Lindsay Mader, lindsay.mader@sierraclub.org
Texas – In a recent letter to the federal Environmental Protection Agency, made public on Wednesday, two utilities with coal plants in Texas requested a rollback of safeguards that protect communities and their water from toxic coal ash pollution.
In the letter, Irving-based Vistra and the Austin-based Lower Colorado River Association (LCRA) joined just eight other utilities in requesting that the EPA remove their responsibility for cleaning up old coal ash pollution and revoke several existing regulations meant to ensure safer storage of coal ash. For example, the letter requests that any “contact with groundwater” guidance be revoked or revised, which would effectively allow plants’ coal ash waste ponds to cause or release contaminated groundwater after closure.
Coal ash is one of the dirtiest byproducts of burning coal at power plants and is typically stored underground near the plant. It contains some of the most toxic heavy metals on the planet, like arsenic, lead, mercury, cadmium, and beryllium. When coal ash is not properly stored and contained, those pollutants leech into groundwater, contaminating water used for drinking, fishing, irrigation, recreation, and more. These toxins are linked to cancer, heart and thyroid disease, reproductive failure, and can inflict permanent brain damage on children.
Vistra, the parent company of Dallas-based Luminant, was one of the letter signers.
“Luminant wants permission to disregard the health of Texas’ people, Texas’ water supply, and the fish in Martin Lake, where many people recreate, said Misti O’Quinn, Sierra Club senior field organizer in Texas “It’s disgraceful that the safety and livelihoods of our communities can be so quickly dismissed by a change in who runs the EPA. If Donald Trump’s EPA cedes to these cruel requests, they will be the reason why Texans will suffer more negative health impacts, why more people will lose loved ones to preventable illnesses, and why our communities can’t count on our water being safe. The people of Texas won’t stand for this blatant disregard for our health, our families, our water, and our neighbors.”
“I have lived in the shadow of the Martin Lake Coal Plant for years, and I believe the coal plant is making me and my neighbors sick, said Paulette Goree, a lifelong Tatum-area resident. “Burning coal has consequences far beyond air pollution. Luminant has burned coal at Martin Creek Lake for decades, which means there is decades-worth of coal ash left behind. I’m sick and tired of decisionmakers giving these corporations a free pass to dump on us and communities across Texas. Water is the most sacred resource we have on the planet, and the willingness of Luminant to sacrifice that speaks volumes to how little they care about the people they claim to serve.”
Luminant owns the Martin Lake coal plant, near Tatum in East Texas. Martin Lake is one of the top 5 deadliest coal plants in the U.S. All three groundwater monitoring wells at Martin Lake’s coal ash disposal sites have shown exceedances of toxic and heavy metals. For example, monitoring showed that the groundwater near the coal ash dump is contaminated with concentrations of boron that have been measured at more than 20 times higher than safe levels. The plant is located adjacent to a popular fishing lake, and near Martin Creek Lake State Park.
Just two years ago, the EPA proposed a rule to require Luminant to stop dumping coal ash into unlined ponds, citing groundwater contamination and failure to comply with federal regulations. Martin Lake’s ash pond has just a few feet of clay between toxic coal ash and the ground, which the EPA found inadequate to contain potential pollutants. Luminant’s letter suggests that EPA weaken its requirement on ensuring that closed ash ponds do not leak into groundwater, which would undermine the fundamental purpose of the coal ash rule.
LCRA, which owns half of the Fayette coal plant east of Austin, also signed-on to the letter.
“I want the LCRA to look the ranchers, farmers, and residents of Fayette County square in the eye and be honest with Texans that they’re more interested in their corporate bottom line and profits than upholding strong safeguards for the groundwater in the region,” said Dave Cortez, Director of the Sierra Club Lone Star Chapter.
LCRA, a public utility whose board members are directly appointed by Gov Greg Abbott, signed onto the letter despite describing itself as “Texas’ trusted resource for managing water supply…” It and the city of Austin own the dirty Fayette coal plant, which supplies electricity to Austin Energy customers despite years of local pushback. Fayette is the 14th dirtiest power plant in the entire United States. Groundwater monitoring wells at the site have shown exceedances of toxic and heavy metals that cause cancer.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.