For the very first time, Dominion Virginia Power on Wednesday released treated coal ash wastewater into the James River. Although approved by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, this move has tremendously caused concern among environmental activists who held numerous protests for the past months.

According to a news report on WTVR.com, Dominion had made agreement with the James River Association last month after the utility giant swore to an enhanced treatment of the coal ash pond water.

"Everything you've always enjoyed doing in the James, you'll enjoy during this project.  And you'll enjoy for years to come," said Jason Williams, the Dominion Virginia Power Environmental Manager.

Dominion Virginia Power will definitely treat the 240 Olympic-sized swimming pools' worth of water from this month to May 2017 as cited in a news article on The Virginia Pilot. The release water, according to the company, will be completely safe for the environment.

After burning coal, the waste product left is coal ash

A process known as dewatering, before coal ash impoundments can be sealed, must be conducted in treating and discharging water which has pooled atop coal ash to depths approaching ten feet, and water saturating the ash.

At a very slow pace, the water that is pumped from the ponds is drained in order to remove sediment and ash. Oxygen is subsequently pumped in with the water stored in holding tanks. This has the effect of settling solids like metals. The next step boosts acidity, or pH, level of the water. Next, the more metals are being removed when the water goes into a series of tanks, called a flocculent. This allows the metal and sediment to stick together. As soon as they are stuck together, sludge is made that can be collected.

The next few steps involve putting the water through a series of filters. From these filters, the water then goes into tanks before the pH level is adjusted downward. This is done because a high pH level can definitely harm wildlife in the river.

And finally, the water is returned to a series of tanks where it is sampled in order to make sure that metal concentrations are within state-permitted limits before releasing the water into the river.