New Lake Michigan Coal Ash Spill Raises Old Concerns

[GoLeft TV]

On Monday, a bluff surrounding a Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based power plant collapsed, sending a cascade of debris and coal ash waste from the power plant into Lake Michigan. No injuries were reported by We Energies, the company who owns the power plant, but the environmental assessment will likely be less optimistic. We Energies, a subsidiary of Wisconsin Energy Corporation (NYSE: WEC), has confirmed that the debris that made it into the river likely contained coal ash.

As of Monday afternoon, a “fuel sheen” appeared on the surface of Lake Michigan as a result of the bluff collapse. Cleanup crews from Clean Harbor were contracted by We Energies to help contain the spread of the sheen, and will be deploying about 1,500 feet of boom to help contain the waste on the surface. Shortly after the accident, residents living up to a mile away from the site along the lake were already reporting debris washing onshore.

As we have reported extensively in the past, coal ash contains countless toxic substances, including mercury, hexavalent chromium, arsenic, and cadmium. It has also been reported to be more radioactive as nuclear waste. In spite of these findings, the EPA has yet to issue any firm stance on whether or not coal ash will be regulated as a “toxic waste,” partly due to the fact that the coal industry has unleashed a cadre of lobbyists to Washington to fight to protect their coal ash interests.

Full story available at DeSmogBlog - http://desmogblog.com/new-lake-michigan-coal-ash-spill-raises-old-concerns

[truedelphi]

1. the sad thing is, those who control Milwaukee don't have to care -

They know any sludge, ash or other poison that gets into the Lake, will go directly down to Chicago.

And although Chicago was very good about water quality, it can't keep its citizens safe as long as the Federal government continues to let it be as it is - that Federal Standards - not state standards - are the basis of waste release and clean up practices.

The city of Chicago and the state of Illinois have had numerous law suits against Milwaukee, and always the courts find against Chicago and Illinois.

[hunter]

2. Ughh.

That looks nasty.

[OKIsItJustMe]

3. Rachel Maddow coverage

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26315908/vp/45127233#45127233

[Nihil]

4. Remind me: What does the "E" stand for in "EPA"? Is it "Environment" or "Energy"?

> As we have reported extensively in the past, coal ash contains countless
> toxic substances, including mercury, hexavalent chromium, arsenic, and cadmium.
> It has also been reported to be more radioactive as nuclear waste.
> In spite of these findings, the EPA has yet to issue any firm stance on whether
> or not coal ash will be regulated as a “toxic waste,” partly due to the fact
> that the coal industry has unleashed a cadre of lobbyists to Washington to
> fight to protect their coal ash interests.

Pathetic.

[txlibdem]

5. Where are the "anti-nuke" posters??? This stuff is more radioactive than nuke waste

Why do the anti-nukers remain silent when these dangerous, deadly chemicals are spread throughout the land or water by a coal ash spill.

[Nihil]

6. Some of them will probably turn up in response to your prod ...

... but most will remain totally oblivious in their fluffy state of
fossil-fuelled ignorance as the OP didn't mention any of the keywords
that would awaken them from their dreams ...

(Somewhat reminiscent of the lack of attention paid to deaths in coal-mines
every week compared to the screeds of bollocks about potential deaths
that may be related to some uranium mining at some time in the past.)

[txlibdem]

7. Selective outrage

It's the same thing as being totally against steak knives but being okay with everyone having samurai swords.
:crazy:

[kristopher]

8. Are you really evoking "selective outrage" with that trumped up example?

Fukushima nuclear disaster: PM at the time feared Japan would collapse

Japan's prime minister at the height of the nuclear crisis has said he feared the country would collapse, and revealed that Tepco had considered abandoning the Fukushima Daiichi power plant after it was hit by the 11 March tsunami.


..."It was truly a spine-chilling thought," he told the Tokyo Shimbun, adding that he foresaw a situation in which greater Tokyo's 30 million people would have to be evacuated, a move that would "compromise the very existence of the Japanese nation".

In the first week of the crisis Tepco played down speculation that fuel rods had melted after the quake and tsunami crippled the reactors' cooling systems. "The power was totally lost and there was no cooling capacity," Kan said. "I knew what that meant and I thought, 'This is going to be a disaster'."

His unease grew when his trade minister, Banri Kaieda, told him that Tepco was considering pulling its staff out of the plant and leaving it to its fate. "Withdrawing from the plant was out of the question," he said. "If that had happened, Tokyo would be deserted by now. It was a critical moment for Japan's survival. It could have been a led to leaks of dozens of times more radiation than Chernobyl."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/sep/08/fukushima-nuclear-disaster-pm-japan

But I forgot, you keep saying you do not support nuclear power, right?

[txlibdem]

9. A threefold increase in the number of significant-hazard rated coal ash ponds.

I wonder if any persons in office or residents near those hazardous coal ash have a frightened quote somewhere on the Interwebs????

Inspections reveal threefold increase in "significant-hazard rated" ponds
November 1, 2011
Washington, D.C. —

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's latest release of data concerning coal ash ponds reveals a threefold increase in the number of significant-hazard rated coal ash ponds. This nightmare scenario comes as legislation passed by the House of Representatives and introduced in the Senate proposes to completely castrate the EPA's ability to set federally enforceable safeguards for proper coal ash disposal.

From: "A True Halloween Scare: EPA Data Reveals More Dangerous Coal Ash Ponds"
http://earthjustice.org/news/press/2011/a-true-halloween-scare-epa-data-reveals-more-dangerous-coal-ash-ponds