CLOSING THE FLOODGATES: - Sierra Club

other than mercury. 262 According to the plant’s ownreporting, it discharged 324 pounds of arsenic and 564pounds of selenium in 2012. 263The only way to understand how well the artificialwetland treatment system is working is a monitoringprogram of toxic metals where the ash pond dumpsinto the French Broad — just a single sample takenonce a month. 264 In fact, the water pollution problem atAsheville has significantly worsened since the scrubberswere added. A study done by scientists at DukeUniversity compared pollutant load in the ash ponddischarge at Asheville before and after the wet scrubbersbegan operating, and found that the amount ofpollutants such as arsenic and selenium discharged tothe French Broad River dramatically increased afterthe scrubbers were installed. 265 The study reportedthat samples collected during the summer of 2011 frommingled scrubber and coal ash waste flowing to theFrench Broad River contained arsenic at levels fourtimes higher than the EPA drinking water standard,and selenium levels 17 times higher the agency’s standardfor aquatic life. Cadmium, antimony, and thalliumwere also detected in the wastewaters at levels abovehuman and aquatic life benchmarks. 266Clearly, more must be done to reduce pollution fromthe Asheville scrubber system. The EPA has identifiedtreatment methods that can eliminate or at leastachieve much lower levels of toxic metals from scrubberwaste streams, and must apply them to all coalburningplants with scrubber systems, including relativelysmall plants like Asheville that have an outsizedimpact on a treasured river.These plants are just examples: All across the country,scrubbers are going in and increased water pollutionfollows, without efforts to tighten permit limits.Smokestack scrubbers are good news for the air,and they can be good news for the water, too, if theEPA puts strong controls in place for treatment ofthis waste. No community should have its watershedcontaminated by the same pollution that it once wasforced to breathe.6. POLLUTING WATER IN THE ARID WESTThe crisis of groundwater and surface water contaminationby uncontrolled discharges of toxic metals isnot limited to the wetter eastern half of our country.The waters of the western United States are alsoburdened by these toxic discharges, which is all themore troubling considering the scarcity of water in theregion and the rapidly growing population. Plants inColorado and Montana illustrate the problem of coalwater pollution in the West.The Xcel Comanche plant in Pueblo, Colorado, hasthree large coal-burning boilers. Two of these boilerswere built in the 1970s, and the third was built in 2010.All of the boilers burn coal brought in from massivestrip mines in Wyoming, producing more than 300,000tons of coal ash in a single year. 267 The plant uses a wetash handling system to collect fly ash and bottom ashand then moves this coal ash water through a seriesof three settling ponds. 268 Despite evidence that ashhandling water contains significant amounts of toxicmetals and solids, there are no limits on any of thesemetals in the wastewater discharged into the small St.Charles River. 269 The lack of limits on selenium dischargesis even more appalling considering that the St.Charles is impaired for selenium, meaning that the riveris not meeting water quality standards for this pollutant.270 Within a few miles of the Comanche plant, theSt. Charles flows into the Arkansas River, and that portionof the Arkansas River is also failing to meet waterquality standards for selenium and sulfates. 271The water discharge permit for the Comanche plantrequires monitoring for some metals at the main ashoutfall, but imposes no limits on the concentrationsof those metals in the discharge. 272 While monitoringis an important first step, uncontrolled dischargeof these metals into an impaired stream is dangerousand contrary to the Clean Water Act. Once awaterbody is designated as impaired, the state mustdetermine the “total maximum daily load” (TMDL) ofthe particular pollutant that the waterbody is able toabsorb and still comply with water quality standards.However, the state of Colorado has not yet developeda TMDL for selenium in the St. Charles River or in theArkansas River downstream of the confluence withthe St. Charles, and is allowing the Comanche plant todischarge coal ash wastewaters into this impaired riverwith no limits at all on selenium.The Arkansas River is a major fly-fishing destinationin Colorado, and a source of tourism income andrecreation for area residents. Because high levels ofselenium severely impairs reproduction in fish, seleniumlimits must be imposed on major sources likeComanche so that the St. Charles and Arkansas Riverscan continue to support abundant fish populations.Moreover, water resources in this part of Colorado areincredibly precious, especially considering the exceptionaldrought the area is now experiencing. These riversshould be treated like the indispensable resourcesthey are.Another prime fishing destination, the YellowstoneRiver in Montana, is also threatened by coal ashdischarges. The Yellowstone runs for more than 50022 Closing the Floodgates