New Orleans (Platts)--30Dec2008

At least one lawsuit has been filed against the Tennessee Valley
Authority following the December 22 spill of 5.4 million cubic yards of coal
ash at TVA's Kingston power plant in eastern Tennessee, and an environmental
group on Tuesday sent notice to the utility that it would file its own suit.

The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy told TVA that it intends to bring
action under the Clean Water Act and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
for health and environmental impacts caused by the coal ash release that
covered 300 acres around the plant. The act requires a sixty-day notice before
a suit can be filed.

A retention pond wall broke on December 22, spilling out 1 billion
gallons of the coal waste product onto surrounding properties and into the
Emory and Clinch rivers.

The citizen suit notice is based on "imminent and substantial
endangerment to health or the environment," according to the alliance.

"This is a tragic situation that has brought devastating environmental
damage and carries with it potential for serious human health impacts," said
Stephen Smith, executive director for the alliance, in a statement.

Also Tuesday, according to a report in the Knoxville News Sentinel,
owners and developers in a nearby subdivision filed a $165 million suit in
Roane County Circuit Court saying the spill spoiled the area's scenic vistas.