Aug 6 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - The Lexington Herald-Leader, Ky.


The Sierra Club served notice Thursday on the federal Environmental Protection Agency that it will sue to block two new coal plants in Kentucky.

In a letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, the environmental organization said the agency is "turning a blind eye to new two major sources of smog-forming pollution."

The plants are East Kentucky Power Cooperative's proposed Smith coal-fired plant in Clark County and the Peabody Energy-ConocoPhillips proposed coal-to-gas plant in Muhlenberg County.

The EPA should step in and stop the projects because state regulations don't do enough to protect public health, said James Gignac, midwest director of the Sierra Club's Beyond Coal Campaign.

Such warnings of potential suits are required by law.

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