FEATURE ARTICLE

December 2009

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Newport News Pulls Plug on Proposed King William Reservoir—After 22 Years, Abandons Plans to Build Reservoir

The proposed King William Reservoir, once an ambitious project designed to provide a comprehensive solution for the future water needs of the growing northern tier cities in Virginia’s “Hampton Roads” area, has instead become a study in futility. After 22 years, the Newport News City Council in September formally abandoned efforts to build the reservoir. The decision came after being informed by the U.S. Justice Department that it would not seek to appeal a holding by the U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia that the Corps of Engineers (Corps) was “arbitrary and capricious” in granting a permit to build the reservoir and that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was arbitrary and capricious in not vetoing the project.