Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, March 29, 1994 TAG: 9403290056
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-3 EDITION: STATE
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: HAYMARKET LENGTH: Medium
Environmental groups this month urged no road construction for Disney, saying increased traffic would mean more air pollution than new federal laws allow.
The groups called for environmental and traffic studies that could significantly delay new or expanded roads for the 3,000-acre Disney site in Prince William County. Disney opponents include the nonprofit Piedmont Environmental Council and several major national conservation organizations.
"The Disney project . . . crystallizes important issues that the whole nation is grappling with," said Stephen Burringer, senior attorney for the Conservation Law Foundation. The Boston group has sued to stop highway projects in Massachusetts and is closely watching the Disney situation.
At issue are the Clean Air Act of 1990 and a 1991 federal transportation law that requires 100 larger cities across the nation to reduce air pollution.
Roads and developments cannot be built if they would send a region's air pollution above established limits, unless comparable offsets can be found.
"This whole topic is very fresh and new, and [Disney] will be one of the first ones to be scrutinized," said Arlington lawyer John Milliken, who was Gov. Douglas Wilder's transportation secretary.
Disney plans the American-history based theme park, as many as 2,500 residences and 2 million square feet of commercial and office space on land about 45 minutes from Washington.
Disney already faces a battery of regulatory and governmental approvals.
by CNB