Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles, P.C.

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has hired a new gun to head up the utility’s cleanup efforts in the town it so badly damaged when a TVA coal ash impoundment pond broke last December sending a wave of toxic material on to homes, property and the Emory River. That hired gun, Steve McCracken, is considered a nationally recognized leader on cleanup and remediation projects who has spent his career removing hazardous chemicals and radioactive materials from large industrial sites, excavating sludge, treating water and restoring landscape. As manager of the TVA coal ash spill recovery effort, McCracken says, “It is my intent to be here until the job is done … done to the satisfaction of the community.”

McCracken most recently served as assistant manager for environmental management with the Department of Energy in Oak Ridge, Tenn. At age 60, McCracken was set to retire when he was offered the TVA gig.

McCracken replaces Anda Ray, TVA’s senior vice president of Environment and Research, who has headed up the cleanup efforts since it began nine months ago. Ray will resume her role as head of the department but will remain involved with the spill project’s regulatory and remediation activities, continue to serve as the executive spokesperson on the effort, and serve on the board of the Roane County Economic Development Foundation.

McCracken says the cleanup process, which is estimated to cost around $1 billion, could take another three years. The ash should be fully removed from the Emory River by Spring 2010, and the remaining 2.4 million cubic yards on dry land fully removed about two years later.

Sources: Dayton Daily News, Knox News

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