Seward Power Plant
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Seward Power Plant is an operating power station of at least 585-megawatts (MW) in Seward, Indiana, Pennsylvania, United States with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Seward Power Plant | Seward, Indiana, Pennsylvania, United States | 40.407083, -79.034008 (exact) |
The map below shows the exact location of the power station.
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- Unit 4, Unit 5, Unit 6: 40.407083, -79.034008
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | Start year | Retired year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 4 | retired | coal: unknown | 62 | subcritical | 1950 | 2003 |
| Unit 5 | retired | coal: unknown | 156.2 | subcritical | 1957 | 2003 |
| Unit 6 | operating | coal: bituminous | 585 | subcritical | 2004 | – |
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner | Parent |
|---|---|---|
| Unit 4 | Seward Generation LLC [100%] | NRG Energy Inc |
| Unit 5 | Seward Generation LLC [100%] | NRG Energy Inc |
| Unit 6 | Seward Generation LLC [100%] | NRG Energy Inc |
Background
The Seward Power Plant was listed as a proposed coal plant in 2007 by the National Energy Technology Laboratory, a division of the Department of Energy, in its report "Tracking New Coal-Fired Power Plants,". However, at that time the plant had already been operating since October 2004, when it replaced a plant by the same name that was built in 1921.
In 2015 the then owner NRG Energy announced the sale of the Seward Power Plant to Robindale Energy Services [1]
The Seward Power Plant gets all of its waste coal from the RES Mine 33, a nearby metallurgical coal mine owned by the same company.
Emissions Data
- 2006 CO2 Emissions: 3,087,865 tons
- 2006 SO2 Emissions:
- 2006 SO2 Emissions per MWh:
- 2006 NOx Emissions:
- 2005 Mercury Emissions:
Death and disease attributable to fine particle pollution from Seward
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.[2] Fine particle pollution consists of a complex mixture of soot, heavy metals, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides. Among these particles, the most dangerous are those less than 2.5 microns in diameter, 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. The study found that over 13,000 deaths and tens of thousands of cases of chronic bronchitis, acute bronchitis, asthma, congestive heart failure, acute myocardial infarction, dysrhythmia, ischemic heart disease, chronic lung disease, and pneumonia each year are attributable to fine particle pollution from U.S. coal plant emissions. These deaths and illnesses are major examples of coal's external costs, i.e. uncompensated harms inflicted upon the public at large. 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. To monetize the health impact of fine particle pollution from each coal plant, 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.[3]
Table 1: Death and disease attributable to fine particle pollution from Seward Power Plant
| Type of Impact | Annual Incidence | Valuation |
|---|---|---|
| Deaths | 6 | $47,000,000 |
| Heart attacks | 11 | $1,200,000 |
| Asthma attacks | 100 | $5,000 |
| Hospital admissions | 5 | $120,000 |
| Chronic bronchitis | 4 | $1,700,000 |
| Asthma ER visits | 5 | $2,000 |
Source: "Find Your Risk from Power Plant Pollution," Clean Air Task Force interactive table, accessed March 2011
Study finds dangerous level of hexavalent chromium at Seward coal waste site
The study "EPA’s Blind Spot: Hexavalent Chromium in Coal Ash," released by EarthJustice and the Sierra Club in early February 2011, reported elevated levels of hexavalent chromium, a highly potent cancer-causing chemical, at several coal ash sites in Pennsylvania.[4] In all, the study cited 29 sites in 17 states where hexavalent chromium contamination was found. The information was gathered from existing EPA data on coal ash as well as from studies by EarthJustice, the Environmental Integrity Project, and the Sierra Club.[5][6][7][8] It included locations in Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Massachusetts, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virgina and Wisconsin.[4]
According to the report, hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) was found at elevated levels at the following sites:[4]
- Seward Power Plant's unlined coal waste pond and landfill at 330 ppb - 16,500 times the proposed California drinking water goals and 3.3 times above the federal drinking water standard.
A press release about the report read:
- Hexavalent chromium first made headlines after Erin Brockovich sued Pacific Gas & Electric because of poisoned drinking water from hexavalent chromium. Now new information indicates that the chemical has readily leaked from coal ash sites across the U.S. This is likely the tip of the iceberg because most coal ash dump sites are not adequately monitored.[9]
According to the report, the electric power industry is the leading source of chromium and chromium compounds released into the environment, representing 24 percent of releases by all industries in 2009.[4]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ "NRG to sell Seward coal plant, Shelby County gas plant to different parties" Transmissionhub.com, December 1, 2015.
- ↑ "The Toll from Coal: An Updated Assessment of Death and Disease from America's Dirtiest Energy Source," Clean Air Task Force, September 2010.
- ↑ "Technical Support Document for the Powerplant Impact Estimator Software Tool," Prepared for the Clean Air Task Force by Abt Associates, July 2010
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "EPA’s Blind Spot: Hexavalent Chromium in Coal Ash" Earthjustice & Sierra Club, February 1, 2011.
- ↑ "Damage Case Report for Coal Combustion Wastes," August 2008
- ↑ U.S. EPA Proposed Coal Ash Rule, 75 Fed. Reg. 35128
- ↑ EarthJustice, Environmental Integrity Project, and Sierra Club, "In Harm's Way: Lack of Federal Coal Ash Regulations Endangers Americans and their Environment," August 2010
- ↑ EarthJustice and Environmental Integrity Project, "Out of Control: Mounting Damages from Coal Ash Waste Sites," May 2010
- ↑ "Coal ash waste tied to cancer-causing chemicals in water supplies" Alicia Bayer, Examiner.com, February 1, 2011.
Additional data
To access additional data, including an interactive map of coal-fired power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
