Nov 18 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Scott Wuerz Belleville News-Democrat, Ill.

A group of about 50 protesters organized by the Sierra Club chanted and waved signs in the shadow of Peabody Energy's headquarters in downtown St. Louis on Saturday.

They were protesting plans for Peabody's Prairie State Energy Campus, a coal-fired power plant to be built near Lively Grove in Washington County that environmentalists argue will pollute the air and water in Southern Illinois.

But Peabody representatives say the criticism is overblown and that the plant is part of a new generation of power stations that are more environmentally friendly. They said it will release 80 percent less emissions -- including 15 percent less carbon dioxide -- into the atmosphere than older plants.

"Peabody claims the Prairie State Energy Campus will be cheaper and more efficient," said Kathy Andria of the American Bottoms Conservancy. "It's cheaper for them, but what is the cost for the environment?"

Andria said that the Prairie State campus will use massive amounts of water a year from the already low Kaskaskia River and that it is expected to release 280 pounds of mercury into the atmosphere a year when a quarter-teaspoon is enough to contaminate an entire lake. She said the plant will produce a 15-story tall pile a hazardous waste.

Peabody spokeswoman Beth Sutton said environmentalists have turned to protests after efforts to stop the plant through the courts failed.

"The project's state-of-the-art environmental controls are affirmed through a recent unanimous decision by the U.S. 7th (Circuit) Court (of Appeals) and confirmed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency following an extensive public review process," Sutton said. "The vast majority of local residents are Prairie State advocates, and more than 800 supporters celebrated the project's groundbreaking in October."

Sutton said construction on the plant is already under way and that it is expected to be in operation by 2012. It is expected to employ up to 2,300 during construction and about 500 when it opens.

Neighbors Virginia Wojtkowski and Mike Murphy spoke against the plant at the rally. They accused Peabody of hiding the true impact of the energy campus from neighbors and said they worry about their children growing up near the plant and drinking the water from their tap.

"We can't give up just because they're bigger than us," Wojtkowski said.

The protesters said coal is a major contributor to global warming and that no more coal-fired power plants should be allowed to be built.

But Sutton said that's not practical because demands for electricity are at an all-time high. She said Peabody is committed to continuing to make coal power plants cleaner for the future.

Contact reporter Scott Wuerz at swuerz@bnd.com or 239-2626.