More than two years after Knox News sounded the alarm that children could be exposed to radioactive coal ash on an East Tennessee playground, an independent scientific study has confirmed coal ash waste at the site.
The study published this week in one of the nation s top environmental science and technology journals reveals coal ash contamination at a children’s playground adjacent to the Tennessee Valley Authority s Bull Run coal-fired power plant in Claxton and on several properties downwind of the plant.
Coal ash is the byproduct of burning coal to produce electricity, and it contains a toxic stew of 26 cancer-causing pollutants and radioactive heavy metals.
Oakridger
Local residents are asking for faster action regarding Bull Run Fossil Plant s ash after studies showed issues with sediments and groundwater.
The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, which is in charge of environmental regulation in Tennessee, recently presented its findings to the Anderson County Commission s Intergovernmental Affairs Committee in a meeting at the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton. Pat Flood, TDEC senior advisor, presented in person while Robert Wilkerson, coal combustion residuals manager with TDEC, spoke virtually.
The results showed excessive levels of various chemicals in groundwater and surface streams near Bull Run Fossil Plant, according to the findings.