With regards to Dominion's proposed coal-fired power plant in Wise County, I couldn't agree more with this editorial by the Bristol Herald Courier:
Getting a permit to pollute Virginia's air shouldn't be a walk in the park.The process is meant to safeguard the health of state residents and protect the environment from unnecessary degradation. It is not a mere formality.
[...]
The Air Pollution Control Board is the proper authority to balance these competing interests. The board's involvement brings needed transparency to the process and provides superior opportunities for public input.
The process isn't quick or easy, but getting a permit to pollute Virginia should require both time and effort. If Dominion assumed otherwise, it erred in judgment.
Instead, Dominion is trying to railroad this power plant through at the speed of one of those Acela trains I took last week to and from New York City. According to the Herald Courier, Dominion officials are "increasingly irritated by the permit process" with regard to the proposed Wise County power plant - "a plant that will be a major source of air pollution if it is built."
At this time of the year in particular -- Easter, Passover -- perhaps Dominion's executives might want to think more about "protecting God's creation" than about protecting (and enhancing) their own bottom lines? Just a thought.