THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, March 13, 1995 TAG: 9503130064
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE STONE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Long : 125 lines
Just a bit more homework, and Virginia Beach residents could be pouring their first glass of Lake Gaston water before 1998, Rep. Owen B. Pickett, D-2nd District, said Sunday.
His optimism stemmed from a letter he received late last week from the Environmental Protection Agency, which, he said, favorably reviews a key federal study required before the project can be fully launched.
The pipeline's construction is a near certainty, the EPA appeared to conclude in its analysis of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's preliminary study, completed Jan. 20. All that's needed is for the principals ``to develop an acceptable six- to 10-year'' interim plan for withdrawing water from the lake.
The January study said the pipeline is the city's best option for obtaining desperately needed water, and that it would do virtually no harm.
The EPA assigned the draft environmental impact statement a rating of ``EC-2,'' which means the agency has no objections, just ``concerns'' that should be addressed by including moreinformation in the final statement. That report is expected this summer. Comments on the draft report are due today.
But, the EPA noted, because debate over the pipeline ``is so contentious,'' Virginia Beach must prove beyond a shadow of doubt that, without Lake Gaston, it does not have enough water to meet current and future needs. To do that, more information is needed, the EPA letter says.
Pickett dismissed the EPA's concerns as little more than bureaucracy in action - or inaction.
``Some additional paperwork will take care of this, but there is nothing of any substance that needs to be done,'' Pickett said Sunday afternoon at his Virginia Beach office. ``This is a giant step toward concluding this permitting process.''
The EPA letter says the FERCreport is ``well written in many respects and the scope of analysis was appropriate,'' but suggests additional time for public comment when the final report is issued.
Pickett opposes any extension, noting that Virginia Beach needs final approval before June so Norfolk can begin expanding its water treatment system to handle the 60 million gallons a day that would be siphoned out of Lake Gaston.
Underlining his positive reading of the EPA report, Pickett characterized the city as being at a point of ``commencing the consummation'' of the approval process.
``Fifteen years and $15 million is enough to waste on government foolishness. It's time this project moved ahead to serve the people of Virginia Beach.''
As often has been the case in the heated debate over Lake Gaston, however, where Pickett saw the EPA report as a green light, North Carolina officials saw flashing red.
``We're pleased,'' said Alan S. Hirsch, North Carolina's special deputy attorney general, long a principal opponent of the Gaston project. The EPA report shows that serious questions haven't been addressed, he said.
North Carolina will file its response today, Hirsch said.
``We have a lengthy recitation of all the specific errors; all the items that need to be done that were not done,'' he said. The draft environmental impact statement ``is a document that reflects that it was done in two to three months . . . a process that normally takes two years.
``What the EPA's comments today indicate is that haste makes waste,'' Hirsch said. Several areas, such as water conservation, updated population projections, existing emergency wells to supplement water supplies, water-saving fixtures and environmental quality downstream, were not addressed.
Absent a full study, he warned, Virginia Beach will build a pipeline at considerable financial risk. Because, while the city may win the regulatory battle, the list of unanswered questions will bolster its opponents' position in court.
``Then you have the risk of the city spending $150 million on a pipeline they can't ever use,'' Hirsch said.
Pickett has no doubt the project will be challenged in court, but isn't worried about the outcome. In every case, he said, the courts have found the city in compliance with all laws and regulations.
North Carolina has a federal injunction to stop construction of the pipeline until FERC makes its decision. It has also sued the U.S. Commerce Department and Virginia Beach over a previous permit. Mediation of that dispute could lead to an agreement between the states over the entire controversy.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Department of Commerce have already granted Virginia Beach permits for the pipeline. Lake Gaston, a man-made lake, serves a hydroelectric power plant operated by Virginia Power. Since FERC licenses nongovernmental power plants, it must approve the pipeline.
Opponents of the Lake Gaston plan have argued that the project would seriously deplete the flow of the Roanoke River - which feeds the lake - threatening fish. ILLUSTRATION: - U.S. Rep. Owen B. Pickett
STAFF Map
What happened
The Environmental Protection Agency says it has no objections, just
concerns, about the proposed Lake Gaston pipeline. The comments come
in a review of a draft environmental impact statement that says the
pipeline is Virginia Beach's best option for obtaining water. The
EPA says more detail is needed in the final impact study.
What it means
The report, from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), is
the last hurdle before construction can begin. North Carolina has a
federal injunction to stop construction of the pipeline until FERC
makes its decision.
What they said
``Some additional paperwork will take care of this, but there is
nothing of any substance that needs to be done.''
- U.S. Rep. Owen B. Pickett
``What the EPA's comments today indicate is that haste makes
waste.''
- Alan S. Hirsch, North Carolina's special deputy attorney general
MORE MOMEWORK ON PIPELINE
[Graphic was not available electronically.]
[For a copy of the graphic, see microfilm on page A5 for this
date.]
KEYWORDS: LAKE GASTON WATER SUPPLY PLAN TIDEWATER PIPELINE by CNB