Apr. 13, 2005

Contact: Arthur Stamoulis, 215-567-4004 ext. 222

Western Pennsylvania Worst in Nation for
Toxic Selenium Pollution from Power Plants
Area Wildlife at Risk from Proposal to Weaken Regulations

COLVER, PA - Pennsylvania's coal-fired power plants produce more toxic selenium pollution than those in any other state, according to government data cited today by Clean Air Council, a statewide environmental organization. This information comes as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considers weakening Clean Water Act protections for selenium in waterways. Selenium is an elemental metal that, in high concentrations, is known to cause severe reproductive impairment and death among fish, birds and other wildlife.

"Because of the large sources of selenium pollution in the region, weakening the rules for selenium would be devastating for fish and other wildlife in western Pennsylvania," said Arthur Stamoulis, Policy Analyst for Clean Air Council.

According to EPA's Toxic Release Inventory data from 2002, the most recent year available…

• Power plants in Pennsylvania produced 226,819 pounds of selenium-more than those in any other state.
  
• The Colver Power Project, in Colver, Cambria County, produced 120,891 pounds of selenium-more than any other single power plant in the nation.
  
• Other power plants in Pennsylvania that produced significant amounts of selenium include Homer City (Indiana County) at 32,152 pounds; Bruce Mansfield (Beaver County) at 28,155 pounds; Keystone (Armstrong County) at 22,360 pounds; Hatfield (Greene County) at 12,212 pounds; and Brunner Island (York County) at 4,605 pounds.
  
• Several power plants in Pennsylvania discharged selenium directly into local waterways; others shipped it within coal ash to various dumps around the state, including those in Armstrong, Butler, Cambria, Clarion, Clearfield, Indiana and Westmoreland Counties.

"A lot has been invested in cleaning up Pennsylvania's rivers and streams so that they can be fished and enjoyed by all," said Stamoulis. "There is no reason to allow polluters to jeopardize that solid progress with weaker selenium standards. The current environmental regulations have been doing their job, and should be kept in place."

EPA's newly-proposed selenium standard was created with the arbitrary starting point that anything less than a 20% fish mortality rate is acceptable. The agency has faced heavy criticism for a number of major errors in their underlying research, which some believe will lead to even higher fish kill levels.

"The scientific errors in EPA's draft proposal are nothing short of fatal flaws. For example, the tissue levels of selenium that EPA would allow killed half of the fish in my experimental studies. Clearly, the number that EPA is proposing will not protect aquatic life from toxic impacts," said A. Dennis Lemly, Assistant Professor of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and a Senior Research Scientist with the U.S. Forest Service. Lemly has studied the impacts of selenium on aquatic life for more than 20 years. EPA based its proposed selenium standard on a study by Lemly, but according to Lemly and others, EPA misinterpreted that study.

"This isn't the first time that the Bush administration has skewed the science in order to weaken environmental regulations for the benefit of the electric industry," said Stamoulis.

Over ninety scientists have signed on to a letter that objects to the proposed standard, including researchers from the Academy of Natural Sciences, Allegheny College, Alvernia College, Bryn Mawr College, Dickinson College, Drexel University, Pennsylvania State University, Lehigh University and the University of Pennsylvania.

"Power plants in the area, and throughout Appalachia, have a history of violating their water permits for selenium discharges. Rather than making them clean up their acts, the government is simply re-writing the rules to allow this excess pollution to continue," said Lisa Graves Marcucci, President of Jefferson Action Group, Inc. "Big energy companies stand to save millions, but only at the expense of water quality. Pennsylvanians deserve better."

EPA is accepting public comments on its proposed selenium rule until April 18. To comment, visit HERE.

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