 100 years.
It was a shame the kids were sick with bronchitis at the time and couldn’t go outside during that storm. We made a snow man for them and they chose the eyes, nose, and other decorations for the snow man. Even our dog pitched in and added his own decoration, LOL!
After we moved to Southside Virginia (still Hampton Roads but South of the James River) — The Christmas Ice Storm 1998, where we lost power for many days and the after affects seemed to hang on and on into January 1999:
December 23, 1998, “The Christmas Ice Storm”: A major ice storm struck central and southeast Virginia beginning on Wednesday, December 23 and lasting into Friday, December 25, Christmas Day. Icy conditions caused injuries from slips and falls and numerous vehicle accidents. Ice accumulations of up to an inch brought down trees and power lines. Outages were so widespread (400,000 customers on Christmas Eve) that some people were without power for up to ten days.
Snow is generally easier to deal with than ice, but we shall see what happens here in our area this time. We used batteries to light the Christmas Tree in 1998 due to the massive power outage. We are survivors and we just treated it like camping out and played with our batteries, and had kerosene heaters to heat the house so we didn’t really worry about things as much as some. We made coffee on top of the big kerosene heater and broke out our camp stove to cook on as well.
BTW: They were calling for some mix of sleet with the snow for a time today, and it sounds like we may be getting some of that at the moment.
Maybe my Jim will feel up to taking some pictures of the storm later today.
I will try to do updates to this posting throughout the day or make a new posting.
Looks beautiful!
I don’t expect this to be scary on the scale of scary storms up north but I do expect to be really inconvenienced LOL!
ODEC, Surry BOS, Dendron Town Council
Here is a Cree Prophesy that I thought would be appropriate for contemplation with the upcoming public meeting about ODEC’s proposed coal fired 24/7 baseload power plant (Cypress Creek Power Station) in the Town of Dendron, Surry County, Virginia, which will affect all of Hampton Roads:
When all the trees have been cut down,
when all the animals have been hunted,
when all the waters are polluted,
when all the air is unsafe to breathe,
only then will you discover you cannot eat money.
And here is an article that speaks volumes on this topic:
The announcement mentions other contracts to buy power from a landfill gas-to-energy project, a hydroelectric project and another wind power project yet to be built.
Bravo.
It’s heartening to see a commitment to clean power, and any efforts — however small-scale — to purchase and transmit electricity generated by renewable sources.
That only leaves one big, dirty elephant in the room: ODEC’s proposed coal plant in Dendron. This is the $4 billion coal-fired facility planned for a 1,600-acre site in this tiny town in Surry County. If built, it could generate up to 1,500 megawatts, enough to supply power to 375,000 customers.
By comparison, the 101 megawatts from the Pennsylvania wind farm is a puff of air.
How true! The Cypress Creek Power Station would be (if approved) Virginia’s largest coal fired power plant. And although ODEC likes to tout it as being like the Clover, VA plant which is 3 miles from the tiny town of Clover, the Cypress Creek coal plant (if approved) will be twice the size of the Clover Plant and well within a mile of our homes in Dendron, VA.
So it bears repeating:
When all the trees have been cut down,
when all the animals have been hunted,
when all the waters are polluted,
when all the air is unsafe to breathe,
only then will you discover you cannot eat money.
A Monument for Bruno in Austin Texas
As Urmas, a fellow Admin at Scot’s Newsletter Forums posted about Ken/Helio’s beautiful posting:
A very touching tribute – one that comes with a heartwarming announcement – by Ken Starks aka Helios:
What a wonderful monument to Bruno’s life! Ken/Helio has just announced the initial planning of the Bruno Knaapen Technology Learning Center! It will be built in Austin, Texas, and it will serve those who need it most.
Ken/Helio’s posting about this wonderful Monument to Bruno will be added to Bruno’s page here on my blog along with Jack’s, Eric’s and any others that are posted.
Bruno … Remembering a dear friend
With great sadness, I finally was able to put together a small tribute piece about Bruno, one of the best people I know … who will be leaving us soon. Here’s a quote from the piece:
Bruno, what to say of one of the most dedicated, patient, and selfless people I have ever ‘met’ on the Internet, or maybe even in real life.
Bruno, in many ways, you remind me of my Dad (rest his soul), and my Jim — which is a very high compliment, IMHO. There is another great Open Source guy, Klok who was of a similar mind set as all of these men — you can find his story here: Klok Memorial.
For those reading this article, who may not know who Bruno is, Bruno is a wonderful man with seemingly limitless patience and dedication. He is from Amsterdam, in the Netherlands. He has a family that he loves and that love him — and despite that, he was able to spend thousands and thousands of hours sharing his knowledge, or learning what he needed to convey to Linux Explorers day in and day out … to only God knows how many Linux Explorers (those who have never used Linux and desire to learn and explore Linux).
Read the rest here.
Bruno, you are loved by so many, and will be missed more than you know.
God speed to you, and may you have good days ahead, and ones as painless as possible. Our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family, and your friends.
Mac OS X 10.4.11 Tiger Java Security Update Missing
What the heck is going on?
Is the Java Update that was put out last month for Windows and this past week for Leopard and Snow Leopard not a security issue for Tiger users, or did Apple decide to not bother making sure those who still are stuck using Tiger wouldn’t be safe??!??
This is one of two reasons why I hate that Apple does the Java updates for Mac OS X instead of letting Java do it like it does for Windows.
First reason is they are always late. Second reason, when Apple doesn’t want to update Java for Tiger, like they did for Panther, etc., they just stop updating it.
If it were left up to SUN Java to update it we would have gotten it when they released the Windows versions instead of getting this when you go to Apple site with Mac OS:
Apple and Java
Or is Tiger (and earlier versions) the only OSes on the planet that don’t need this security update?! Tiger hasn’t had a security update for Java since June 2009: Java for Mac OS X 10.4, Release 9
Omelette is born, errr, hatched
Our youngest chick was born in the last 24-48 hrs, and we named the chick Omelette. Actually JimmyLee named Omelette and I decided on the spelling. 
Omelette_11-13-09_0007
Omelette_11-13-09_0005
Omelette_11-13-09_0004
Omelette_11-13-09_0003
We also had some video that I thought folks might enjoy:
Omelette – Part 1
Omelette – Part 2
Virginia waterways ranks second-dirtiest in country
Adding insult to injury … Virginia waterways ranks second-dirtiest in country (HamptonRoads.com)
Virginia has the second-dirtiest waterways among the 50 states.
That’s according to a recent study by the Environment America advocacy group tallying the amount of pollutants discharged into bodies of water across the nation.
Based on numbers reported to federal authorities, only Indiana had more toxic chemicals released into its waterways by industry than Virginia’s 18 million-plus pounds in 2007.
Sad. Really sad.
So yeah, I see where they are going … the state’s waterways are already a disaster area, so let’s let ODEC add insult to injury by building the state’s largest coal fired power plant – running 24/7 at 1500 MW in Dendron, (Surry, VA.) Hmmm….
Air Pollution Increases Infants’ Risk Of Bronchiolitis
Air Pollution Increases Infants’ Risk Of Bronchiolitis (ScienceDaily.com)
Infants who are exposed to higher levels of air pollution are at increased risk for bronchiolitis, according to a new study.
The study appears in the November 15 issue of the American Thoracic Society’s American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
“There has been very little study of the consequences of early life exposure to air pollution,” said Catherine Karr, M.D. PhD, assistant professor of pediatrics at the University of Washington and the paper’s lead author. “This study is unique in that we were able to look at multiple sources including wood smoke in a region with relatively low concentrations of ambient air pollution overall.”
Much more in the article!
American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine – part E. Environmental and Occupational Lung Disease of the current November 15, 2009 issue.
Registration is required to read the full article however, the abstract is available here which includes the conclusions below:
Conclusions: Air pollutants from several sources may increase infant bronchiolitis requiring clinical care. Traffic, local point source emissions, and wood smoke may contribute to this disease.
Under measurements and readings above the conclusions states:
An interquartile increase in lifetime exposure to NO2, NO, SO2, CO, wood-smoke exposure days, and point source emissions score was associated with increased risk of bronchiolitis…
What pollutants do coal plants introduce? At least a few of those listed, plus more: Power Plant Emissions Publications
Coal Ash is safe? Tell these poor folks that…
Dominican Republic town blames U.S. firm for birth defects (Miami Herald)
A small Dominican Republic town plagued by birth defects wants to know if a U.S. power company is to blame.
…
A civil lawsuit filed Wednesday in Delaware charges that toxic levels of waste dumped at the Arroyo Barril port has made people nearby sick. After years of repeated miscarriages, women whose blood levels show abnormal levels of arsenic are giving birth to babies with cranial deformities, with organs outside their bodies or missing limbs.
The case highlights the debate over coal ash, an unregulated byproduct of coal energy, which when processed and recycled is used in everything from cement to the foundation for golf courses. Popular Mechanics magazine this month calls a concrete made from coal ash one of the “10 Most Brilliant Products of 2009.”
Much more in the several page article and a heartbreaking video.
OK, so to quote a WVEC.com article entitled, “ODEC response to CBF Report“:
Old Dominion Electric Cooperative (ODEC ) categorically refutes the assertion that the Clean Water Act can be used to govern air emissions. This is what Congress and the previous administrations intended the Clean Air Act to do. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s (CBF) novel and specious argument that ODEC is somehow doing an illegal activity is patently false and untrue. ODEC has and will continue to meet our legally mandated obligation to provide environmentally-responsible and cost-efficient electricity to the consumer-members of the not-for-profit electric distribution cooperatives that ODEC serves.
The article goes on to say:
“Illegal” emissions:
Old Dominion Electric Cooperative (ODEC) strongly rejects the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s (CBF) allegation that the emissions from the proposed Cypress Creek Power Station would be “illegal.” The application for this proposed facility is subject to the most rigorous review by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and numerous other state and federal regulatory agencies. The proposed Cypress Creek Power Station will be permitted and licensed under all applicable regulations, including the Clear Air Act and the Clean Water Act.
That is a half truth. There is no mention of the current ongoing investigation by the EPA.
EPA to Issue Strict Rules for U.S. Power Plant Air Toxics (EarthJustice.org – October 23, 2009):
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has agreed to adopt rules reducing toxic air pollution from the nation’s coal- and oil-burning power plants, by November 2011, according to a settlement agreement reached in a federal lawsuit brought against the agency by a coalition of public health and environmental groups.
The settlement has been lodged in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. Attorneys at Earthjustice, Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Clean Air Task Force, Natural Resources Defense Council, Southern Environmental Law Center, and Waterkeeper Alliance filed the lawsuit last December on behalf of their organizations and the American Nurses Association, Conservation Law Foundation, Environment America, Environmental Defense Fund, Izaak Walton League of America, Natural Resources Council of Maine, The Ohio Environmental Council, Physicians for Social Responsibility, and the Sierra Club.
The lawsuit was based on EPA’s failure to meet the Clean Air Act’s deadline for issuing regulations controlling toxic air pollution from power plants.
“Power plants are the largest unregulated industrial source of air toxics. It is unconscionable that 19 years after the Clean Air Act of 1990, we still do not have air toxics controls on these large existing sources of pollution,” said James Pew of Earthjustice. “After years of litigating this issue, our groups look forward to a productive working relationship with the agency as it finally develops these rules.”
Children and women of childbearing age are at risk when power plants emit the levels of mercury they are emitting today – all 50 states, and one US territory, have declared fish advisories warning about mercury contamination.
“We are very pleased with the outcome of this case, and look forward to working with the EPA to develop emissions standards for this industry that mandate the deep cuts in this pollution that the law requires,” said Ann Weeks, legal director at the Clean Air Task Force, one of the lead attorneys for the groups.
Much more in the article.
And now that there has been yet another Fly Ash/Coal Ash breach in Mass. (near the end of their special meeting announcement:
In other money matters for the warrant, selectmen agreed to submit an item asking the town to appropriate an as-yet undecided amount of money for the continued care of the town’s former landfill.
Located on Brayton Point Road, south of Route 6, the landfill is owned in part by electric company National Grid and the Velozo family. The landfill was capped in the early 1980s.
In March of 2008, the town became aware that the landfill was breached due to unauthorized use of the site by dirt bike racers. The dirt bikes’ tires scarred the landfill and rain washed out the scars, creating an erosion problem. Fly ash from the Brayton Point Power Station, placed over the landfill’s liner, washed out into nearby wetlands and, where the fly ash was washed out, the landfill’s liner tore. An estimated 2,500 pounds of fly ash washed out of the landfill.
Luttrell said the problems at the landfill have since been fixed, but money is needed to continue upkeep.
“The money, if approved, would go to maintenance,” Luttrell said. “We’re required to cut grass and trees and conduct water testing in the area of the landfill.”
It is not a matter of IF a coal ash landfill will leak or be breached, but a matter of WHEN.
Yet another reason to put off installing a 1500 MW baseload coal fired power plant in the middle of a small rural community of 300 plus people in Surry County (the Town of Dendron).
And while I am on the subject of the ‘proposed’ coal plant, I, for one, am appalled at the accusation, on a local WVEC.com news station video, by Dendron Mayor and by others in the local newspapers and TV news, not just implying but coming out and accusing those who oppose the plant of being responsible for the Halloween church cemetery and ODEC sign vandalism.
To say that those of us who are against the coal plant being built in Dendron would have anything to do with vandalizing a church cemetery or vandalizing the huge Cypress Creek signs all over the county supporting the 1500 MW coal fired power plant being built in Dendron, VA is ludicrous. We love our Town and its historic roots too much to be associated with such things. As a matter of fact, here is the letter from some of us in Surry County about this very subject that was read by Betsy Shepard to the Dendron Town Council at their Town Council meeting this past Monday night:
Dear Mayor Pierce and Members of the Town Council,
We were deeply disturbed to hear about the recent destruction and theft of property in Dendron. Although we are opponents of the proposed coal plant, we unite with those who support the project to condemn these cowardly and thuggish acts.
One of the wonderful things we can take away from this coal plant proposal is the awareness that so many of us care very deeply about the quality of life in Surry County. The small, but very important, difference between us has made it clear that, while we may differ as to the method of achieving it, all of us want the best county we can live in. And while we may disagree about what is best for the county, we are certain that we ALL agree that criminal activity and division are bad for the county.
To that end, we would like to offer a reward of $500 for any information that leads to the capture and conviction of the person(s) responsible for the recent damage in Dendron. It is our most sincere hope that this issue will not create further division in our community and that those who wish to express their opinions may do so freely and without interference.
Sincerely yours,
Chris Anderson
Karen Clancy
Jim & Lisa Craig
Mike & Helen Eggleston
Steve Holloway
Bob & Kathryn Oliver
Fran Parker
Joe & Wendy Robers
Betsy Shepard
Donna Slade
Kim & Mark Sperry
I wonder who is fostering this division? Hmmmm. I wonder who would profit from fostering division within our county? Hmmmm. I wonder.
