Courts Reject Alexandria Power Plant Moves
City Had Tried to Use Zoning Authority, Permit Challenge to Shut Mirant Facility

By Kirstin Downey
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, April 21, 2007

The city of Alexandria got slapped down in two courts yesterday, suffering setbacks in its long-running campaign to shut down the pollution-producing Mirant power plant on the Potomac River.

In one case, Virginia Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth B. Lacy ruled that Alexandria had improperly used its zoning power to require the power plant to obtain a special-use permit. The city would then have been able to designate the plant as a "non-complying use," which could have forced the plant out of the city. Mirant had sued to block the zoning change.

On a separate legal front, a federal district court in Alexandria ruled against the city by approving a consent decree that had been negotiated by Mirant, the states of Maryland and Virginia and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Alexandria had challenged the consent decree, saying that the agreement would benefit the region, but at the expense of Alexandria residents because the plant will be permitted to increase its production at the plant in the city in exchange for reducing overall emissions.

These rulings "were not what we were looking for," said Alexandria City Attorney Ignacio Pessoa. "We're going to consider other options."

Mirant officials were jubilant at the double dose of favorable court rulings. "This is very positive news for the company, particularly in regards to the Potomac River plant because it allows us to continue to provide reliable energy to the nation's capital," said Debra Bolton, assistant general counsel and vice president of Mirant.

Bolton said that Mirant has sought to be a "good neighbor" to Alexandria, promptly installing pollution-control equipment, but that city officials have persisted in their efforts to use legal means to restrict the plant's operations.

"We'd rather have the city work with us, and not against us," Bolton said. "We'll continue to be there."

Under the consent decree, Mirant has agreed to reduce its emissions of nitrogen oxides by 29,000 tons annually at each of four plants, including the Alexandria facility, the Morgantown plant in Charles County, the Chalk Point plant in Prince George's County and the Dickerson plant in Montgomery County. Most of the reductions will occur at the three Maryland plants, according to the Maryland Department of the Environment, which called the court's approval of the plan "the last step in this long negotiation."

"The consent decree is arguably good for the region, but it's not good for Alexandria," Pessoa said. "There's no reason to sell Alexandria down the river for those regional benefits."

The coal-fired power plant supplies electricity throughout the region, including to the District's central business district and many federal operations. It was built in 1949, when many other kinds of industrial operations lined the Alexandria waterfront, but now sits surrounded by residential developments, adjacent to the popular Mount Vernon hiking and jogging trail.

In her ruling, Justice Lacy said Mirant has a "vested right" to operate its plant there.

In recent years the plant has become the focus of intense environmental concerns. It was shuttered during summer 2005 for environmental violations but reopened after company officials installed new pollution-control devices.

Nitrogen oxides contribute to formation of ground-level ozone.