Second Coal Company Sludge Spill – Bad For the Coal Industry

Big Sandy River Spill of 2000

Update: The coal industry is now responsible for a second sludge containment spill in as many weeks.

TVA has estimated the spill at 10,000 gallons, said Scott Hughes, spokesman for the Alabama Department of Environmental Management.

“We’ve got somebody on site who’s monitoring water quality to make sure there’s not any impact to aquatic organisms,” he said. Utilities that draw drinking water supplies from the Tennessee River downstream are not expected to be impacted, he said.

The spill, which was caused by a break in a pipe, escaped an upper pond, flowing downhill into a second containment pond. The second pond, unable to contain it all, spilled over into an area called “Widows Creek.” The pond was a Gypsum Containment Pond.

Gypsum is a byproduct of coal-burning power plants when “scrubbers” are added that use limestone spray to clean air emissions. This pulls sulfur dioxide from the emissions.

Alabama environmental officials were on their way as of 10:15 a.m. Central Time to an spill at TVA’s Widows Creek coal-fired power plant in Stevenson, Ala., which is located about 110 miles southeast of Nashville.

Scott Hughes, spokesman for the Alabama Department of Environmental Management said, “We’re in the process of gathering more info and getting a full report.”

None of this bodes well for the coal industry, who has been under continual fire from both consumers and environmental groups alike.

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