Archive
June, 2009
04 June 09
By Associated Press
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Legislation that would relax standards for release of the mineral selenium into Tennessee waters is likely dead this session after it failed to get a majority vote in the House.
The measure sponsored by Republican Rep. Joe McCord of Maryville was defeated Wednesday by a vote of 49-42, with five members abstaining.
Opponents of the measure say it’s being pushed by the coal industry and that it would hurt aquatic life. But supporters say most recent data shows small amounts of selenium in water is not harmful.
Selenium is toxic to humans in high amounts.
The measure passed the Senate 26-6 in April.
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Read SB1331 and HB1204 at: http://www.capitol.tn.gov
01 June 09
By Mateusz Perkowski
Capital Press
The J.R. Simplot company’s plans to expand an Idaho phosphate mine have been put on hold by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The firm has sought to expand the Smoky Canyon mine, which is located in a national forest, to ensure an adequate supply of phosphate for its fertilizer production operation.
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service approved the expansion, but in September 2008 environmental groups challenged the federal agencies’ environmental review of the project.
The plaintiffs - the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, Natural Resources Defense Council, Sierra Club and Defenders of Wildlife - claimed that the expansion would contaminate water with selenium and otherwise harm the environment.
On Thursday, May 21, a three-judge panel from the 9th Circuit reinstated the stay that had been lifted May 13 by the Idaho District Court. The circuit court panel said it needed to further consider evidence in the case.
“In light of the voluminous filings by the parties, we have not had adequate time to evaluate the serious issues raised by this case,” according to the decision.
Susan Richardson, director of company communications for Simplot, said the company is being patient but hopes the 9th Circuit decides in its favor in the near future.
“We certainly understand the judicial process takes time,” she said.
According to Simplot, the company annually extracts about 2 million tons of phosphate ore for phosphate fertilizer production from the site.
Unless the expansion project moves forward, phosphate extraction at the mine can continue for only about two years, according to the company.
The expansion would provide enough phosphate to keep the facility operational for 15 years, according to Simplot. In all, the mine and related fertilizer manufacturing plant in Pocatello, Idaho, employ more than 500 people.
Another federal judge in Idaho recently threw out a separate case related to the mine expansion.
On May 19, Chief U.S. District Judge Lynn Winmill dismissed a case filed by Ashley Creek Properties, a company that claimed to have an interest in the mine.
The company filed suit against several federal agencies, claiming that the government’s environmental review of the expansion failed to consider alternative sources of phosphate in Utah, where selenium pollution would not be a risk.
Winmill dismissed the lawsuit, ruling that Ashley Creek Properties lacked standing in the case.
Staff writer Mateusz Perkowski is based in Salem. E-mail: mperkowski@capitalpress.com.
01 June 09
As reported by The Tennessean:
The EPA will oversee cleanup of the coal ash spill at the Kingston power plant under an order TVA has agreed to.
The Tennessee Valley Authority will pay for the oversight, according to the document.
Up until now, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation had primary oversight, in consultation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The agencies’ positions have flip-flopped.
“EPA is bringing to bear its resources and expertise … to work in partnership with the State of Tennessee and local officials to assure a comprehensive cleanup of the TVA coal ash spill, one of the largest and most serious environmental releases in our history,” EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson said in a statement released Monday.
Lisa Evans, an attorney with Earthjustice called it a “welcome move.”
“EPA absolutely needed to come in and bring order to the heretofore chaotic process,” she said.
The agreement requires meaningful input from the public and should help ensure the cleanup is done properly, she said.
One local resident had concerns.
“Nothing will change unless the EPA takes it out of its Atlanta regional office’s hands,” said Ann Harris, a longtime TVA critic who lives in Roane County where the spill occurred.
“That’s what the problem has been all along. They let TVA tell them what they’re going to do and the regional office is just a rubber stamp.”
EPA official spokeswoman Davina Marraccini responded later:
“This is a very strong order with stringent conditions and requirements that TVA must follow, and we stand by it.
“The order was negotiated by both the regional and national EPA offices with concurrence from the Department of Justice and will be executed by the regional office.”
The change in primary oversight was not in response to any problems or political pressure, but because of EPA’s greater experience in handling cleanups, Marraccini said.
On Dec. 22, more than five million cubic yards of coal ash spilled from an enclosure at the Kingston plant, cascading over 300 acres with homes and fields and filling two inlets of the Emory River.
The ash contains arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, mercury, selenium and other hazardous substances. Recent rains have pushed at least part of the ash in the Emory farther downriver. The Emory flows into the Clinch River, which flows into the Tennessee River. Removal of the material from the Emory remains a priority, officials said. The material on site will have to be disposed of in a way that would protect the environment, including using, for instance, a landfill with a liner, leachate collection system and groundwater monitoring, the EPA order says.
Some residents have been concerned that the materials might remain where they lie or go in an unlined facility. TVA will pay $50,000 for a community group to contract an independent technical advisor to help interpret technical documents and keep the public apprised of what is taking place and the cleanup’s goals
01 June 09
The Washington Post reports on toxic residues that are being released into waterways.
“Scrubbers and other pollution controls that clean toxic emissions from the smokestacks of power plants are having a toxic side effect. The captured residues, loaded with selenium and other dangerous materials, are being dumped into waterways, posing a potential health threat.”
