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

U.S. District Judge Thomas Varlan began preliminary matters Thursday in Knoxville, Tenn., regarding the massive coal ash spill that dumped 5.4 million cubic yards of sludge from a TVA storage pond into the Emory River and surrounding community on Dec. 22, 2008. The toxic tidal wave poured from a breached containment pond at the Kingston Plant and affected hundreds of people who made their home in nearby Roane County, Tenn. This trial will determine liability in the case, but will not address damages at this time.

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The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) received word Monday that it will be required to pay $11.5 million in fines as a result of a December 2008 coal ash spill at its Kingston, Tenn., coal-fired power plant. The fine was levied by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation after the agency determined the TVA is guilty of violating state clean-water and solid waste disposal laws. The Dec. 22, 2008, spill dumped about a billion gallons of toxic coal ash sludge on the Kingston community, located about 35 miles west of Knoxville, spreading across more than 300 acres of land and contaminating the adjacent Emory River.

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A memo that apparently passed through the hands of several folks at the TVA drafting “talking points” about the Kingston Fossil Plant coal ash spill of Dec. 22 appears to attempt to minimize the significance of the disaster, according to a report today from the Associated Press.

The memo was apparently sent to the AP by accident, according to their report. They say the memo shows additions and deletions that change more alarming language to tone down the sense of urgency and threat resulting from the coal ash spill.

An example cited by the AP story says the word “catastrophic” was changed to “sudden, accidental release” when describing the spill that flooded more than 300 acres surrounding the energy production plant with toxic coal ash sludge.

While environmentalists are pointing to the memo as evidence that TVA is trying to cover up the seriousness of the situation, TVA representatives say that they were simply trying to present accurate information as they understood it at the beginning of the crisis, the AP reports. As the situation developed, the TVA says it modified its information to upgrade the severity of the situation, the report states.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Montgomery, Ala. – Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles, P.C., has filed a class action suit on behalf of property owners damaged by the Dec. 22, 2008 Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) spill at the Kingston Fossil Plant. Located 40 miles west of Knoxville, Tenn., the plant released 1.1 billion gallons of toxin-laden sludge into a rural neighborhood when a waste storage pond retaining wall failed. The suit is filed against the TVA, the nation’s largest public utility, over potentially the most significant environmental disaster since the Exxon Valdez oil spill.

Beasley Allen will be working with attorneys Gary Davis and Mary Parker in Tennessee, both of whom have Environmental experience. Beasley Allen has its own Environmental department to handle cases such as this disaster. The firm has handled previous environmental claims including a $700 million settlement with Monsanto/Solutia in Anniston, Ala., over PCB contamination, the largest environmental settlement in American history. More recently, Beasley Allen obtained a $20.7 million verdict against manufacturers of carbon black for nearby property owners, a verdict that was upheld by the United States Supreme Court.

Coal-fired power plants produce coal ash and other toxic waste byproducts. The material is usually stored on site in retention ponds or dams. A failure in the retaining wall, or an overflow, can result in an environmental disaster contaminating surrounding waterways, soil, and wildlife, and endangering human health and life.

There is ongoing debate about how coal ash is stored and regulated. Currently, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency does not regulate these types of retention ponds or the materials contained in them. Surprisingly, the EPA does not consider the coal ash hazardous material. There is a great deal of debate over whether state regulations are sufficient to regulate these retention ponds, as evidenced by this most recent disaster.

“It is absolutely incredible that there is no real oversight for the storage and safe disposal of this toxic waste,” said Beasley Allen attorney Rhon Jones, who specializes in Environmental issues. “Most of these retention ponds are not lined or reinforced, and it’s inevitable that potentially hazardous material will leak out. They just are not a long-term solution. It’s only a matter of time before the next disaster. These facilities are everywhere – Alabama, Tennessee. Communities are living under a cloud, uncertain of their safety.”

There is a U.S. Senate hearing set for Jan. 8 to review the Tennessee disaster that will include representatives from the TVA and environmental groups. Beasley Allen attorneys have contacted Congressional leaders offering to speak at the hearings, and lawyers from the Beasley Allen team will be present in Washington.

SOURCE: Beasley Allen Law Firm

COMPLAINT:Official class action complaint filed in TVA case

A report published today by the Birmingham News says the coal ash retaining ponds at two Birmingham-area coal-fired energy plants contain the highest levels of arsenic in the country, ranked and Nos. 2 and 3 on a list compiled by the Environmental Integrity Project (EIP). The study evaluates the amount of ash deposited in on-site ash ponds and landfills from 2000-2006, according to the News report.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MONTGOMERY, ALA. – Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles, P.C., is currently evaluating claims on behalf of property owners affected by a devastating coal ash spill in Tennessee. The disaster spilled thousands of pounds of coal ash and toxic waste across more than 300 acres. The event occurred when an earthen retaining wall at the Kingston Fossil Plant failed, creating one of the largest coal fly ash spills in the United States. The plant is located 40 miles west of Knoxville, Tenn.

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