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December 29, 2008

Tennessee Coal Disaster Three Times Larger Than First Projected
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In other news, cleanup efforts continue in Tennessee to combat the
largest coal ash spill in US history. The Tennessee Valley Authority now
says 5.4 million cubic yards of toxic coal sludge spilled out of a coal
plant retention pond last week, burying homes and roads. That is three
times the size of the TVA’s initial estimate. The amount of ash released
would fill 450,000 standard dump trucks. A TVA spokesperson said that
tests show elevated levels of lead and thallium in water near the
breach. The Environmental Protection Agency reported that “very high”
levels of arsenic were found in a water sample collected from the
affected area and that several heavy metals have also been found in
quantities “slightly above drinking water standards.” The sludge has
flowed into the Emory River, a tributary of the Tennessee River, which
provides drinking water to millions of people downstream in Tennessee,
Alabama and Kentucky.



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