Club and Allies Prevail in North Carolina Coal Case
The Sierra Club notched another coal victory in its belt on December 2 when U.S. Circuit Judge Lacy Thornburg ruled that Duke Energy violated the Clean Air Act for starting construction of its new Cliffside Unit 6 coal plant in Rutherford County, North Carolina, without making adequate provisions to regulate toxic air pollution.
Sanjay Narayan, above, of the Sierra Club's Environmental Law Program, played a key role assisting the Southern Environmental Law Center on the case, as did Molly Diggins, director of the Club's North Carolina Chapter. "This decision establishes that coal-fired power plants are subject to the Clean Air Act's requirements to minimize emissions of mercury and other hazardous air pollutants," Narayan says.
The court ruling does not halt construction, but it leaves open the possibility that construction could be stopped if Duke does not promptly address the plant's toxic emissions. The review process must begin within 10 days, and must result in controls that meet the requirements of the Clean Air Act within 60 days.
The ruling is the first time a new coal plant that received its permit and began construction before the Clean Air Mercury Rule was struck down must comply with Maximum Achievable Control Technology requirements of the Clean Air Act. The so-called Clean Air Mercury Rule, which paradoxically would have allowed dangerously high levels of mercury pollution, was ruled illegal by a Washington, D.C. Circuit Court in February.
Read more about the Sierra Club's work to stop the coal rush.
Sanjay, I'm glad someone is helping the environment in a positive way. We need more people like him.
Posted by: Eugene O. | March 06, 2009 at 08:59 AM