
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, January 20, 1995                   TAG: 9501200088
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A-9   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: NORFOLK                                LENGTH: Short

NS GETS OK TO BUILD COAL STORAGE YARD

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released a draft permit Thursday for Norfolk Southern Corp. to build a $100million coal storage yard in Isle of Wight County.

``This is a major step, obviously,'' said Bob Fort, a spokesman for the coal shipper. ``We've been going at this for five years.''

Opponents of the plan said they don't anticipate any appeals. The draft will become final once all the parties involved sign it.

``If I win the lottery, we might have the money to challenge them,'' said Art Whitener, an official of Citizens Against the Coal Storage Facility who lives about a half-mile from the site. ``But really, we're still amazed this thing was ever approved. To us, it's just a horrendous project.''

The project was supported by county officials and business leaders who cited the creation of jobs and other benefits. The 1,600-acre facility, about a mile east of Windsor, will hold up to 40 million tons of coal a year.

by CNB