Tennessee coal ash spill worse than initially reported

mikeg

The coal ash spill in Harriman, TN is way worse than previously reported. It now appears that some 5.4 million cubic yards – over one billion gallons – of the toxic sludge was spilled, more than twice the amount quoted in initial reports.Clean Coal?

MSNBC has a fantastic piece up about how the clean coal campaign has been given a “black eye” by the spill, and how many people are now questioning “coal’s supposed green credentials” as a result. It features our very own Rick Hind, toxics campaign director. Check it out:



Here’s hoping that this “black eye” is more of a body blow to the disingenuous “Clean Coal” marketing campaign. It will be if we keep the pressure on and continue to raise awareness about the benefits of renewables and the dangers of coal. Want to help? Post the above pic anywhere you can -- on your website, your blog, your Myspace or Facebook profile. Click the image for a larger version. Or you can grab the embed code to this video and put that on your site/profile. Let's make sure everyone knows just how dirty coal is.

There are lots more images of the coal ash spill, taken by a photographer we sent out to TN, on this slideshow.

Comments:

Comment from: sfcharlie [Visitor]
Photos show larger spill than reported.
From the USGS topo map the original storage cells measure 0.6 by 0.4 miles to the outside of the containment walls. This is an area of about .24 square miles or 150 acres.
According to a fact sheet issued by TVA, ash in the Kingston dredge cell storage areas was about 55 feet above the water level in the nearby ash pond, prior to the failure. Missy Hedgecoth, the manager of coal combustion by products for TVA, said Wednesday that the cell was "a lot higher than any other internal dredge cell that we have in TVA."
Even if the spill is only half the original storage area, about 70 acres, that still more that the billion gallons estimate we have been given in the public press.
Thank you GreenPeace for pursuing this disaster.
Charlie Smith
San Francisco
Permalink 12/30/08 @ 13:17
Comment from: linda6 [Visitor]
This is terrible I am writing an article for Earthly Visions newsletter, about the dangers of coal, and the effects on the environment. Linda Safley. This will be the winter Quarter of the newsletter. All thosw fish dead, horrible!
Permalink 01/06/09 @ 14:13

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