Published: November 09, 2009 04:26 pm      

Residents speak out about coal ash proposal

Residents of Smith Mountain and Cumberland County offered impassioned pleas to the Office of Surface Mining (OSM) Thursday, asking that it turn down a request for a revision to the post mining land use for Turner Mine on Smith Mountain Rd.

Bill Winters, chief of the technical team of the Knoxville Field Office, OSM, said, "Under the Tennessee federal regulatory program, the proposal to revise the permit to include an industrial commercial land use is considered a significant revision."

Crossville Coal Company submitted the revision request in June in order to continue with Smith Mountain Solutions' plans to reclaim a surface mine on top of Smith Mountain with coal combustion ash products from TVA.

The public comment period for the proposal began July 31, 2009, and ended Sept. 20, though comments were taken through the end of the meeting Thursday.

Speakers were given three minutes to have their say on the application. More than 40 people took the microphone, and all but one was opposed to the proposal. Steve Wright, owner of Wright Brothers Construction and a partner in Smith Mountain Solutions, asked OSM to look at the facts when making its decision on the application.

Wright did not respond to requests for further comments by the Chronicle, but in an Oct. 20 guest editorial published in the Tennessean, Wright noted TVA has not given any assurance it will accept the site for coal ash disposal.

"Yet, we are willing to take the risk in going forward because it is the right thing to do for the community, provides job growth, will help keep utility rates low and is a win-win for the environment," he wrote.

He states the site would meet or exceed state and federal environmental requirements, and noted coal ash had been used in coal mine reclamation for years without incident, and he said the site would be operated to ensure none of the coal ash could become airborne.

Earl Tyler, a Smith Mountain resident, said, "This has been sold to us as a win-win proposition, which it clearly is not, unless you are one of a couple of groups. Hillsboro group gets to get out of reclaiming the mine. If you're Steve Wright and some of his associates, you get to make millions if not hundreds of millions of dollars in the process. If you're anyone else, it's a lose. The truth is, the mine must be, according to the Office of Surface Mining, reclaimed first before there can be any post mining land use."

Flo Hopkins, a resident of Smith Mountain, noted the coal ash disposal proposal had changed numerous times since it was first presented to the Cumberland County Commission. At first, it was said to be a temporary site to take coal ash from the December 2008 spill in Kingston. Since then, it has become a proposal for a perpetual disposal site for ongoing coal combustion products from Kingston.

"We have been misled, and most of us know it by now," Hopkins said. "It's not the right thing for the community. Reclamation is progressing without any help from Steve Wright. Coal ash is not needed to reclaim this mine."

Several speakers pointed to a recently released report from the Environmental Protection Agency that toxic materials in coal ash, from mercury to arsenic, can concentrate in large amounts that are discharged to waterways or seep into groundwater.

Wright has proposed lining the site with a synthetic material and capturing any water, leachate, for treatment. The city of Crossville last month denied a request to treat any leachate from the site.

The EPA is considering whether coal ash should be regulated as hazardous waste, and a decision on that is expected by the end of the year. Currently, coal ash regulations are left up to individual states.

Several noted the Turner Mine is located in the Sewanee Coal Seam, and the type of synthetic liner proposed had not been studied in that acidic environment. This would also be the first coal ash disposal site in the Sewanee Coal Seam. Speakers asked for a complete Environmental Impact Statement to address possible environmental impacts.

Louise Gorenflo, with Cumberland Stewards, said, "The mine was never intended to be a landfill. Under NEPA guidelines, a full EIS must be considered to cover all the potential harm for a first of its kind coal ash disposal facility in the Sewanee Coal Seam."

NEPA is the National Environmental Policy Act.

Traffic was another concern. Smith Mountain Road is a narrow, winding road, residents said. They worry about numerous trucks traveling up and down the road several times a day.

Tina Nicholson said she walks along the driveway of her home at 10 to 4 p.m. every day to meet her two children as they get off the school bus. If the group wants to walk down the road to look at herbs or enjoy the afternoon, she said they often have to jump into the ditch to avoid truck traffic.

"Two regular cars cannot pass each other on this road as it is," she said.

Smith Mountain Solutions has agreed to make safety improvements to the road and enforce low speed limits through GPS tracking.

Robert Safdie, 2nd District commissioner, attended the meeting and spoke briefly, noting he was in a difficult position since the commission was being sued by residents of Smith Mountain and one business.

Safdie spoke after two hours of comments, saying, "I conclude from this discussion tonight there are more questions that have to be answered."

OSM personnel conducted a site visit Oct. 27, following requests during the comment period.

With all comments gathered for the proposal, OSM personnel will begin reviewing the permits and testimony and other applicable documents before issuing a decision. Winters said OSM was in the early stages of the technical review and it would take time to reach a decision.

If approved, the project still must be approved by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation and public hearings will be required before the project could continue.