Independence Steam Station

Independence Steam Station is a coal-fired power station owned and operated by Entergy near Newark, Arkansas.

Death and disease attributable to fine particle pollution from Independence Steam Station
In 2010, Abt Associates issued a study commissioned by the Clean Air Task Force, a nonprofit research and advocacy organization, quantifying the deaths and other health effects attributable to fine particle pollution from coal-fired power plants. The study found that over 13,000 deaths and tens of thousands of cases of chronic bronchitis, acute bronchitis, asthma-related episodes and asthma-related emergency room visits, congestive heart failure, acute myocardial infarction, dysrhythmia, ischemic heart disease, chronic lung disease, peneumonia each year are attributable to fine particle pollution from U.S. coal-fired power plants. Fine particle pollution is formed from a combination of soot, acid droplets, and heavy metals formed from sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, and soot. Among those particles, the most dangerous are the smallest (smaller than 2.5 microns), which are so tiny that they can evade the lung's natural defenses, enter the bloodstream, and be transported to vital organs. Impacts are especially severe among the elderly, children, and those with respiratory disease. Low-income and minority populations are disproportionately impacted as well, due to the tendency of companies to avoid locating power plants upwind of affluent communities.

The table below estimates the death and illness attributable to the Independence Steam Station. Abt assigned a value of $7,300,000 to each 2010 mortality, based on a range of government and private studies. Valuations of illnesses ranged from $52 for an asthma episode to $440,000 for a case of chronic bronchitis.

Table 1: Death and disease attributable to fine particle pollution from the Plant
Source: "Find Your Risk from Power Plant Pollution," Clean Air Task Force interactive table, accessed February 2011

Plant Data

 * Owner: Entergy Arkansas
 * Parent Company: Entergy
 * Plant Nameplate Capacity: 1,700 MW
 * Units and In-Service Dates: 850 MW (1983), 850 MW (1984)
 * Location: 555 Point Ferry Rd., Newark, AR 72562
 * GPS Coordinates: 35.672971, -91.407961
 * Coal Consumption:
 * Coal Source:
 * Number of Employees:

Emissions Data

 * 2006 CO2 Emissions: 12,485,094 tons
 * 2006 SO2 Emissions: 26,172 tons
 * 2006 SO2 Emissions per MWh:
 * 2006 NOx Emissions: 14,663 tons
 * 2005 Mercury Emissions: 445 lb.

Citizen groups

 * Sierra Club Arkansas Chapter

Coal Ash Waste and Water Contamination
In August 2010 a study released by the Environmental Integrity Project, the Sierra Club and Earthjustice reported that Arkansas, along with 34 states, had significant groundwater contamination from coal ash that is not currently regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The report, in an attempt to pressure the EPA to regulate coal ash, noted that most states do not monitor drinking water contamination levels near waste disposal sites. The report mentioned Arkansas based Flint Creek Power Plant and the Independence Steam Station were two sites that have groundwater contamination due to coal ash waste.

The 2010 EarthJustice, Environmental Integrity Project, and Sierra Club report, "In Harm's Way: Lack of Federal Coal Ash Regulations Endangers Americans and their Environment," identified 39 more coal combustion waste (CCW) disposal sites in 21 states that have contaminated groundwater or surface water with toxic metals and other pollutants, including Independence, based on monitoring data and other information available in state agency files. The report builds on an earlier 2010 report by the Environmental Integrity Project and Earthjustice, "Out of Control: Mounting Damages from Coal Ash Waste Sites", which documented similar damage at 31 coal combustion waste dumpsites in 14 states. When added to the 67 damage cases that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) has already acknowledged, the total number of sites polluted by coal ash or coal scrubber sludge comes to at least 137 in 34 states.

The report listed Independent's 34 coal waste monitoring wells with widespread contamination of groundwater, including arsenic, cadmium and lead above Maximum Contaminant Level (MCLs). From 2002-2009, SMCLs were exceeded repeatedly for iron, manganese, and sulfate. Iron concentrations were as high as 131 times the SMCL, and arsenic was approaching the MCL in the wells. 25 irrigation wells and one drinking well are within one mile of the plant.

Other coal waste sites
To see a nationwide list of over 350 coal waste sites in the United States, click here. To see a listing of coal waste sites in a particular state, click on the map:



Related SourceWatch Articles

 * Existing U.S. Coal Plants
 * Arkansas and coal
 * Entergy
 * United States and coal
 * Global warming