Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 26, 1994 TAG: 9406260084
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium
The city's plan will likely play out on several fronts: It could include federal legislation, a direct appeal to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and legal challenges.
The commission on Thursday said it will conduct an in-depth environmental impact statement before deciding on a permit for the 76-mile water pipeline. The study could take years to complete, and there is no guarantee the commission will permit the pipeline.
In Washington, members of Virginia's congressional delegation suggested Friday they will look for ways to head off a new study or force regulators to finish it quickly.
Democratic Sen. Charles Robb said he and his Republican counterpart, Sen. John Warner, would mount an effort to provide a special appropriation for the study and require that it be completed within six months.
A Robb spokeswoman said the senator's staff was searching for legislation to which those requirements could be attached. One possibility is a pending bill to amend the federal Clean Water Act.
"It's just a complex thing . . . almost a lawyer's dream," said Rep. Norman Sisisky, a Democrat whose 4th District includes both Chesapeake, which would get some water from the pipeline, and the area around Lake Gaston from which water would be drawn.
North Carolina has argued that Virginia Beach has exaggerated its water needs and the proposed withdrawal of water from Lake Gaston would devastate a spawning habitat for striped bass.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which oversees nongovernment hydroelectric projects, was the final government hurdle for the pipeline.
It has jurisdiction because the lake straddling the North Carolina-Virginia border was created by a Virginia Power hydroelectric dam. The utility owns the lake bed and surrounding area but must get commission approval to allow Virginia Beach to put its pipeline into the lake.
One option open to city officials is to ask the commission to reconsider its staff's decision for a study, said John Conway, a commission attorney.
Commissioner Vicky Bailey said that the five-member panel can reverse itself. But she doesn't favor any reconsideration of the issue.
"It's hard to balance environmental and economic needs," she said.
by CNB