Coal ash pond at Possum Point Power Station outside Dumfries will be drained

Updated

Water from a pond used to store coal ash in Prince William County will be drained into Quantico Creek.

Dominion says once water inside the ponds at Possum Point has been deemed safe and complies with new EPA and Virginia Department of Environmental Quality rules, the water will be drained.

Dominion Virginia Power says it no longer uses coal to generate electricity at the Possum Point Power Station near Dumfries, and two of its other power plants in Virginia.

Coal ash is what’s left over after coal is burned to generate electricity.

The waters of Quantico Creek flow into the Potomac River.

Here’s more in a press release:

The company will close ponds at four locations in Virginia: Bremo Power Station in Fluvanna County, Chesapeake Energy Center inChesapeake, Chesterfield Power Station in Chesterfield County, and Possum Point Power Station in Prince William County. 

Coal ash is the remainder left after coal is burned to generate electricity. In recent years, Dominion has closed or converted to cleaner fuel five coal-fired power stations serving Virginia. Nearly two-thirds of the electricity produced by Dominion’s generation serving the state now comes from carbon-free nuclear generation, clean-burning natural gas and renewables.

The company no longer uses coal as a fuel at its Bremo, Chesapeake and Possum Point power stations.

The pond at Possum Point will be drained and covered with an impermeable liner. Then 24 inches of soil will be placed where water once was. Grass seed or sod will then be placed on top of the soil, depending upon rules set up by Virginia DEQ.

A Dominion Virginia Power spokesman said he could not accommodate a request from Potomac Local to photograph the pond due to an outage causing safety issues in the area. The company offered to send a submitted photo of the pond, and said a photographer would be permitted to access the site once the safety issues had been resolved.

The Possum Point Power Station on the bank of the Potomac River generates electricity by using natural gas, oil, and a dual fired combined cycle unit that uses natural gas converted from coal.