Study: Gallatin Coal Plant Presented by Helen Li, Policy Intern, Tennessee Environmental Council Photo: http://www.metropulse.com/news/2012/nov/14/power-play-tvas-plans-gallatin-plant-draw-ire-envi/
Table of Contents This report covers the following topics: Situation Overview TVA Clean Air Settlement Gallatin Coal Plant Statistics TVA Plans Threats Overview Coal-fired Power Plants Air Pollution Water Pollution Coal Ash Pollution Mercury Pollution Harm to Native Species Carbon Emissions Opportunities Overview Energy Efficiency Jobs & Economy Renewables Take Action Appendix
Gallatin Plant Overview Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) will be making decisions in 2013 to upgrade the Gallatin coal plant to comply with new EPA emission standards. The Gallatin Steam Plant is just 30 miles from downtown Nashville. It is situated on Old Hickory Lake (formed by a dam of the Cumberland river which flows from Gallatin toward Nashville). The Cumberland River is the primary source of drinking water for Nashville and surrounding suburbs. The Gallatin coal plant is 60 years old; it has been ranked as the 17 th dirtiest power plant in the country. The estimated life of the plant, even with current upgrades, is a mere 10 to 15 years. The cost for the current upgrades is more than one billion dollars. This is money that could support cleaner, more efficient energy and other conservation efforts in Tennessee. The Sierra Club estimates that through energy efficiency measures alone more energy could be saved annually than the annual output of the Gallatin coal plant.
Gallatin Plant Overview Photo: http://maps.google.com (Downtown Nashville to the Gallatin Coal Plant)
Gallatin Plant Overview: Statistics History Constructed in 1953 Location Middle Tennessee on the north bank of the Cumberland River (1499 Steam Plant Rd., Gallatin, TN 37066) ~30 miles from the heart of Downtown Nashville Coal requirements 12,350 tons of coal a day Coal waste 17 th dirtiest in the nation. 2,093,068 pounds released in 2006
Gallatin Plant Overview: Statistics Sulfur Dioxide (linked to asthma) released 20 million tons in 2010 Nitrous Oxides (cause of ozone damage and smog) released 6 million tons in 2010 Mercury (highly toxic) released 280 pounds in 2010 Carbon Dioxide Released 8 million tons (equivalent to the emissions of 1.4 million cars) in 2007
Gallatin Plant Overview TVA Clean Air Act Settlement In 2011 TVA resolved longstanding disputes over the Clean Air Act with the EPA, the NC, KY, AL, TN Sierra Clubs, and the National Parks Conservation Association. Gallatin was one of four unscrubbed coal plants that TVA would need to shut down, scrub, or replace by 2017. In August 2011, the TVA board authorized a $1.2 billion budget to reduce harmful emissions.
Gallatin Plant Overview TVA Plans Spend more than one billion dollars to retrofit the 60-year-old Gallatin Coal Plant with pollution control technology Will reduce emissions, however Toxic mercury pollution remains May increase toxicity of coal ash waste stored near the Cumberland River Coal ash contains mercury and arsenic TVA s planned air pollution controls (scrubbers) will capture pollutants from the smokestacks, turn them into toxic and dangerous coal ash, and store them.
Threats Overview Air Pollution Water Pollution Landfill Pollution Mercury Pollution Harm to native species Carbon Emissions
Threats: Air Pollution Coal plants are a major source of soot and smog pollution Can trigger asthma attacks or worsen existing respiratory illness Air pollutants cause cardiovascular disease and can lead to heart attack In the United States, more than 40% of people live in unhealthy levels of air pollution 386,000 tons of air pollutants are produced by U.S. coal plants each year Coal plants are the single-largest source of toxic mercury pollution the US
Coal-fired Power Plant in the US Photo: http://blog.cleanenergy.org/files/2012/11/coal_fired_power_plant.jpg
Threats: Air Pollutants
Threats: Water Pollution TVA allowed to discharge nearly 28 million gallons per day of contaminated wastewater into unlined ponds 2.1 million pounds of coal combustion waste released in 2006 Ash water laced with toxics aluminum, arsenic, barium, boron, iron, lead, manganese, mercury, selenium Groundwater contamination Excessive levels of beryllium, cadmium, nickel, and vanadium Old Hickory Lake and The Cumberland River - downstream from the plant - are the primary sources of drinking water for most of the Nashville metropolitan area.
Threats: Coal Ash Pollution Each year, coal plants produce 140 million tons of coal ash pollution Coal ash can seep into drinking water sources or blow into nearby communities Contains high levels of toxic heavy metals People living within 1 mile of unlined coal ash ponds can have a 1 in 50 risk of cancer (more than 2,000 times higher than what the EPA considers acceptable) Scrubbers such as the ones proposed by TVA for Gallatin serve only to capture the pollutants from the air and turn them to coal ash
Threats: Toxic Coal Ash Coal Ash Spill in Kingston TN Photo: http://www.ecosphericblog.com/581/site-of-kingston-coal-ash-spill-re-opened-for-recreation-but-is-it-too-soon/
Threats: Kingston Coal Ash Disaster Kingston Coal Ash Disaster December 2008 Coal ash holding ponds at TVA s Kingston Fossil plant collapsed Over a billions gallons of toxic sludge released into the Emory and Clinch rivers EPA called this one of the worst environmental disasters of its kind in history and the event was listed by Mother Nature Network as one of America s 10 worst man made environmental disasters. The cleanup is still in progress and costs are estimated to be over $1 billion. Living near a wet coal ash storage pond (such as ones employed at Gallatin) is more dangerous than smoking a pack of cigarettes a day
Threats: Kingston Coal Ash Disaster Photo: http://www.southernstudies.org/2009/11/congressional-watchdog-issues-update-on-coal-ash-regulation-efforts.html
Threats: Mercury Pollution Coal Fired Power Plants Single largest source of toxic mercury pollution the US. Mercury is damaging to the brain and nervous system (especially for infants and young children).
Threats: Mercury Pollution
Threats: Water Cycle (Mercury Pollution) Photo: http://www.polywellnuclearfusion.com/carbonwillkillus/coalpollution.html
Threats: Harm to wildlife Outdated cooling system with water intake structures suck fish into the plant and kills them One-third of Cumberland River s flow is diverted for use as cooling water fish and other life become trapped in the screening devices. (More than a quarter million fish were caught in these screens in 2006) Smaller life forms pass through screen devices and die from physical trauma, pressures, thermal shock, or chemicals added to the water by TVA Downstream river temperatures are 2-6 degrees higher than temperatures upstream, drastically altering aquatic communities Hunting and fishing in the Old Hickory lake area are important recreational activities that contributes to the local economy.
Threats: Carbon Dioxide Gallatin ranks 98 th out of 600 coal plants in the U.S. in terms of carbon emissions. Gallatin released 8 million tons of carbon in 2007, equivalent to the emissions of 1.4 million cars. U.S. power plants account for 72% of the greenhouse gases reported by stationary facilities in 2010. Tennessee releases 63.3 million tons every year (17 th highest in the nation). In 2012, the entire world released nearly 38.2 billion tons of carbon dioxide into the air from the burning of fossil fuels such as coal and oil, a historic high. 2012 was the hottest year ever according to the National Climactic Data Center.
Threats: Carbon Emissions For more information, visit Clean Energy s page on Carbon.
Opportunities Overview TVA Investment Energy Efficiency Jobs and Economy Renewables
Opportunities: TVA Energy Efficiency Target TVA could save at least $2.7 billion over the next twenty years through energy efficiency programs By focusing on a 1% energy efficiency target, TVA can shut down the Gallatin Plant and maintain energy availability while lowering cost for customers Investing in renewable energy and energy efficiency jobs can boost the economy
Opportunities: Energy Efficiency Energy Efficiency Reducing the amount of energy required to provide products and services Global Energy Partners Study (how to achieve efficiency) Homes have the most energy saving potential, followed by businesses and industry Residential insulation, fluorescent/natural lights Commercial efficient interior lighting, better ventilation and cooling Industrial improvements in machine drives and motors, fan and pump systems, and equipment upgrades
Opportunities: Energy Efficiency in Homes Energy escapes from homes in many ways. Insulation helps preserve the natural capacity of homes to stabilize temperatures. Photo: http://www.greenovative design.com/hers
Opportunities: Energy Efficiency TVA s 1% Energy Efficiency Target With this program, each year, TVA takes 1% of the previous year s power sales to set as the energy efficient target for the next year. These savings will thus accumulate over time. These savings would occur through incentives, rebates, financing, and technical assistance to weatherize homes, improve lighting, purchase efficient appliances, improve building envelopes, and reduce other energy losses TVA currently has a 0.3% energy efficiency savings rate
Opportunities: Jobs and Economy Setting a 1% annual energy efficiency target will generate a 4,000 MW savings in energy by 2030 TVA could close more than 55% of TVA remaining coal fleet and reduce by half the carbon intensity of electricity Every $1 million spent on energy efficiency will generate 6 local jobs and 6 indirect jobs. Converting the $1 billion to be spent on Gallatin would create 6,000 local jobs and 6,000 indirect jobs The entire U.S. has the potential to reduce its annual energy consumption by 23% over the next 10 years through cost-effective efficiency measures
Opportunities: Green Jobs Retrofitting just 40 percent of the nation s residential and commercial buildings would generate more than half a million (625,000) sustained full time jobs over a decade. Every 1 million invested in energy efficiency retrofits will create 17.36 jobs according to the Political Economy Research Institute at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. 6.86 jobs are created by similar investment in coal 5.18 jobs are created by similar investment in oil and gas Most of the products used in energy efficiency retrofits have over 90 percent of the content made in the USA.
Opportunities: Green Jobs A report released by the state of Tennessee in 2009 found that, by investing in energy efficiency, the state could reduce the unemployment rate reduce manufacturing job losses increase income By spending $1.9 billion over two years, Tennessee could create 45,000 new jobs The state could gain more than 4,200 full-time jobs in wind and nearly 400 in solar components manufacturing by 2015 Among 162 occupations related to green jobs, 75% do not require a college education
Opportunities: Green Jobs Photo: http://www.frumforum.com/what-exactly-is-a-green-job/
Opportunities: Renewable Energy The superiority of wind and solar energy No fuel costs (mining/extraction, transportation, disposal) Infinite and cleaner energy sources (air emissions and water discharges) Reduced dependence on foreign sources Reduced transmission loss (generated locally) No expensive and dangerous storage options for spent fuel No coal ash spills like that in Kingston, TN, or loss of cooling to retention facilities such as Fukushima No destructive extraction methods (mountaintop coal mining, uranium mining) Reduced terrorism threat (major power plants or nuclear facilities as targets)
Opportunities: Renewable Energy Photo: http://www.costech.or.tz/?portfolio=renewable-energy
Take Action Visit www.tectn.org/gallatin-coal for updates and to take action.
Appendix TN Climate Action Campaign http://www.tnclimateaction.net/about-our-organization http://www.tnclimateaction.net/close-coal/close-gallatin Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign http://content.sierraclub.org/coal/tennessee Gallatin Coal Plant Fact Sheet http://content.sierraclub.org/coal/resources Human Health Impacts http://www.psr.org/resources/coals-assault-on-human-health.html http://www.lung.org/assets/documents/healthy-air/toxic-air-report.pdf http://www.lung.org/healthy-air/outdoor/resources/toxic-air-report/ Coal Ash Spill http://www.southeastcoalash.org/?page_id=720 Gallatin Fossil Plant http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/gallatin_fossil_plant
Appendix (continued) Nashville Government http://www.nashville.gov/portals/0/sitecontent/waterservices/docs/reports/c CR2012.pdf Paddock & Mastin Attorneys at Law Renewables Study 2.16.12 Collaborations Press Release 2.16.12 Environmental Organizations Seek 25% Renewable Energy Generation From Tva By 2020 Jobs http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/green/report/2011/09/07/10332/astar-turn-for-energy-efficiency-jobs/ http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/states/news_detail.cfm/news_id=12232