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2023 SESSION
23103817DWHEREAS, the material left over from coal mining has resulted in garbage of bituminous (GOB) piles that contain mining waste and waste coal throughout the Commonwealth; and
WHEREAS, the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (P.L. 117-58) federalized regulatory control over coal surface mining but also held landowners harmless for GOB piles created prior to its enactment; and
WHEREAS, as a result, the Commonwealth is responsible for cleaning up nearly 152 known GOB piles in the Commonwealth at an estimated cost of $2.4 billion; and
WHEREAS, the estimated 80 million cubic yards of waste coal material spread over 3,300 acres annually discharges acidic water and more than 20,000 tons of sediment into the waterways of the Commonwealth, some of the most biodiverse waterways in the United States; and
WHEREAS, GOB piles are subject to random, uncontrolled fires that emit greenhouse gases and other toxic substances that threaten human and environmental health; and
WHEREAS, the only currently viable option to permanently eliminate this waste coal material is combustion at the Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center, while nonpermanent solutions include capping or interring the waste coal material, which would expose the Commonwealth to long-term maintenance costs; and
WHEREAS, the Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center has burned more than 10 million tons of waste coal material since it opened and spurred a self-sustaining GOB pile reclamation industry that supports more than 100 jobs; and
WHEREAS, the Commonwealth must evaluate (i) the environmental and economic impact of existing GOB piles and the operation of the Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center and (ii) the economic impact to the Commonwealth should the Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center close, leaving the cost of GOB pile cleanup to the taxpayers; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the Department of Energy be requested to study the environmental and economic impacts of eliminating GOB piles in the Commonwealth.
In conducting its study, the Department of Energy shall convene a working group of stakeholders including representatives from state and local governments, investor-owned utilities, environmental organizations, the waste coal reclamation industry, and others deemed appropriate by the Department of Energy. The Department of Energy shall hold at least one public meeting and shall create a mechanism to receive public comment for consideration during the study. The Department of Energy shall examine various use case scenarios, including capping all existing waste coal piles and combusting all the material at the Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center. Each scenario considered by the Department of Energy should contain an analysis of the direct and indirect economic and environmental benefits of that particular scenario.
All agencies of the Commonwealth shall provide assistance to the Department of Energy for this study, upon request.
The Department of Energy shall complete its meetings by November 30, 2023, and shall submit to the Governor and the General Assembly an executive summary and a report of its findings and recommendations, if any, for publication as a House or Senate document. The executive summary and report shall be submitted as provided in the procedures of the Division of Legislative Automated Systems for the processing of legislative documents and reports no later than the first day of the 2024 Regular Session of the General Assembly and shall be posted on the General Assembly's website.