Coal ash

The report highlights the concern environmentalists have had for years – that coal ash produced by utilities like the TVA is toxic and should be regulated by the federal government. Tests have shown that coal ash contains arsenic, lead, chromium, manganese and barium, heavy metals that have been linked to serious health concerns such as cancer, liver damage and neurological complications. Based on the new report, the EPA says it is considering labeling coal ash as a toxic waste. Utilities industries oppose the move.

Meanwhile, the TVA is undergoing an expected years-long, $1.2 billion cleanup of the land it damaged. While the nation’s largest utility claims it will restore the property to its original condition and has given more than $40 million to Roane County officials for improvement projects and a pricey public relations campaign, locals and environmentalists say that the efforts don’t rectify the damage to wildlife and humans, many of whom have already tested positive for heavy metals in their blood.

Source: UPI

SOURCE: Coal Ash Spill › EPA report: Coal ash causes death, deformity in wildlife

The engineers concerns about the stability of the pond walls are detailed in documents released earlier this year by the TVA. The documents were requested by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) in an effort to pinpoint why the pond breach occurred in the first place.

The documents show that the dikes making up the coal ash pond were in frequent need of maintenance and re-engineering. TVA officials made decisions based on opinions of both in-house engineers and consulting engineers. The pond’s most recent stability inspection – which showed nothing that would indicate failure – occurred just two months before the spill.

So far, the utility has spent more than $68 million cleaning up the mess, and that cost is expected to rise to as high as $825 million. The utility also has spent $11 million to buy out property from locals affected by the spill. Additional expenses are expected to cover litigation, penalties and settlements.

SOURCE: Coal Ash Spill › Engineers raised questions about coal ash pond walls decades ago

TVA also faces millions of dollars in pollution control expenses due to an environmental court ruling in North Carolina that ordered the TVA to accelerate its cleanup actions so the plants would stop polluting the air in neighboring North Carolina. Those improvements are expected to cost the utility $1.8 billion – about $1 billion more than the TVA had expected to pay.

Adding to TVA’s headache is the downturn of the economy, which has resulted in a 5 percent drop in power sales. TVA relies on the sale of power to generate revenue. The utility also experienced a $3 billion loss to its corporate retirement fund.

TVA CEO Bill Sansom is encouraged by the recent drop in fuel prices, but says he cannot guarantee that the company will not raise rates given the financial constraints the utility has come under.

“I hope these energy costs keep coming down enough that we can help not increase your customers’ rates. I know this winter it has been tough because we’ve had the higher rates and a cold winter. So we are very conscious of that,” he said.

TVA will set its fiscal 2010 budget in August.

SOURCE: Coal Ash Spill › TVA may have to raise customers’ rates to relieve financial woes

More than a billion gallons of coal ash sludge spilled over 300 acres of community property and into the Emory River last December after a coal ash impoundment pond at the TVA’s Kingston, Tennessee coal-burning plant failed. Coal ash contains dangerous toxins such as arsenic and lead which can lead to serious health concerns such as cancer, liver damage and neurological disorders.

Since the spill, the TVA has undergone a $1 million a day cleanup effort that is expected to ring in between $525 million and $825 million. TVA has vowed to restore the land to as good, if not better, than new.

However, residents are skeptical. Many have complained of breathing problems and at least one young child has tested positive for heavy metal in his blood. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) tests of water near a drinking water treatment plant the day after the spill showed alarming amounts of arsenic – 149 times higher than allowed by federal drinking water standards.

While the government is claiming that water treatment facilities can effectively filter tap water for toxins, some residents say that they have noticed a gray film in their tap water and have experienced a burning sensation on their skin and in their eyes after taking a shower.

SOURCE: Coal Ash Spill › Drinking water may be contaminated by coal ash spill

The new coal ash byproduct, called Cenocell, has good insulating properties and is fire resistant, making it an ideal replacement for concrete, wood and other materials used in various applications in construction, transportation and aerospace.

Coal ash contains dangerous toxins such as arsenic and lead which can, as in the case of the TVA spill, damage property and may lead to serious health complications. The new product, however, is not considered harmful and in fact, is being touted as a “green” product because unlike cement, Cenocell does not generate carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas.

“This material could help develop communities by allowing people living near coal-burning facilities to create a new industry and new jobs,” Doyoyo said. “This could be an engine of development for people who have been struggling. It really is a material with a social conscience.”

This may not be exciting news to those living in communities in close proximity to coal-burning facilities. The alternative uses for coal ash do not stop the coal-burning fumes from polluting the air nor does it eliminate the threat of another devastating coal ash spill, like that caused when a TVA coal ash pond failed last December and dumped more than a billion gallons of toxic material on to a neighboring community. Rather than alternative uses for coal ash, many are asking for greener alternatives to coal-burning all together.

Doyoyo will present Cenocell and his findings at the World of Coal Ash meeting May 4-7, 2009.

Source:
Reliable Plant

SOURCE: Coal Ash Spill › Scientist develops new product from coal ash

Since the spill, the TVA has spent a reported $1 million a day to clean up the mess, estimating its total cleanup cost to ring in between $525 million and $825 million. Clean up efforts include building temporary dams to stop the flow in neighboring waterways, dusting grass seed on dry land to keep the fly ash at bay, and, most recently, dredging the nearby Emory River. The TVA has vowed to restore the land to its previous condition, though affected property owners and environmental groups remain skeptical.

Last month, a smaller spill occurred when a pipeline at a coal-burning plant ruptured, leaking 4,000 gallons of coal ash into the Potomac River and fanning the flames of concern from lawmakers of the safety and lack of federal regulation of coal ash impoundments.

TVA president and CEO Tom Kilgore, Congressman Lincoln Davis and representatives from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are among those who testified to members of the House subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment as part of the committee’s investigation into why such spills occurred.

SOURCE: Coal Ash Spill › Congressional committee to ask ‘why’ coal ash spills occur

Sen. Benjamin Cardin

The spill caught the attention of lawmakers and environmentalists alike, who are debating how such coal ash ponds should be regulated by the government after the disastrous coal ash spill at a Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) plant in Kingston, Tennessee last December. That spill dumped more than a billion gallons of the toxic sludge onto a rural neighborhood, destroying homes and damaging property in its wake.

The TVA continues to clean up that mess, which could cost the utility between $525 million and $825 million. The effects on wildlife and humans are yet to be played. Coal ash may contain high concentrations of selenium, sulfate, arsenic, iron and manganese which can lead to serious health problems such as cancer, liver damage and neurological complications.

Environmental activists and lawmakers are pushing the government to step up regulation of coal ash plants. In a letter to the Cumberland Times-News, Joy M. Oakes with the National Parks Conservation Association in Arlington, Virginia wrote, “There are about 300 coal waste storage sites in the U.S., many much larger than the ones operated by the New Page Corporation, which currently are not subject to any meaningful federal regulation. New regulations to manage coal waste must avert risks to our health, and the health of our national parks, so that our children and our grandchildren may continue to enjoy these treasured places.”

Sources:
MSNBC
Cumberland Times-News

SOURCE: Coal Ash Spill › Senator asks for more regulation of coal-burning plants