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Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Environment - "Environmental groups to sue EPA over coal-ash ponds"

So reports James Bruggers of the Louisville Courier Journal in this story dated Sept. 14th that begins:

Three environmental groups have put the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on notice that they intend to sue the agency, alleging it has failed to regulate water pollution from the nation’s electric utilities, including discharges into rivers and lakes from hundreds of coal-ash ponds.
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Defenders of Wildlife, the Sierra Club and the Environmental Integrity Project on Monday filed their notice of intent to sue the EPA — the first step in a federal lawsuit — alleging that EPA officials should have tightened their rules on power plant water pollution as far back as 1982.

At issue are the heavy metals and other toxic pollutants found in effluent from ponds that store electric utilities’ combustion wastes, such as ash, as well as scrubber sludge wastewater, and wastewater produced during the cleaning of cooling towers, said Jen Peterson, an attorney with the Environmental Integrity Project.

“Toxic discharges from power plants can threaten the health of local communities, contaminate ground and surface waters, and destroy aquatic life,” said the Environmental Integrity Project executive director Eric Schaeffer, a former high-ranking EPA enforcement official. “EPA needs to stop kicking the can down the road and set a date for regulation.”

He said the agency’s data shows that coal plants discharge millions of pounds of toxic pollutants like arsenic, mercury, selenium and lead, each year. Yet existing federal rules, which have not been revised since 1982, set no national limits on metals discharges, which can get into local water supplies and contaminate waterways, he said.

The EPA responded by saying it will announce “the way forward on standards for water discharges from coal-fired plants” on Tuesday, according to EPA spokeswoman Adora Andy.

The Sept. 9th Gary Post-Tribune had this story by Gitte Laasby headed "NIPSCO coal ash ponds unregulated: Ponds at Wheatfield haven't been inspected since construction in 1982." Some quotes:
NIPSCO is not aware of any safety inspections or monitoring subsequent to construction that was carried out under the supervision of a professional engineer," NIPSCO revealed in response to a survey on coal ash impoundments that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released Tuesday.

NIPSCO said neither state or federal authorities have -- or plan to -- inspect or evaluate the safety or structural integrity of the four impoundments at the R.M. Schahfer Generating Station in Wheatfield, about 20 miles south of Valparaiso.

The units hold a combined 888,000 cubic yards of coal ash, fly ash, boiler slag and gypsum on more than 100 acres of land.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on September 15, 2009 01:04 PM
Posted to Environment