DOE/SEA-04: Operation of the Potomac River Generating Station in Alexandria, Virginia (2006)

On December 20, 2005, the Secretary of Energy issued an emergency order, DOE Order 202-05-03, requiring Mirant’s Potomac River Generating Station in Alexandria, Virginia, to operate under limited circumstances. On September 28, 2006, the Secretary extended the Order, including all of its terms and conditions, DOE Order 202-06-2, until December 1, 2006. This SEA includes descriptions of the DOE emergency orders; assessments of the direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts resulting from the emergency orders; and descriptions of alternative actions for potential future decision-making that include mitigation. This SEA covers a period of about 24 months beginning in December 2005.

DOE has prepared a Special Environmental Analysis (SEA) for Actions Taken under U.S. Department of Energy Emergency Orders Regarding Operation of the Potomac River Generating Station in Alexandria, Virginia, and is announcing its availability. In the SEA, DOE examines environmental impacts from the Secretary of Energy’s December 20, 2005 Emergency Order, and the Secretary’s September 28, 2006 extension of that Emergency Order; the SEA covers a period of about 24 months beginning in December 2005. The SEA also considers alternatives that include mitigation measures that DOE may take until the Potomac Electric Power Company’s (PEPCO) installation of two additional 230 kV electric transmission lines to the Central Washington, DC area (expected in June 2007) that would appear to eliminate the emergency that lead to the issuance of the December 20, 2005 Emergency Order.