The state Air Pollution Control Board erred in not setting a firm limit for mercury emissions for the Dominion Virginia Power Plant being constructed in Wise County, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch last night. A Richmond Circuit Judge struck down a state-issued permit for the coal-burning plant.

According to a Dominion spokesperson, the ruling will not stop them from completing the project and enhancing utility services to the Wise County area. This is a win-win situation for area homeowners who will have a reliable source for energy, experience a boost in the local economy, a new employer all while being ensured that the emissions from the coal-burning plant comply with the Clean Air Act to protect the health of residents.

"Richmond Circuit Judge Margaret P. Spencer struck down a state-issued permit for a coal-burning power plant under construction in Wise County. The judge said the state Air Pollution Control Board erred in not setting a firm limit for mercury emissions from the $1.8 billion Dominion Virginia Power plant.

The ruling, dated Monday but released today, means the board must craft another permit for the plant.

The board set a mercury limit, but the permit allowed the limit to be loosened if the plant had trouble meeting the original requirement.

The Southern Environmental Law Center filed the challenge on behalf of four other environmental groups — the Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards, Appalachian Voices, Chesapeake Climate Action Network and the Sierra Club.

The environmentalists challenged two permits issued by the air board in 2008. On the second permit, the environmentalists said that the board should have issued a limit for carbon dioxide emissions, which are linked to global warming. The judge rejected that, saying the federal Clean Air Act does not require the board to set a carbon limit.

The environmentalists also challenged the permits on a handful of other points. They won on the one."

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