Maria Zimmerman Elected President of Enders Fire Company
Story and photo by Cathy Kuehner
As the John H. Enders Fire Company & Rescue Squad begins its 125th year of serving the Clarke County community, it does so with its first-ever female president. Maria Zimmerman was sworn in during Enders’ annual banquet in mid-January.
The company is composed of “operational” staff — the firefighters and EMTs who respond to calls — and “administrative” staff who manage finances, building-related issues, and organize community events. J.C. Blaylock is the chief of operational staff.
Zimmerman has long been both an operational and administrative member. “I’ve been a firefighter-EMT and secretary for years, so I have insight into all that’s required to be president.”
Regarding the “first-ever female” qualifier in front of her new title, she said, “I’ve never felt my gender was relevant to my work at Enders. All that matters here are your qualifications and your ability to serve.”
She laughs when she recalls her career path, and credits her first jobs in theatre with developing the skills that serve her well now. “Stage managing has always been my role, and drama is part of working in a firehouse.”
Zimmerman earned a bachelor’s degree in drama from the University of Virginia in 1990. After a few years of working in theatre, she wanted a more fulfilling career.
“I set my sights on becoming a physician assistant,” she said. “Initially, fire and rescue was a means to an end. I needed medical experience to be admitted to PA school, so I went to Northern Virginia Community College and earned my EMT certificate. Then, I went to my local fire department and said, ‘Hey, I’m an EMT. Do y’all need any help?’” The reply was a resounding “Yes!”
Zimmerman quickly learned this. “When things are at their worst, firefighters and EMTs are at their best. They are brave, honest, and passionate when it comes to answering the call,” she said. “They are creative and smart, coming up with solutions on the fly. In stressful moments, they are probably being funny to ease the tension. They will literally give their lives to save a stranger. And, I decided I wanted to be one of them.”
Zimmerman rose to the rank of rescue chief at the Arcola Volunteer Fire Department, while earning her physician assistant degree at George Washington University and then working as an emergency room PA.
Along the way, she married Loudoun County firefighter Gerry Boudreau.
The couple and their young daughter moved to Clarke County in 2006. It was a 2008 Thanksgiving Day chimney fire in their home that introduced them to the John H. Enders Fire Company.
Gerry joined Enders in 2008 and, after volunteering for many fundraising events, Maria officially joined as a firefighter-EMT in 2014.
Almost immediately, Zimmerman served as a rescue lieutenant and secretary, one of the few people to work on both the operational and administrative sides of the company at the same time.
“I think that’s what set me up for being president,” she said. “The operational side says, ‘This is what we need,’ and the administrative side says, ‘We’ll figure out how to fund it. We also ask, ‘Will the community support this?’”
To that end, the company’s 10-member Board of Directors is a mix of operational and administrative members, although every Board member is or has been an operational member. As president, Zimmerman will oversee Board meetings and guide decisions about personnel, maintenance, and membership.
“I think one of my talents is knowing each person’s strengths and talents,” she said. “I know everyone here and know who to call.”
Like all fire and rescue companies, Enders is dependent on volunteers. Volunteers to run calls. Volunteers to maintain the building. Volunteers to flip pancakes and barbeque chicken during fundraising events.
In 2024, Enders firefighters and EMTs collectively, responded to 487 fires calls and 1,937 emergency medical services calls.
Anyone who’s ever watched a few episodes of “Chicago Fire” has heard characters talk about how the firehouse is a family. Enders is no different.
“There is a camaraderie in a firehouse you do not find anywhere else,” Zimmerman said. “And, working here is the best possible way to forge a community connection.”
With tears in her eyes, she talked about the day her father died at his Berryville home. “All our ambulances were out on calls. I got on our ‘line chat’ to ask for help. When I reached my Dad’s house, the street was lined with vehicles belonging to Enders volunteers. We didn’t cook for a month. That’s what this company does.”
The John H. Enders Fire Company has been taking care of its community for more than a century. Zimmerman explained that Virginia assigns agency numbers to identify fire and rescue squads; numbers are now into five digits. Enders is number 58, further evidence of its long history.
Berryville Town Council purchased its first horse-drawn hook-and-ladder truck in 1883 to provide some fire-firefighting service in town. John H. Enders, a funeral director and furniture maker, moved to Berryville in 1892, and by 1900 he helped Town Council organize the Berryville Fire Department.
The department’s first piece of motorized fire apparatus was purchased with Enders’ help in 1926, and it was kept at his Main Street funeral home. After “Captain John” Enders died in 1933, the department was renamed John H. Enders Fire Company. In 1935, a proper firehouse was built at 23 East Main Street. In 1958 a four-bay firehouse was built at 9 South Buckmarsh St. — the company’s current home — with additions built in 1963 and 1986.
Zimmerman said she feels she grew up in fire and rescue. “The people I’ve met have been with me through major life events, through the sorrows and joys life brings. They are the first people I call in a crisis, and I’m honored when they call me. They have become my extended family.”
To become an Enders volunteer — in any capacity — go to endersfire.com/volunteer. Zimmerman noted, “Running calls can be stressful. A sense of humor helps.”And, she said, “The best way community members can support Enders is by attending our fundraising events.”
Turning The Eggs
By Doug Pifer
It’s eagle nesting season again. The bald eagles at the National Conservation Training Center (NCTC) in Shepherdstown have laid two eggs and incubation has begun.
Since 2015, we have joined the hundreds of regular viewers of the NCTC live nest camera. It’s very easy to become hooked on the daily drama. As the introduction to the site says, this is a live camera in real time, and anything can happen. This year, however, the nesting season has progressed relatively calmly for the local pair of nesting eagles. One or another of the pair sets on the nest day and night, trading off in shifts. From time to time, the parent eagle will stand up and carefully turn the eggs.
Anyone who has used an incubator to hatch hens’ eggs understands that egg rotation is necessary so the eggs can develop and hatch properly. Having watched many birds, wild and domestic, turn their eggs, I believed they did so to keep the eggs uniformly warm. But there’s so much more to this fascinating story.
Inside the egg, the embryo of the developing chick is surrounded by the egg white and the egg yolk. Egg yolk, encased in a membranous sack attached to the abdomen of the developing chick, is largely composed of fat. Because it is lighter in weight than the egg white, the yolk always floats to the surface inside the egg. The egg must be turned occasionally because if it remains in one position for too long, the yolk is likely to dry out and stick to the membrane that lines the eggshell, causing the developing chick to die.
How could an egg dry out so easily? The shell of a bird’s egg looks solid but is really porous, so the developing chick can get all its essential oxygen and humidity from the surrounding air. When a bird turns the egg, it exposes fresh surfaces, allowing more oxygen and humid air to circulate inside the egg.
Normally eagles turn their eggs approximately once every hour. The parent eagle stands up and carefully steps back from the eggs, curling its talons into balled “fists” to keep them from damaging the eggs. Then, using its bill, it gently turns the eggs. The eagle immediately settles back onto the eggs. The bird rocks from side to side (which my wife calls the Mama Rumba) so that an area of warm, bare skin on its belly, called the brood patch, touches directly against the eggs. Both male and female eagles have a brood patch, surrounded by dense body feathers that help to insulate the eggs from the cold.
Many birds wait until all the eggs in a clutch are laid before they begin to incubate, so all the eggs hatch around the same time. Winter nesting birds like bald eagles cannot afford to wait because their eggs could freeze. Typically, the first bald eagle egg appears around the second week of February. They may lay as many as four eggs, although two eggs are usual. Generally, the eggs are laid two or three days apart. The Shepherdstown eagles laid their first egg this year on February 10, and their second on February 13. A third egg was laid February 17.
What’s so exciting about watching a bird sitting on eggs? Tune in for a while and you’ll see. At any time, an approaching eagle, raven, or a night marauding owl or raccoon creates tension and drama for the incubating parent bird. Winter storms rock the nest tree while snow and ice cover the nest and the setting parent bird. Heavy rain soaks the feathers of an incubating eagle as it flattens itself with wings spread in a “mumbrella” to cover the eggs. Mom or dad may be late returning with food, or one of them might come in late to take over their shift. Sometimes both parents leave the nest unattended.
What then?
If you see the eggs lying exposed with no parents around, don’t worry. Even in the dead of winter, the eggs can overheat. Consequently, the eagles occasionally leave the nest, usually for no more than twenty minutes, to allow the eggs to cool down. Visit the link for an article referenced on the NCT eagle nest chat line at https://birdwatchingpro.com/why-do-eagles-roll-their-eggs/ to read more about the fascinating subject of incubation. Visit the eagle cam at https://www.fws.gov/nctc/eagle-cam; and click on the link to the cam.
Calculating Child Support When Parents Live Apart
By Brenda Waugh
When families live in two houses, the parents will adopt a parenting plan that includes how they make decisions and share custodial time with the children. The best practice is for parents to develop detailed plans that serve as a guide and set expectations for scheduling holidays, vacations, and making decisions about extracurricular activities, religious involvement, and medical care.
In addition to creating a parenting plan, parents must also consider child support, which most states require to be established when the parents are divorced or go to court to address custody. It is also usually required if a child receives Medicaid. The amount of support is generally determined by state guidelines designed to ensure children’s basic needs are met and to minimize financial disparities between households. These guidelines consider several factors, with the most critical being the number of nights the children spend with each parent, the parents’ gross monthly income, the amount a parent pays for the child’s portion of health insurance, and out-of-pocket medical expenses. They may also consider spousal support payments and whether a parent supports another child.
Both Virginia and West Virginia use income-shares-based guidelines, meaning that parents contribute to child
support in proportion to their income. In both states, parents can review the statutes on the guidelines and use worksheets to manually calculate their child support obligations.
In Virginia, the relevant statute is Virginia Code § 20-108.2, which provides the guidelines for determining child support. The corresponding worksheet can be found at www.vacourts.gov/static/forms/district/dc637.pdf.
In West Virginia, the pertinent statute is West Virginia Code § 48-13-403, which includes the worksheet for calculating basic child support obligations in shared parenting cases. The worksheet is available dhhr.wv.gov/bcse/parents/Pages/Income-Shares-Support-Formula.aspx.
Many states provide free online calculators so that parents do not need to manually use these worksheets, or rely on the courts or DHS to provide even an estimated calculation. However, neither Virginia nor West Virginia offers an official online calculator. Some commercial websites provide estimated payment amounts, but these often only apply to cases where one parent has most of the custodial time and so do not provide reliable calculations for shared custody arrangements.
In 2010, I met a fellow mediator at the Virginia Mediation Conference, Danny Burk. Danny had extensive experience beyond his work as a lawyer in the tech industry and used his knowledge to create a free online calculator,
vasupportcalc.com, for Virginia parents. Last spring, I met with Danny and complimented him on the tool, mentioning that I wished West Virginia had a similar resource. Danny got to work, and he recently launched wvasupportcalc.com.
This is a valuable resource because parents can now calculate their child support on their own. When a parent gets a raise or experiences job loss, they can estimate whether support might be reduced or increased. However, it is important to note that once a court issues a support order, parents must obtain a new order to officially modify their obligation and avoid falling into arrears.
While the online calculator does not replace legal advice and may not account for complexities such as bonuses or temporary jobs, it is a helpful starting point for parents seeking clarity on their child support obligations. Having access to these tools empowers parents to make informed decisions and better prepare for their financial responsibilities. Brenda Waugh is a lawyer/mediator with Waugh Law & Mediation, serving clients in the Blue Ridge region of Virginia and Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia.
Former Planning Commission Member Receives Land Conservation Award
Anne Caldwell To Be Honored At Autumn Reception
For the eleventh year, the Clarke County Conservation Easement Authority has named the recipient of its Wingate Mackay-Smith Clarke County Land Conservation Award: former Planning Commission member Anne Caldwell. The award is presented annually to individuals, groups, or organizations that have made significant contributions to the preservation and protection of open spaces in Clarke County.
“Anne has been truly committed to land conservation for as long as I’ve known her,” said Randy Buckley, chairman of the Clarke County Conservation Easement Authority. “She does her homework, she shares her insights, and she’s always an ambassador for conservation and easements, especially during her time spent in Clarke County. That’s why Anne is a perfect recipient for the Easement Authority’s eleventh Wingate Mackay-Smith Land Conservation Award. We still benefit from her contributions to Clarke County’s planning process.”
Recently retired to Harpswell, Maine, Caldwell and her husband, Peter Elzer, moved to Clarke County with their three children in 1995, purchasing River View Farm, a 120-acre farm in the eastern section of the county. (The couple purchased the farm in two separate land parcels within two years.)
Caldwell explains she researched the Mid Atlantic region during her relocation search from Connecticut. After reading the comprehensive plan for Clarke County and learning of the county’s land-use philosophy, she told her husband, “We’ve got to live here.” Soon after their purchase, they protected River View Farm by placing it in conservation easement through the Virginia Outdoors Foundation, before the Clarke County Conservation Easement Authority was established.
While living in Clarke County, Caldwell served from 2002 until 2022 on various boards and commissions, including the Planning Commission, Board of Zoning Appeals, Berryville Area Development Authority, Historic Preservation Commission, and Board of Septic and Well Appeals.
“It’s an amazing county and I worked with a wonderful group of people,” Caldwell recalls. “So unique. The values of the county and the philosophy about land use permeated everything. The people on the county’s boards were representative of the county as a whole. No political issues were brought up that had national significance. Of course, there were different views, but none of that mattered.”
As for conservation easements, Caldwell explains: “Easements are one of the few ways to preserve precious pieces of land, especially in Clarke, where the pressure is enormous.” She advises conservation-minded landowners to investigate how an easement may work for them and “don’t be put off by the erroneous information that circulates about easements.”
Given Maine’s wintry weather, Caldwell plans to return to Clarke County and officially receive her award at the Conservation Easement Authority’s annual reception in the fall.“Easements are one of the few ways to preserve precious pieces of land, especially in Clarke, where the development pressure is enormous.”
Rat Pack Antiques and Toys Charms on Main Street
Story and photo by Rebecca Maynard
Whether it’s art, retro toys, jewelry or collectibles, there is sure to be something to catch your eye at Rat Pack Antiques and Toys, which opened at 14 West Main Street in Berryville in October.
“I love it here,” owner Brennah Thomas said. “My mom moved here from Brooklyn to go to Shenandoah University, and she just stayed. I was born in Winchester and raised in Berryville, then I moved to Summit Point for about 18 years. I always worked in Clarke County, and moved back last spring. It’s good to be back even though I was only about ten minutes away!”
“It’s really fun being on Main Street,” Thomas said. “We started in the Strasburg Emporium in 2021, and the last year or so we were in Waterloo (the intersection of Routes 340 and 50 near Boyce). That was a great location, but we couldn’t get a long-term lease.”
The new storefront is nestled between the Tea Cart and Brazen Sheep yarn shop. Thomas says she enjoys the sense of community. “We’re a part of the neighborhood. I like being a part of Berryville Main Street and the events they put on. It’s great seeing people go up and down the street, and talking with different business owners. I have a lot of people who come in after tea (at the Tea Cart).”
Thomas said much of the store’s inventory came from her boyfriend and business partner Chris’s family. His grandmother passed away in 2010, leaving her massive collection to his father, who passed away in 2019.
“It was a tough time for Chris, especially with Covid, because we couldn’t have estate sales,” Thomas said. “So Chris decided to buy the collection from the estate, and we started our own little business. I love to shop and so does he, so we also go to auctions, estate sales, flea markets, yard sales, thrift stores —all of that.”
Rat Pack’s offerings include jewelry, antique and secondhand furniture, art, a large Disney collection, tools, toys, memorabilia, and a nook with Thomas’s daughter’s homemade soaps, scrubs, candles and dried herbs.
“There’s a little bit of everything, and way more where that came from. As soon as something goes out the front door, we’re bringing more inventory in the back,” Thomas said.
She keeps prices reasonable so that anyone shopping can find something to buy, and has kept things fun with events like “soup and cider” days during the cold weather. When she had her previous business, Rapture, on Main Street, she and her mother enjoyed having happy hour events with wine, cheese, refreshments, and sales for customers. Thomas plans to have more fun events for customers to enjoy.
For Thomas, a part-time endeavor has become full time, and she is loving every minute of it. “This is so fun, a labor of love,” she said.The store’s hours are Thursday through Saturday, 10am to 6pm, and 12pm to 5pm Sundays. It can be reached at 540-327-8134, or visit its Facebook or Instagram pages.
Septic System And Well Records Now Available Online For Clarke County Properties
Clarke County and the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) have launched its Online Responsible Maintenance Entity (OnlineRME) database. The purpose is to provide an online, publicly accessible, complete, and up-to-date database of all county onsite sewage system “septic system” records. These records will assist homeowners, contractors, and onsite sewage system operators in understanding the system type, maintenance requirements, and, in some cases, the location of wells and onsite sewage system components.
The system will also be used to remind property owners when pump-outs of conventional onsite sewage systems (COSS) and inspections of operation and
maintenance of alternative onsite sewage systems are due.
To access your records, go to: clarkecounty.gov/residents/septic-pump-out.
The county’s goal is to make this the most complete and accurate database possible, and encourages everyone to check their records. If you have additional information regarding your system or need assistance with accessing records, contact the Clarke County Planning Department, Alison Teetor, ateetor@clarkecounty.gov, 540-955-5177. Contact the Clarke County Health Department at 540-955-1033with any technical questions regarding your septic system or well records.
Black History Museum Welcomes Young Readers For Contest
Story and photo by Cathy Kuehner
The Josephine School Community Museum hosted its 19th “Helen O. Carr Dramatic Reading Contest” on Feb. 15 at the museum on Josephine Street in Berryville. Seven youngsters competed in the 2nd and 3rd grade category and six students were in the 4th and 5th grade category. All read passages they selected from published fiction and nonfiction work written by or about African Americans. Each stepped up to the microphone in front of a standing-room-only crowd, made eye contact with the audience, and read with clarity and emotion.
Three judges tallied scores and awarded the top spots to Theodore Birgler and Sabre Schultz. Theodore won the 2nd & 3rd grade category. He is in the third grade at Wesley D. Tisdale School in Ramsey, N.J., and was visiting relatives in Clarke County at the time of the contest. Sabre is a fourth-grader at D.G. Cooley Elementary School. She won the 4th & 5th grade category. Prizes were also awarded for 2nd, 3rd, and 4th places in both categories.
Reading Contest” is named for an extraordinary woman who was actively involved in planning the proposed Josephine School Community Museum in the late 1990s. Helen Carr was a founding member of the museum’s Board of Directors. Her interest in transforming the Josephine School into a community museum was personal. Her step-father Ralph Paige attended the school, and she herself attended a one-room elementary school for Black children.
After the museum opened in 2003, Ms. Carr organized the first Black History Month “Dramatic Reading Contest” in 2004. She also helped develop its “Book Club Series” and scholarship program for Clarke County High School seniors. She retired from the museum Board in 2016.The Josephine School Community Museum & Clarke County African American Cultural Center is located at 303 Josephine St. in Berryville. Contact the museum at (540) 955-5512, (540) 333-0692, or jschool515@verizon.net. Follow “Josephine School Community Museum” on Facebook.
Va. Lawmakers Seem Ready To Add More Energy Storage To The Grid
By Leah Small
Virginia lawmakers want to more than triple the amount of energy storage capacity Virginia’s two public utility companies — Dominion and Appalachian Power (ApCo) — must procure under the Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA).
Passed in 2020, the VCEA required Dominion to supply electricity from only carbon-neutral sources by 2045. It gave ApCo until 2050 to meet the same standard. As part of its strategy to decarbonize the grid, the VCEA also set targets for public utilities to add capacity to store excess energy produced from renewable sources to dispatch during times of high demand.
House Bill 2537 and companion Senate Bill 1394 would increase targets set by the VCEA for Dominion and ApCo energy storage capacity from a combined 3,100 megawatts to 10,000 megawatts. Del. Richard Sullivan, D-Fairfax, who proposed HB 2537, said more energy storage would bring down energy costs — which Dominion projects will rise by 50% for its residential customers by 2039 — and help maintain grid reliability.
“This will position the commonwealth as a real national leader in developing energy storage … reduces the need to develop peaker plants, and ensures the best use of renewable technologies,” Sullivan said.
He added that increasing storage capacity “ensures the lights stay on for constituents during natural weather events.”
Sullivan’s bill passed the House 54-44 along mostly partisan lines, with two members not voting. The Senate version, brought by Sen. Lamont Bagby, D-Henrico, passed unanimously. The two bills now await further action in the other’s chamber.
Dominion has warned that to keep up with increased power demand, it may need to build up to eight natural gas peaker plants — designed to be used when needed during demand peaks — over the next 10 to 15 years. Last year, Dominion announced plans to build a peaker plant in Chesterfield but has faced opposition from community members and environmental activists who say the plant could stall Virginia’s decarbonization mandates.
Investments in energy storage have paid off in other states. In Texas, through record summer heat waves in 2023 and winter storms in 2024, energy storage systems saved the state $750 million in energy costs and prevented grid shutdowns, according to separate analyses by Aurora Energy, energy market research consultants, and The American Clean Power Association, a clean energy industry lobby. Renewables and energy storage batteries make up half of Texas’ energy mix, the American Clean Power report states.
Republican lawmakers in Virginia’s House are also concerned about rising energy costs but said investments to develop energy storage technology would mean additional costs to ratepayers. Del. Israel O’Quinn, R-Bristol, also took issue with VCEA requirements that public utilities pay penalties for not meeting clean energy goals, including battery storage requirements — costs that could be passed on to ratepayers.
“It’s time we step back and take a holistic look at where we are as it relates to utility regulations — as it relates to the ratepayers who are depending on us to try to make good decisions here and control the costs that are within our control,” O’Quinn said.
The bills require Dominion to apply for available federal Department of Energy grants to offset part of the development costs. Sullivan said investment in energy storage will bring future savings and is needed due to growing demand on the grid in Virginia. “We must increase storage development so that renewable energy produced at times it may not be needed can be stored to be put on the grid at the most useful time,” he said. “Investments in storage today will pay large dividends for ratepayers and grid stability for decades to come.”
Where is Dominion on energy storage?
Under the VCEA, Dominion, Virginia’s largest public utility, is required to procure at least 2,700 megawatts of energy storage capacity by the end of 2035. The utility’s first interim goal is to petition the State Corporation Commission by the end of this year for approval to bring 250 megawatts of storage capacity online. Dominion says it is ahead on its year-end target and has petitioned the SCC for 557.1 megawatts of storage capacity, some of which is operational. One megawatt of storage capacity can power 250 homes at peak output, Dominion says.
The utility’s 557.1-megawatt storage portfolio includes projects in various stages of development.
Across four facilities in Chesterfield, New Kent, Powhatan and Hanover, Dominion currently has 36 megawatts of battery energy storage capacity in operation, 16 megawatts of which pre-date the VCEA, so are not factored into Dominion’s storage targets.
Also factored into VCEA targets is an additional 78 megawatts of storage capacity in various stages of development at five facilities across Virginia, including a 50-megawatt facility at Dulles International Airport that when completed will be the largest storage facility in Dominion’s fleet. Dominion acquired an additional 459.1 megawatts of capacity through power purchase agreements.
How close is Dominion to meeting proposed storage targets?
In addition to increasing capacity requirements, the bills call on public utilities to acquire specific amounts of both short-duration and long-duration energy storage capacity. The bills define short-duration as less than 10 hours of generation, and long-duration as 10 or more hours.
Differentiating between short- and long-duration storage in Virginia code ensures that short-duration batteries are deployed soon to meet current energy needs, while long-duration technologies are being improved and developed, says Bennett Fuson, a spokesperson for American Clean Power.
“We’ve primarily seen short duration energy storage, we haven’t seen a significant roll-out of [long duration systems],” Fuson says. “What we do know is having the resources to hold more power that’s cheaply generated and dispatch it for longer periods of time to offset those costs does help … as we’re thinking about that next generation of energy consumers.”
If the new storage targets are adopted, Dominion would have a lot of catching up to do. By year-end 2045, Dominion would be required to petition the SCC to buy or purchase 3,480 megawatts of long-duration storage, half of which must be petitioned for by the end of 2035.
And half of the 2045 long-duration energy storage target capacity would be required to supply more than 24 hours of power. The legislation would also establish short duration energy storage capacity targets for 2045 and interim targets.
The SCC would have authority to determine the feasibility of the long duration energy storage targets and adjust the targets as needed. The SCC’s assessment would be based on a demonstration of pilot projects by Dominion that show energy storage technologies of at least 3,000 megawatts in capacity by 2029. Adopting new targets would depend on factors such as cost and reliability.
Dominion is working with energy storage developers to pilot three long duration storage projects, including two battery systems at its Darbytown Power Station in Chesterfield — one of which could potentially discharge energy for 100 hours, according to Dominion. But the pilots — a combined 12.3 megawatts — would make a very small dent in 2029 technology demonstration goals.
Christine Noonan, a lobbyist for Dominion, says the legislation would give Dominion the opportunity to study long-duration energy storage, which “could be an important tool for [grid] reliability going forward.”
“Ultimately, after that technology demonstration [in 2029] the commission will have full authority to agree with the targets set in the code or alter them up or down and we think that is the right approach,” Noonan adds.
This article originally appeared in the Virginia Mercury, VirginiaMercury.com. Leah Small is a Richmond-based freelance journalist whose work has appeared in The Guardian, The New York Times, Style Weekly, Richmond Magazine, The Progress-Index and others.