Research consortium to guide coal ash cleanup, health monitoring
April 1st, 2009 by Jennifer Walker-Journey
Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU), a Tennessee-based independent university research group, is working out a contract with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to guide the cleanup efforts and the health monitoring of residents in and around the site of last December’s coal ash spill, according to the Miami Herald/Associated Press.
More than a billion gallons of toxic material poured on to 300 acres of an east Tennessee neighborhood late last year when a coal ash impoundment at the TVA’s Kingston, Tennessee, plant failed. The spill destroyed homes and damaged property, and has raised serious concerns about human safety not only among residents but also with environmental groups. Coal ash contains dangerous toxins such as arsenic and lead that can cause serious health problems such as cancer, liver damage and neurological complications.
As a result, residents in the area are cautious. “We need more information and increased communications,” said resident Sarah McCoin, a member of the Tennessee Coal Ash Survivors Network. “Many families fear they are poisoning their children by remaining in their homes and they do not have the resources to pay for testing those children. They need help, they need answers.”
ORAU is an education and research consortium of 100 universities including Georgia Tech, Duke, Tennessee, Tulane, Johns Hopkins and Vanderbuilt. According to the TVA, ORAU will bring in toxicologists to design medical tests to identify health problems that can be caused by the toxins in coal ash. The group also will review the results of air, water and soil tests to determine whether the cleanup has been thorough enough not to pose a risk to those living in the area.