Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, April 4, 1991 TAG: 9104040515
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LEXINGTON LENGTH: Long
But what he did not mention was that the act calls for "the greatest degree" of air-quality protection for national parks - greater protection than the state and federal governments thus far have provided for the Shenandoah National Park and the James River Face in the Jefferson National Forest.
Later, Davis said there was not enough time in his 20-minute speech to deal with the national parks issue.
The symposium was held at Virginia Military Institute and co-sponsored by Virginia Power, which is at odds with national park officials over plans for 19 new power plants in Virginia.
Virginia Power says the state needs more power plants to meet the growing consumer demand for electricity.
It hailed the Environmental Protection Agency's recent finding that two new plants planned for the Lynchburg and Danville areas will not harm the state's national parks. Virginia Power will buy electricity from the plants.
"We never felt these projects would have an adverse impact," said Jim Norvelle, a Virginia Power spokesman.
But both the National Park Service and the U.S. Forest Service have claimed that the plants will damage air quality, visibility and plant life.
Nevertheless, the state Air Pollution Control Board recently issued permits to Multitrade Limited and Old Dominion Electric Cooperative, companies planning the new plants.
In a letter to Davis, the EPA admitted that its findings were "to some extent . . . not technically creditable" because of problems with the analytical tools it used.
The EPA's model studied monthly averages of sulfur dioxide concentrations, but did not predict whether the power plants would exacerbate short-term episodes of pollution - a common problem for the parks in summer.
"We do reserve the opportunity to revisit these issues as additional analytical tools become available for use in the future," the EPA wrote Davis.
Davis said Wednesday that the EPA's methods are far superior to what his department has been able to use. But better modeling is needed to conclusively determine the impact the power plants will have, he said.
He said his office, the EPA and national park officials will be meeting soon to talk about solutions to the problems.
The new Clean Air Act imposes special requirements to ensure that any new sources of air pollution won't adversely affect the natural, scenic and historic values of the parks.
Park officials have urged Davis not to issue any air permits until it can be definitively proven that the new power plants won't cause damage.
Davis understands their position, but said his office has to "carry out what we feel is in the best interest of all citizens of Virginia."
The EPA has come under fire from the U.S. House Subcommittee on Health and the Environment for its position. The subcommittee is in charge of overseeing the Clean Air Act's implementation.
Its chairman, Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., recently called air quality in Shenandoah National Park "a disgrace" and scolded the EPA for maintaining a position that "is bad for the environment and bad for the Virginia tourist industry."
"If these 20 new power plants go forward they should be required to offset their emissions," he said. "It is inconceivable that anyone can think that these plants can operate as planned without further damaging the park."
Waxman is pressing the EPA for details about its efforts to protect air quality in Virginia's national parks.
At Shenandoah National Park last summer, park officials started a health advisory system to alert visitors when ozone levels approached or exceeded national health standards.
The Clean Air Act calls for preventing and remedying this problem.
But even if the latest pollution-control equipment is used, the 19 new plants would emit about 37,000 tons of sulfur dioxide and 70,000 tons of nitrogen oxide annually, according to a Wall Street Journal article.
At the symposium, Davis said the Clean Air Act will force industries to buy the best available technology to control pollutants. One goal of the law is to halve the emissions that cause acid rain, he said.
Utilities will be given some flexibility. They will be allowed to buy or sell "allowances" to help meet the mandated reductions.
Each utility must have sufficient "allowances" to cover its annual emissions, and those without enough allowances must offset their excess emissions the following year, Davis said.
The law also gives the EPA authority to veto any state permit.
The EPA will be able to issue penalties of up to $200,000 for major violations, and issue fines of up to $5,000 a day during on-site inspections.
Industries that pollute also will have to start footing the bill under the Clean Air Act. They must pay the state $25 per ton of emission, and their permits will last only five years. Virginia permits now have no limit or expiration date.
The permits also must meet the approval of nearby states whose air quality could suffer or which lie within 50 miles of the pollution source.
The new requirements apply both to existing industries and those being planned.
by CNB