Published: June 26, 2009 02:41 pm      

Ready to fail — 06/28/09.

Report provides more evidence of need for federal inspections

The already strong case for federal inspections of coal ash impounds just got a lot stronger with the release of a $3 million study of the Dec. 22 dike break at the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Kingston, Tenn., Fossil Plant.

Engineer Bill Walton of AECOM USA Inc. said earthen dikes supporting a huge coal ash landfill at the Kingston plant were “on the verge of failure” long before they collapsed and sent tons of toxic muck into a river and lakeside community. TVA has launched a $1 billion cleanup of the site.

At the time of the mishap, federal law did not require inspection of coal ash storage areas which are at coal-fired electric plants throughout the U.S., including the Big Sandy plant near Louisa.

Since then, members of Congress has called for federal inspection of the storage areas. The 6,000 page AECOM USA recommends more frequent and through inspections of the storage, but it stops short of calling for federal oversight of coal ash storage.

Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Texas, whose House Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment has been holding hearings on the disaster, called the report “enlightening and disturbing.” She said it would help explain why the spill happened and help prevent them.

After a 2006 leak at the Kingston plant, TVA decided to install trench drains rather than do a $25 million conversion to dry storage or install a $5 million landfill liner. Why? Because it was less costly. TVA now is converting to dry storage of coal ash at the site.

Walton’s report says more thorough inspections of the coal ash impoundment at Kingston would have likely revealed that the dike was in danger of collapsing “at any minute.”

Walton’s report does not point the finger of blame for the disaster by overemphasizing what should have been done. Instead, it emphasizes what could — and must — be done to prevent a similar disaster at a northern location. Learning from your mistakes and taking steps to assure that they are not repeated is the best way to prevent future man-made disasters.