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Virginia’s 7th Congressional District race remains too close to call
Updated Nov. 6 at 11:20 a.m. The voters of the 7th Congressional district proved just how tight the contest is, by keeping the race between Eugene Vindman and Derrick Anderson too close to call. About 99% of votes had been counted, with Vindman and Anderson earning about 51% and 49% of the vote, respectively, but […]
Va. college voting bloc utilizes same-day registration, shares top policy issues
Editor’s note: This story was reported by Charles Paullin and student journalist Katie Farthing in a special Election Day collaboration between The Virginia Mercury and VCU Capital News Service. RICHMOND, Va. — On Tuesday morning, outside the Virginia Commonwealth University polling location on the second floor of the Student Commons, several students shared their […]
Va.’s congressional delegation calls for reauthorization of Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act
Members of the congressional delegation from Virginia would like to see the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act, or Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, reauthorized when it ends in less than two years. The BIL has fueled internet access expansion and funded several transportation and environmental projects in Virginia, including financially supporting the Long Bridge Project’s expansion and […]
Chesterfield community convenes ‘People’s Hearing’ absent a county-held one
CHESTERFIELD – About 150 Chesterfield County residents showed up Tuesday to again oppose Dominion Energy Virginia’s proposed gas plant that the utility says is needed to meet rising energy demand in the state. The Friends of the Chesterfield, a group formed to push back against the plant, held their own “People’s Hearing” in lieu of […]
Solar developers seeking changes to local siting process, again
A coalition that represents solar developers in Virginia plans to ask the legislature to change how solar projects are approved at the local level, arguing that municipal bans are hurting efforts to meet the requirements of the state’s 2020 Clean Economy Act. In the past 18 months, 33 large utility-scale solar projects — representing 3,236 […]
Menhaden fishing company requests increased buffer for future offshore wind projects
Omega Protein, the menhaden fishing operator in the Chesapeake Bay and Atlantic Ocean east of Virginia, is asking for a 15-mile buffer from the coast wherein future offshore wind projects can’t be built, to avoid conflicts with their operations. The company submitted the Oct. 16 request to the federal government’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management […]
Virginia board votes to reject changes to hound hunting regulations
Regulations guiding hunting, one of Virginia’s oldest traditions, will remain unchanged after the Board of Wildlife Resources voted 6-3 against two proposals to update the state’s right to retrieve law. The right to retrieve law lets deer and bear hunters go onto other people’s property to get their dogs, which hunters use to scare up […]
Federal government sends Virginia $10 million for Route 58 repair after Hurricane Helene washout
The United States Department of Transportation announced Friday that it’s sending $10 million to the Virginia Department of Transportation to “restore and reopen” a one-mile stretch of Route 58 in Washington County that was washed out when Hurricane Helene wreaked havoc in the Southwest Virginia region. “Hurricane Helene’s devastation affected communities in multiple states, including […]
Despite recent rain, farmers in Virginia struggle with effects of summer drought
Morgan Slaven runs a sheep farm in Augusta County, where her family has been across different operations for seven generations, now with her nieces pitching in. This year, Slaven was grateful because of her “off farm job” to generate income after drought conditions, presenting back to back years of challenges ahead of this year’s harvest […]
Dominion Energy pairs solar with honey bees to preserve agricultural land
Dominion Energy’s 1.6 MW Black Bear Solar project in Buckingham County is now partnered with Mountain House Apiaries, using Italian honey bees to maintain the land around the solar arrays while benefiting the local agricultural community. The project falls under the category of agrivoltaics — another way to label pairing solar panels with agricultural uses […]
Amazon announces deal with Dominion Energy to develop a small nuclear reactor
Amazon announced Wednesday that it entered into an agreement with Dominion Energy to pay for the development of a small modular reactor as the utility explores building one at its North Anna Power Station, an existing traditional nuclear power plant in Louisa County. At its second headquarters in Arlington, Amazon also announced an agreement with […]
Dominion pushes for renewables, more natural gas in latest long-term plan
Virginia’s largest utility, Dominion Energy, on Tuesday filed an update to its long-term electricity generation plan showing the majority of energy it expects to produce will come from renewable sources. Dominion’s revamped, non-binding Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) looks 15 years into the future to detail how power will be provided and calls for an “all-of-the-above” approach that […]