Energy rules have Virginia weighing new nuclear reactor at North Anna
MINERAL — A new set of federal standards is poised to change the way electricity is made across the country, moving the nation further away from coal and toward cleaner energy sources.
But in Virginia, the rules known as the Clean Power Plan already are becoming part of a larger debate over whether the state’s largest utility should build another nuclear reactor.
Environmental groups envision a path that relies more on clean energy such as wind and solar as well as programs intended to make buildings more efficient so they use less power.
Executives at Dominion Virginia Power see the requirements to reduce carbon emissions as a potential boost to the idea of more emissions-free nuclear generation. The company in 2001 began working on a plan for a third nuclear reactor at its North Anna Power Station in Louisa County.
