Ameren says study shows no coal ash threat to drinking water

Feb 3 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Tim Bryant St. Louis Post-Dispatch

 

A study of groundwater near Ameren Missouri's Labadie power plant found no threats to drinking-water supplies from coal ash, the utility says.

The study, to be released Tuesday, concludes that the plant's coal ash practices "are not adversely impacting human health" through current drinking water use from groundwater or the Missouri River.

Ameren commissioned the study by AECOM, an environmental consulting firm based in Los Angeles. Coal ash is produced by burning coal to generate electricity.

AECOM's conclusions were based on studies of 16 water samples from the Missouri River and Labadie Creek, plus 90 samples of groundwater near the plant in Franklin County. The coal-fired plant, which began operating in the 1970s, can produce 2,407 megawatts of electricity.

In its 217-page study, AECOM said it found no elevated levels of sulfate or boron in groundwater or surface water near the plant. High concentrations of the two chemicals in water sources would indicate a release of coal ash. Boron and sulfate are more soluble than other elements found in coal ash and would be the first to be detected in groundwater, the study said.

The study criticized a citizens group, the Labadie Environmental Organization, or LEO. The group's allegations of threats by the Labadie plant to the safety of drinking-water supplies "have been expressed without reference to actual data or examples of impact," AECOM's study said.

Patricia Schuba, a LEO representative, responded Monday that AECOM's study "seems like a PR piece more than anything else, in my view."

She said the study is flawed because AECOM collected no water samples from areas near an existing coal ash waste pond suspected of leaking.

"They're still not addressing the real risk of pollution in the floodplain that exists right now," Schuba said.

Ameren Missouri installed monitoring wells adjacent to the closest residential properties from the plant and confirmed both the direction of groundwater flow and compliance with drinking water standards, the study said.

"In our continuing commitment to the environment and to ensure the safety of the community, we brought in an outside firm to objectively analyze local drinking water supplies," Michael Menne, vice president of Environmental Services for Ameren Missouri, said in a statement. "This study affirms our longstanding view that the Labadie ash storage areas are not adversely affecting the integrity of local private wells and public waters."

Ameren Missouri is seeking permission from state and Franklin County officials to build a utility waste landfill for the Labadie plant.

"The proposed landfill at Labadie will incorporate state-of-the-art engineering design elements to protect the environment," Menne said. "The landfill will be protected by a berm that is tall enough to protect against a 500-year flood event, three feet taller than the historic 1993 flood."

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