Tennessee Coal Ash Spill

1. Tennessee Coal Ash Spill By: Justin Hackle

2. What Happened? • The TVA Kingston Fossil Plant coal fly ash slurry spill occurred just before 1 a.m. on Monday December 22, 2008, when an ash dike ruptured at an 84-acre (0.34 km2) solid waste containment area at the Tennessee Valley Authority's Kingston Fossil Plant in Roane County, Tennessee, USA. 1.1 billion US gallons (4,200,000 m3) of coal fly ash slurry was released.

3. What Happened cont. • The coal-fired power plant, located across the Clinch River from the city of Kingston, uses ponds to dewater the fly ash, a byproduct of coal combustion, which is then stored in wet form in dredge cells. The slurry (a mixture of fly ash and water) traveled across the Emory River and its Swan Pond embayment, on to the opposite shore, covering up to 300 acres (1.2 km2) of the surrounding land, damaging homes and flowing up and down stream in nearby waterways such as the Emory River and Clinch River (tributaries of the Tennessee River). It was the largest fly ash release in United States history.

4. Legal Actions • On December 23, 2008 the environmental group Greenpeace asked for a criminal investigation into the incident, focusing on whether the TVA could have prevented the spill. On December 30, 2008 a group of landowners filed suit against the TVA for $165 million in Tennessee state court.Also on December 30, 2008 the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy announced its intention to sue the TVA under the federal Clean Water Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. • "On February 4, 2009, EPA, pursuant to Executive Order 12088, and TDEC issued a letter to TVA in which EPA provided notice to TVA that EPA considers the release to be an unpermitted discharge of a pollutant in contravention of the Clean Water Act." • On May 11, 2009 "TVA and the federal Environmental Protection Agency announced today an EPA Order and Agreement that documents the relationship between TVA and EPA in managing the clean-up of the Kingston ash spill and further ensures that TVA will meet all federal and state environmental requirements in restoring affected areas

5. Could this happen again? • Yes this is very possible to happen again

6. Damage • The TVA and Environmental Protection Agency initially estimated that the spill released 1.7 million cubic yards (1.3 million m³) of sludge, which is gray in color.After an aerial survey the official estimate was more than tripled to 5.4 million cubic yards (4 million m³) on December 25, 2008.The spill covered surrounding land with up to six feet (1.8 m) of sludge. The EPA first estimated that the spill would take four to six weeks to clean up; however, Chandra Taylor, the staff attorney for the Southern Environmental Law Center, said the cleanup could take months and possibly years.[As of June 2009, six months following the spill, only 3% of the spill had been cleaned and is now estimated to cost between $675 and $975 million to clean, according to the TVA.

7. Damage cont. • The spill killed a "tremendous" number of fish, according to the Chattanooga Times Free Press. Although residents feared water contamination, early tests of water six miles (10 km) upstream of the ash flow showed that the public water supply met drinking water standards.A test of river water near the spill showed elevated levels of lead and thallium, and "barely detectable" levels of mercury and arsenic.

8. Pictures

9. Response • TVA spokesman Gil Francis Jr. said that the TVA was "taking steps to stabilize runoff from this incident." In response to a video that showed dead fish on the Clinch River, which had received runoff from the spill, he stated "in terms of toxicity, until an analysis comes in, you can't call it toxic." He continued by saying that "it does have some heavy metals within it, but it's not toxic or anything. Chandra Taylor, an attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center, called this statement irresponsible, and stated that coal fly ash contains concentrated amounts of mercury, arsenic, and benzene.

10. The End