Feb 27 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Belleville News-Democrat, Ill.

Legal wrangling over the air permit for the $2.9 billion coal-fired plant being built in Washington County is over, Peabody Energy officials announced today.

Construction is under way on the Prairie State Energy Campus, which includes a power plant and an adjacent mine southwest of Lively Grove capable of providing electricity to 1.7 million families.

The U.S. Seventh Circuit Court previously rejected appeals from the Sierra Club and other environmental groups attempting to force the plant to address environmental concerns. Now the end of the review process makes the air permit final and "unappealable," Peabody officials said.

For more on this story, read the News-Democrat Thursday or go to www.bnd.com