Dirtiest fuel needs more scrubbing

Coal will likely be a large part of the nation’s energy portfolio for many more years, but Americans shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that it’s an immensely destructive way to generate electricity. Our long-term goal should be easing our dependence on coal as a power source, just as we need to reduce our reliance on other fossil fuels.

Recently, there have been repeated reminders of how coal affects human health and the environment.

A New York Times analysis of a surge in Clean Water Act violations, for example, found an egregious group of offenders — companies that extract coal by ripping the tops off mountains and dumping debris into streams and valleys below.

In Prenter, W.Va., about 17 miles from Charleston, wells have been fouled by arsenic, barium and other contaminants linked to cancer and the impaired development of children’s brains. The water is so toxic that it eats away tooth enamel; bathing or showering causes burns and scabs.

At the other end of the process is coal ash, a byproduct of burning coal. About 130 tons of the waste — containing mercury, arsenic and more — is created yearly.

CBS’ “60 Minutes” recently highlighted two occasions, among many, when the waste was mishandled. One occurred in December in Kingston, Tenn., when a retention pond overflowed and spilled 1 billion gallons of coal ash into a river and nearby homes. The other example was the use of fly ash to sculpt a golf course in Chesapeake; contaminants were later found in groundwater at the course. Between these bookend debacles is the actual burning of coal.

Last week, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation released a report indicating that a coal plant proposed by Old Dominion Electric Cooperative in Surry County would send “significant and harmful” levels of mercury and other pollutants into the Bay, the Great Dismal Swamp and the James, Blackwater, Nottoway, Pamunkey and Roanoke rivers.

ODEC officials counter that they’ll use state-of-the-art pollution controls and will not emit as much pollution as the foundation claims. Whatever the levels might be, there’s a long, demonstrable pattern of problems with mercury emissions from coal plants.

In another recent analysis of Clean Water Act records, The New York Times found a troubling trend about state-of-the-art pollution controls. New, high-tech scrubbers are successfully reducing air pollution from coal plants, but the scrubbing itself produces toxic wastewater.

On-site treatment facilities can remove some pollutants, which are then deposited in landfills. But the rest — containing arsenic, barium and other heavy metals linked to cancer and more — frequently ends up in rivers.

Industry officials contend the amounts aren’t harmful because they’re diluted by river water. The EPA, years behind on the issue, has announced plans to rewrite regulations to deal with coal wastewater disposal.

For now, Americans need electricity generated from coal. But they also need better protections throughout the coal process, from extraction to waste disposal.

Coal is a dirty fuel, and it should be treated as such while work continues to develop much cleaner alternatives.