Residents of a subdivision in Tennessee located near the Kingston, Tn. Power Plant filed a lawsuit against the Tennessee Valley Authority seeking $165,000,000 in damages caused by the rupture of a coal ash retention pond. In the lawsuit, the homeowners claim that more than one billion gallons of coal ash sludge spilled over 300 acres of property and polluted two rivers.
Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen is mindful of the environmental impact of, and potential harm from, incidents like this. He says that the state will be looking at this issue hard – "The regulations we operate under now were written in the ’70s; 2009 is a different world in terms of environmental regulation than the 1970s." Let’s hope that more states follow Tennessee’s stance and start looking at environmental issues like this from a safety standpoint first. Let’s also hope that our new Administration realizes that what is good for Dupont and The Southern Company is not necessarily good for America. I think they do.
