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Supreme court hearing Oct. 24th
by Duane330＠aol.com 20 Sep '06

20 Sep '06

Morgantown Dominion Post Tuesday 19 September 2006, page 10-B: Challenge to proposed Longview Power now in the hands of the state Supreme Court ---High court to decide if it will hear appeal of case BY EVELYN RYAN The Dominion Post The state Supreme Court will decide Oct. 24 if it wants to hear a challenge to the permits for Longview Power issued by the state Public Service Commission in July. On June 26, the commission said Longview could build a 600-megawatt coal-fired power plant on 225 acres in the Fort Martin area of Monongalia County, as well as a high-voltage transmission line from the plant. Just a month later, more than 50 county residents who have been fighting the plant for three years appealed the decision to the high court. This appeal is on the motion docket, state Supreme Court spokeswoman Jennifer Bundy said. “This means that the people who filed the suit can come and tell the court why they think it should hear the case,” she said. “At that time, the justices will decide whether they want to hear the arguments.” If the justices agree to hear the appeal, another date will be set for both sides to present their cases, Bundy said. The court does not make immediate decisions on cases that are argued. Longview officials said the latest court appeal was not unexpected. “We’re going to see challenges at every opportunity for these guys to avail themselves of,” Longview Project Manager Tom Wheble said. “We hope the Supreme Court says there was a good and thoughtful process by the PSC and chooses not to hear the appeal. “We’re still moving forward on other aspects of the development,” he added. “We would love to have our construction begin this fall. We still have a tremendous amount of interest in financing the plant. I can’t say more because everything is confidential.” Longview Power was established by GenPower, of Needham, Mass., in 2001 to gain all the necessary permits to build a merchant power plant, one that would sell its output on the open power market. This differs from a plant like Fort Martin Power Station, which was built and is operated by Allegheny Energy, supplying electricity to the utility’s customers in northern West Virginia. Those trying to stop the plant are challenging the commission’s action on procedural grounds. “I think our strongest argument is that the Public Service Commission is required by statute to perform its duties within a statutory period of time and they exceeded the time frame in this case,” said Attorney Phil Gaugot, who filed the appeal. “We believe that in the end, Longview failed to provide sufficient evidence to support the PSC conclusion that it was entitled to a siting certificate and transmission line certificate. “Most important,” he added, “Gen-Power has not demonstrated that it has the financial viability to do the work or the committed financing to complete the project.” Gaugot filed the lawsuit on behalf of 20 Fort Martin residents, 30 Monongalia County residents, Citizens for Alternatives to Longview Power, Cheat Lake Environment and Recreation Association, and Citizens for Responsible Development.

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EPA Region 3 activities
by Duane330＠aol.com 11 Sep '06

11 Sep '06

MID-ATLANTIC REGION AGENCIES RECEIVE FUNDING TO CONTINUE THEIR FINE PARTICLE AIR QUALITY MONITORING PROGRAM EPA Mid-Atlantic Region state and local air agencies received $2,864,798 to enable the agencies to continue their PM 2.5 air quality monitoring program under the Clean Air Act. The PM 2.5 monitoring grant also assists in planning, developing, establishing, improving and maintaining adequate support for the prevention and control of air pollution. PM2.5 particles are air pollutants with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less, small enough to invade even the smallest airways. These particles generally come from activities that burn fossil fuels, such as traffic, smelting, and metal processing. EPA MID-ATLANTIC REGION REVIEWS PROGRESS OF 2006 ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE GRANT IN W. VIRGINIA EPA mid-Atlantic region staff visited the Southern Appalachian Labor School in Beards Fork, Fayette County, W.Va. , a grantee under EPA's 2006 Environmental Justice grant program, to assess the grant's progress. The grantee's funds are being used to provide test kits to determine the relative levels of contamination in the old coal industry camp houses now occupied by retired miners and other low-income families. The grantee is also working with the Department of Housing and Urban Development using at-risk youth to rebuild and renovate portions of these houses free of charge to the residents.

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Woops. Meet 25th @ Larry's
by Duane330＠aol.com 10 Sep '06

10 Sep '06

RESCHEDULE............. 25th at 7 (social) and 7:30 (meeting). The next meeting of the MonValley Clean Air Coalition is now set for Monday, September 25th at the home of Larry and Martha Schwab. [A number of schedule conflicts prevailed with the previous date]. Updates on Longview and Ft. Martin will be presented; and, "direction" for the coming six months will be charted. Please make a point to come out if you possibly can, since we cannot meet as often as in the past. Phil Gaujot is scheduled for surgery this week in New York City, to remove a portion of his lung. He hopes to bounce back quickly. So, please include Phil in your thoughts and prayers, and wish him a speedy recovery. Has anyone recovered from the diverse activities of the long hot summer?

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General Meeting, MVCAC, Sept 18th
by Duane330＠aol.com 05 Sep '06

05 Sep '06

To: MVCAC Participants and Friends.................. Date: September 5, 2006 RE: General Meeting for September Please attend a general meeting on Monday, September 18th, at the home of Larry and Martha Schwab, 3333 Collins Ferry Road. Come at 7 pm for the social session, the meeting to start promptly at 7:30 pm. We have a number of items to cover, including the recent appeal of the Longview siting and transmission certificates, the final version of our new brochure, plans for the public lecture series this fall, etc. THERE IS PLENTY TO DO, AND YOU ARE NEEDED TO HELP OUT AT THIS TIME. ........ duane

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Picnic, Mt. Chateau, Sept 9th, 1 to 4 pm
by Duane330＠aol.com 03 Sep '06

03 Sep '06

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9TH--- PICNIC AT MT. CHATEAU ON CHEAT LAKE. The Mt. Chateau property, owned by the State of West Virginia, is a public access point to Cheat Lake and to the Cooper's Rock trail system. The Sierra Club is working with CLEAR to let the Governor know that we want it to remain in public ownership, with public access. The Monongahela Group of the Sierra Club has made arrangements to use the grounds Saturday from 1-4 PM. A potluck picnic will be followed by a discussion of the proposed sale of the property. The public is invited to attend. Questions, contact Jim Kotcon at _jkotcon(a)wvu.edu_ (mailto:jkotcon@wvu.edu) This is a great opportunity to come out, see the grounds, see the Lake, see some old and new friends, talk it over, and help in this worthy cause! Duane Nichols, CLEAR

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Longview: Before Sept 2nd! Please write DEP and ask them to deny permit
by Paula PJ Hunt 31 Aug '06

31 Aug '06

PLEASE!! You only have a couple days to submit comments to DEP about Longview. BEFORE OR ON THIS SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 2nd ! (Thanks to those who have already sent letters! We need more!!) Please ask the WV Dept. of Environmental Protection to deny the Draft NPDES (discharge) permit for Longview. It's hard to believe that a company submitted such rubbish, and even harder to believe that DEP approved it! We must require more of our regulatory agency. DEP is merely going through the motions, and we must call them on it. We must demand that the Department of Environmental Protection actually fulfills the "protection" part of its name! I urge you to pass this message along to anyone who may be interested. The following is my letter to the DEP regarding the DRAFT water-discharge permit. I ask that YOU please send a letter as well. Write your own thoughts or feel free to plagiarize anything from the following letter, Since my letter is a bit long winded (a bit hurried and a bit rude), here are the main points I am trying to get across: The application form, the fact sheet, and the draft permit appear to be for three different things. The application form states that 1.7 acres of land will be disturbed for a construction trailer and associated parking. The fact sheet is for stormwater runoff from the construction of a large power plant on 110 acres of land, and the draft permit (issued by the DEP) is for the construction and operation of a large power plant on 110 acres of land. Which is it? The Operator or Contractor (Item 3) in the application is "to be determined." So DEP does not know to whom it is granting the permit? According to the application form, the Final Storm Water Management Plan has "yet to be determined based on design." So we have no operator and no design, yet we have a draft permit. The Increase in Impervious Area (Item 16) in the application is not consistent with a 600-megawatt coal-fire power plant. The gallons of water Longview says it needs in its permit application is one half to one third the amount of water needed, according to other documents and comments made by Longview elsewhere. Speaking of water, Longview claims it will have zero discharge. That's hard to believe. Please send your comments to: Director, Division of Water and Waste Management, DEP ATTN: Michelle Brenner, Permitting Section 601 57TH St. SE Charleston, WV 25304 *************************************************************************************************** August 30, 2006 Director, Division of Water and Waste Management, DEP ATTN: Michelle Brenner, Permitting Section 601 57TH St. SE Charleston, WV 25304 Subject: NPDES Draft Permit No. WV0116238, Longview Power, LLC Dear Ms. Brenner: I have reviewed the draft NPDES permit and associated application for Longview Power, LLC, proposed to be built near Morgantown in Monongalia County, West Virginia, and I have the following comments: 1.) It would be nice if a copy of all future correspondence between Longview and the DEP could be placed in the Morgantown Public Library. Charleston is a 3-hour drive each way from here, and if Charleston is the only place the residents of Mon County can review Longview's applications and the many pages associated with them, then that is an undue hardship on the people most affected by Longview. I respectfully request that you require Longview to make an extra copy of everything it sends to you, and I request that you send those copies along with copies of your correspondence with Longview to the Morgantown Public Library. The DEP's Division of Air Quality did this for Longview's air permits. 2.) There are significant inconsistencies between the information provided in the Site Registration Application Form, the associated "Fact Sheet," and the actual Draft Permit. I find it difficult to believe that Longview filed an application with such errors, and I find it even more difficult to believe that our own DEP actually issued Longview a draft permit in the face of these glaring errors. a.) The number of Acres to be Disturbed (Item 5 in the Application Form) is almost one tenth of the acreage in the Fact Sheet and the Draft Permit. What is being permitted? 1.7 acres or 110 acres? b.) The description of the Project (Item 9 in the Application Form) is for installation of a trailer and parking area. The fact sheet is for construction of a 600-megawatt power station, and the actual draft permit is for the construction and operation of a 600-megawatt power plant! Which is it? 3.) The information provided is woefully inadequate and incomplete. The Operator or Contractor (Item 3 in the application) has "yet to be determined." Items 14 and 17 say that everything but the construction trailer and parking area have yet to be designed! How can the DEP grant a permit to someone they do not know for a project that has yet to be designed? 4.) The Increase in Impervious Area (Item 16) in the application is not consistent with a 600-megawatt coal-fire power plant. The power plant and the land disturbed by it will result in an increase of far more that 480 square feet of impervious area and 5 cubic feet per second of discharge during peak storm events! 5.) Item 10 of the Fact Sheets states that Longview will receive approximately 4,600 gallons per minute (gpm) of treated water from a plant in Pennsylvania, and that will fulfill Longview's cooling needs. Everything else Longview has submitted states that treatment plant will produce 7,000 gpm (see, for example, the report entitled Use of Mine Pool Water for Power plant Cooling, prepared by Argonne National Laboratory for the US Department of Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory in September 2003). Longview has stated elsewhere that the water produced by the mine-pool treatment plant (approximately 7,000 gpm) will only be half of the water required by Longview, if it were built. Therefore, Longview states in the NPDES Fact Sheet that it will use approximately 4,600 gpm, but has stated elsewhere that is needs 15,000 gpm. This is a huge discrepancy. The true amount of water used by Longview must be clarified. The DEP must not allow Longview to pull numbers out of the air, as it is clearly doing. 6.) No maps or plans were attached to the Application, Fact Sheet, and Draft Permit that was given to my neighbor when he drove all the way down to Charleston to get a copy of this permit and application. Were these crucial pieces of information even submitted to the DEP by Longview? 7.) I find it difficult to believe that there will be NO water discharge. The statement that and extra water there is will be used for "dust suppression" is troubling. It sounds as if Longview will merely be land applying their water. I also don't believe that Longview will send its untreated water back to PA!! What will that water be like after it has been through a cooling tower several times? In fact, I would like to see more details on how Longview plans to reuse water multiple times in its cooling fans. That water will be so mineralized after one or two passes, it is difficult to believe it would be usable. In addition, the water will be hot after one pass through. How can hot water be used for cooling? 8.) There were no details on the water treatment plant proposed for the site; in fact it was barely mentioned in the application. There will be coal piles on site and other water runoff that must be treated, yet there is no discussion of this on-site treatment plant! As with everything else Longview has submitted to date, this NPDES permit application is a bait and switch tactic. Longview has repeatedly submitted inaccurate and incomplete information to the State Regulatory Agencies. This company has said one thing and done another throughout the whole planning and attempted permitting process, and the DEP needs to call them on it now. I hereby request that the DEP deny Longview's NPDES permit because Longview clearly failed to provide information, ALL the information, in a complete and accurate manner. Sincerely, Paula J. Hunt

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Public Hearing & draft comments
by Duane330＠aol.com 21 Aug '06

21 Aug '06

NOTE: The WV DEP Water and Waste Management Division will hold a Public Hearing on Tuesday, August 22 at the Basic Sciences Auditorium of the WVU Medical Center, 6 pm. This is an important hearing, given that the Applications from Longview have problems that should not be allowed to stand up for approval. Please attend and speak if you can support any of the following or other objections to the Applications. One Application is for the Construction and the other for Operation of the power plant. But, both are being considered together even though the first is substantially incomplete. See below............... >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Longview Power, LLC, 10040 Great Plain Avenue, Needham, MA 02492 APPLICATION #1. SITE REGISTRATION APPLICATION FORM, CONSTRUCTION STORM WATER WV/NPDES GENERAL PERMIT (THREE ACRES OR GREATER). Project Name: Longview Power-600-Megawatt Coal Fired Power Plant Construction-Phase 1. Operator or Contractor– To Be Determined. Acres Disturbed– 1.7, Rainfall Zone– Zone 1 Receiving Stream(s) – Crooked Run Proposed Construction Schedule– Begin Jan 31, 2006 – August 2009. Signed: Robert Place, 10/31/05. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> The above permit application was received on 11/2/05. 4 page. Storm Water Pollution Prevent Plan, 10 pages of text, 91 pages of material plus 3 maps. Received 11/2/05. Ground Water Pollution Prevent Plan, 9 pages of text, 19 pages of material plus 1 map. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> APPLICATION #2. "operation permit", 3/8/06. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> PRELIMINARY SUBSURFACE INVESTIGATION and GEOTECHNICAL EVALUATION, Triad Engineering, Inc., Morgantown, WV, April 8, 2004. Submitted to Division of Water & Waste Management, Permitting Section on May 3, 2006. 17 pages plus charts & graphs. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> STATEMENTS OF DUANE NICHOLS REGARDING THE "CONSTRUCTION PERMIT APPLICATION" 1. The Site Registration Application Form submitted on November 2, 2005 is nearly two years old, and as such may not reflect accurately to the Public and the State as to the actual conditions for the proposed Power Plant. Thus, this Application is not timely. 2. The required "Operator or Contractor" name, address and phone number were provided only as "To Be Determined". Therefore, the Application is incomplete and cannot stand. 3. The "Acres Disturbed" is listed in item 5. at 1.7 acres, yet this cannot be the full extent of the construction area. Thus, the Application is inaccurate and cannot stand. 4. The "Rainfall Zone" for the proposed plant site is listed as Zone 1. However, a careful determination of the correct zone for this site, south of the Pennsylvania stateline, is Zone 2. Thus, the Application is inaccurate and cannot stand. 5. The "Receiving Stream(s)" is listed as Crooked Run. This is misleading and inaccurate, given that the actual receiving stream is the South Branch of Crooked Run, a.k.a. School Run, which is pristine and has a quality exceeding Crooked Run itself. 6. The "Brief Description of Project" given in the Construction Permit Application is given as "Phase 1 of a multiphase construction. Install a construction trailer and parking area". This is inconsistent with the purpose of the Public Hearing now being held. This Public Hearing is dealing with the overall Construction and Operation of the proposed Power Plant. Therefore, the Application is incomplete and very misleading. Thus, this Application is inaccurate and cannot stand. 7. The "Proposed Construction Schedule" is given as "Begin Jan 31, 2006 - August 2009. This time period is not feasible, given that the start date cannot be met, and that an accurate start date is not know. Therefore, this Application is inaccurate and cannot stand. 8. The "zero discharge" nature of the proposed Power Plant is not realistic; and, "zero discharge" cannot be achieved as a practical matter with a large project involving thousands of gallons of water, multiple applications involving the water, and considerations as large holding ponds, water sprays for dust control, and multiple cooling towers involving water sprays and evaporation. While it is possible to design systems that intend to have "zero discharge", such a condition cannot be sustained in the long term over years of continuous operation. Hence, the "zero discharge" characterization cannot be accepted as a practical condition to prevail for the overall continuous operation of the Power Plant. 9. This proposed Power Plant project has not been approved to disturb the historic Ft. Harrison location adjacent to Seece Lane, which includes an historic marker, trees, marshes and possible relics or other remains. An adequate buffer zone is needed to provide for protection and preservation of this Ft. Harrison site, which dates from the 1780's. 10. The proposed plant site includes a number of wetland areas, afforded protection by federal law. Any construction as implied in the Construction and Operation applications would interfere or destroy this wetlands. Therefore, the permits should be withheld. 11. Full investigations of rare and endangered species have not been completed for the proposed plant site and transmission corridor. Until permits are granted by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service and approved by the WV Division of Natural Resources, the permits should be withheld to protect the full area that may possibly be disturbed. August 21, 2006.

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Movie Coming to the Warner Theater Sept 1st: "Who Killed the Electric Car?"
by Paula -Pj- Hunt 19 Aug '06

19 Aug '06

This looks like a must-see movie (read below). -- Pj >.... have booked "Who Killed the Electric Car?" to begin showing >September 1 at The Warner. We appreciate any assistance you could >give us in publicizing this movie! See you then! > > >-Amy Prunty, GM

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Longview Public Hearing for NPDES (water discharge) permit
by Paula -Pj- Hunt 18 Aug '06

18 Aug '06

Hi All, PLEASE TRY TO ATTEND THIS! Next Tuesday, August 22, from 6 to 8 pm at the WVU Health Sciences Building at the WV Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is holding a public hearing regarding Longview's NPDES draft permit. They don't say which room, but it is probably the large auditorium on the main level. I have a copy of the application as do Duane and Jarrett, if you would like to see it. They are also taking written comments until SEPTEMBER 2ND! Please send comments to: Director, Division of Water and Waste Management, DEP ATTN: Michelle Brenner, Permitting Section 601 57TH St. SE Charleston, WV 25304 Please pass this along to anyone who may be interested. Thanks, Paula

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Longview's storm water permit hearing
by Duane330＠aol.com 17 Aug '06

17 Aug '06

Tue 08/22 06:00pm Public hearing for Longview Power facility located in Cass District, WV. Written and oral public comments will be accepted on the draft permit for the proposed wastewater treatment facility. Comment period ends September 2nd. West Virginia University Health Sciences Building, Hostler Auditorium, Morgantown, WV. For more information contact Michelle Brenner extension 1028. Phone: 304-926-0499

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