Area sites rank high in power plant polluters: 3 included on list of nation's 50 dirtiest

OWENSBORO, KENTUCKY - Four out of five of Kentucky's top polluting power plants are in this region, and three of them have landed on a list of America's 50 dirtiest power plants released recently.

The Kenneth C. Coleman Plant in Hancock County is the 18th dirtiest power plant in America, according to a study by the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit Environmental Integrity Project.

The D.B. Wilson Power Plant in Ohio County is 38th on the list, and the TVA Paradise Power Plant in Muhlenberg County came in at No. 49.

The study used self-reported emissions rates from 2004 and 2005 to rank 376 major power plants from across the country in four categories: nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide and mercury emissions.

All of the plants in the study produced at least 2 million megawatt hours of electricity in 2005.

The Coleman plant came in first in the nation in sulfur dioxide emissions. Sulfur dioxide is a chemical compound that has been shown to harm the heart and lungs. The Coleman plant released 40.6 pounds of sulfur dioxide per megawatt hour of energy produced in 2005.

In February, the plant announced it was testing a new scrubber to reduce sulfur dioxide emissions.

The D.B. Wilson plant has significantly lower sulfur dioxide emissions, at 6.4 pounds per megawatt hour, but it is high on the list for both mercury and carbon dioxide, emissions for which federal regulation is vague.

Mercury can make its way into the food chain through lakes and rivers, and it can cause neurological damage to infants. Carbon dioxide has been linked to global warming.

The Paradise plant in Drakesboro released 191,000 tons of nitrogen oxide into the air in 2005, or 5.13 pounds per megawatt hour of energy produced.

Nitrogen oxide, a lung-damaging compound, also contributes to low-level ozone.

Other emissions at the plant ranked lower, though sulfur dioxide emission rates are still in the top 100.

TVA is building a new sulfur dioxide scrubber at the plant, and it should be operational by the end of the year, company officials say. Once the scrubber's up and running, SO2 levels should fall.

Nationwide, sulfur dioxide emissions should be declining soon, according to the report, as power plants invest in scrubber technology anticipating a 2010 federal deadline for limiting SO2 emissions.

The fifth-worst polluter in Kentucky is Owensboro Municipal Utilities' Elmer Smith Station.

The plant ranks 11th in nitrogen oxide emissions and 18th in carbon dioxide emissions, but was able to stay off of the 50 dirtiest list by virtue of its good standing with sulfur dioxide emissions, which ranked 205th.

OMU officials say they've been working on their emissions numbers, and they will continue their efforts to cut down on the tons of dangerous chemicals their plants are spewing into the air.

At the Elmer Smith Station, steps have been taken to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions, and they're working, said Sonya Dixon, spokeswoman for the company.

In 2005, the plant was producing 7 pounds of nitrogen oxide per megawatt hour. By comparison, there are coal-fired power plants in Kentucky emitting around the 1.5 pound-mark.

The Elmer Smith Station started using technology to reduce nitrogen oxide levels in 2004.

"Between 2003 and 2005 we were able to reduce NOx emissions by 72 percent during the ozone season," Dixon said. "We made some steps that we felt were beneficial. We are very pleased with the operation of the equipment."

The plant also has a high rate of carbon dioxide emissions, something that is basically unregulated but which environmental experts say contributes to global warming.

The Elmer Smith Station is 18th in the nation in carbon dioxide emissions, releasing 2,503 pounds of carbon dioxide per megawatt hour of electricity created.

"I can't speak to CO2 because there's no legislation, and it's being widely debated," Dixon said. "We consider technologies that are out there, and we always try to stay on top of that."

TVA is working on a tree-planting program that officials hope will help mitigate carbon dioxide emissions.

Kentucky was one of three states that had four power plants in the top 50 polluters list. Only Indiana had more, with five power plants on the list.