Green Options » coal ash

New Study Lifts the Curtain on Clean Coal

Tina Casey — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 15:46:48 +0000

A new study from West Virginia University exposes one more dirty little secret about America’s favorite fossil fuel, coal. Though coal mining is touted as an economic boon to local communities, the study reviews mortality statistics to conclude that coal mining communities in Appalachia are among the weakest economies in their home states, and in the country. The study, “Mortality in Appalachian Coal Mining Regions,” appears in the July-August issue of Public Health Reports, the official journal of the U.S. Public Health Services.

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TVA Ships Toxic Coal Ash to Georgia and Alabama

Becky Striepe — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 07:00:26 +0000

Georgia and Alabama are now storing more than 1000 tons of the fly ash that leaked from a Tennessee coal fired power plant in December.

[Creative Commons photo by Jim Combs]

The spill, which dumped over 5.4 million cubic yards of toxic sludge in the area around the Kingston coal plant, was over 120 times larger than the Exxon Valdez. It destroyed homes in the area and contaminated local water supplies. Cleanup is still underway from the disaster six months later.

So why is the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) shipping tons of this toxic substance from Tennessee to Georgia and Alabama?

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2002 Coal Ash Risk Study Not Released by EPA

Michael Ricciardi — Sun, 31 May 2009 05:21:48 +0000

An October, 2002 the EPA-funded study on the health risks from Coal Ash dumps, which showed an increased cancer risk as well as the risk of non-cancer illnesses, was never released to the public.

The predicted cancer risk increase–up to 1 in 50 more cases per site–was due to arsenic leaching into the water table from unlined waste (coal ash) ponds. Non cancer health problems, including liver and kidney damage, were also shown to be at increased risk for residents living within a few miles of the waste ponds. Additionally, neurological damage from lead leaching was also a major risk finding.

The EPA did release an edited version of the study in August of 2007, but, according to environmental groups, it omitted the risks to marine animals. Environmentalist fear that the risk may be even greater than the study predicts, due to the fact that the EPA based its findings on a smaller survey data set (of total coal ash ponds)–40% less than the Industry reported in the subsequent year. Currently, there are at least 427 documented, coal ash waste ponds in the US.

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Residents Sue Over Coal Ash Dump Disguised as Golf Course

Alex Felsinger — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 16:52:02 +0000

Residents of Centerville, Virginia have sued Dominion Virginia Power to the tune of $1 billion for supplying 1.5 million tons of toxic fly ash to fill the hills of a nearby golf course.

The attorneys representing 400 Centerville residents claim that Dominion knew that the substance they supplied to the Battlefield Golf Club would eventually seep into the water supply. The suit also names the golf course’s developer and Dominion’s ‘coal-ash management consultant.’

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Coal Ash Spill Headed for D.C.

Becky Striepe — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 03:43:00 +0000

The Maryland Department of the Environment is reporting a coal ash spill, this time on the Potomac River.

[Creative Commons photo by Mikko Itälahti]

How many spills does this make in the past few months alone? There was the devastating TVA spill in Tennessee, the January spill in Alabama, and now this. Three spills in three months is a pretty terrible track record that underscores our need to move beyond coal as a primary fuel source.

The Maryland Department of the Environment press release said:

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Clean Coal? I Don’t Think So!

Leslie Berliant — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 16:25:10 +0000

The next time someone tells you about clean coal, remind them of the coal ash spill in Tennessee, bigger than the Exxon Valdez disaster. Or better yet, point them to the Think Progress video that shows the reality of the clean coal oxymoron in just 34 seconds.

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Senate Democrats Call for Stricter Toxics Rules After Coal-Ash Disaster

Caitlin Sislin — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 18:27:21 +0000

[This is a guest post by Caitlin Sislin, a public interest environmental attorney in Oakland, California and founder of the Transformative Advocacy program of Women’s Earth Alliance.]

On Thursday, a group of senate democrats responded to what may be the largest coal-related disaster in history by calling for more stringent rules on toxic byproducts from coal-fired power plants. Senator Barbara Boxer led the charge, condemning federal rulemakers for their “inaction” and demanding a stronger regulatory regime, which would include broader oversight of power plants by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

The December 22, 2008 disaster, which began when an earthen dike broke at Tennessee’s Kingston Coal Plant, caused over 1.1 billion gallons of toxic coal-ash sludge from a 40-acre settlement pond to flow onto several hundred acres of surrounding land near Knoxville, TN. The spill threatens the immediate health and safety of the community and the local environment, blanketing the area with mercury- and lead-laden sludge up to 9 feet deep in some areas, and jeopardizes the region’s drinking water source, the Emory River.

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TVA Coal Ash Disaster Much Worse Than Originally Thought

Taylor Shelton — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 15:00:15 +0000

Tuesday’s initial reports about the coal ash disaster in Harriman, Tennessee at the TVA’s Kingston Power Plant turned out to be false. The Tennessee Valley Authority initially estimated the spill to be approximately 500 million gallons, although they have now amended their estimate to 5.4 million cubic yards of toxic waste, which is the equivalent of over one billion gallons. My initial guess that this was the largest unnatural disaster of its kind has certainly given itself a bit of breathing room. A slurry impoundment, used to concentrate the waste byproducts that come from washing and burning coal, containing both uranium and thorium broke, releasing the toxic material into the surrounding community.

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Coal Slurry Disaster in Tennessee is Largest Ever

Taylor Shelton — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 21:56:08 +0000

Unnatural disasters have become a fact of life dependent upon fossil fuels. The latest of these disasters came early Monday morning when a coal slurry impoundment at the TVA Kingston Power Plant near Harriman, TN burst, allowing approximately 500 million gallons of toxic coal ash to rush into the surrounding community.

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