Environmental advocates challenge permit for Centralia coal plant
On November 2, EarthJustice filed a petition asking the EPA to block the renewal of an air pollution permit for TransAlta Corporation’s coal-burning power plant in Centralia, Washington. The Southwest Clean Air Agency (“SWCAA”) had renewed the permit on September 17, and on September 28, the Sierra Club and other likeminded groups appealed the renewal. The November 2 petition alleges violations of the federal Clean Air Act and state pollution laws. In particular, the petitioners oppose the permit because it does not contain emissions limits for greenhouse gases or mercury, and because it does not require the best controls for regional haze-pollution.
TransAlta Corporation bought the Centralia coal-burning plant in 2000. In efforts to reduce emissions, TransAlta invested in $200 million worth of “scrubbers.” However, the plant continued to offend environmental groups, as it was a primary source of carbon dioxide, mercury, and nitrogen oxide emissions. The petition claims that these emissions constitute air contaminants that are detrimental to human health and welfare, property, and business. In particular, the petitioners contend that the SWCAA has failed to provide for the control of carbon dioxide and mercury emissions, failed to provide for adequate control of nitrogen oxide emissions, and failed to require Reasonably Available Control Technology to control carbon dioxide and mercury emissions. The petitioners also claim that the permit does not adequately protect against haze-pollution over Mount Rainier, the Olympic and North Cascades National Parks, and other forest, wilderness, and recreational areas. These areas are designated Class I areas under the Clean Air Act.
The petitioners, which include the Sierra Club, National Parks Conservation Association, and Northwest Environmental Defense Center, also object to the permit because it does not integrate the terms of a settlement agreement reached in September 2009 between TransAlta and the Washington Department of Ecology. The agreement is a result of mediation over air quality disputes between the two entities. The key points of the agreement are TransAlta’s goals of: 1) decreasing nitrous oxide emissions by 20%; and 2) implementing technology to control and monitor mercury emissions. Although the petitioners would like this agreement to be part of the renewed permit, they also claim that the agreement itself is inadequate. On November 9, the last day of the public comment period on the agreement, they filed a letter seeking heightened restrictions, including a 90% (rather than 50%) reduction in mercury emissions.
Coal-fired plants are becoming an increasingly salient issue in climate law. The EPA has recently sided with environmental groups to block permits that fail to adequately address greenhouse gas emissions, but it remains to be seen whether this will become a common outcome in court.
http://www.globalclimatelaw.com/admin/trackback/167624
