On April 7, the Department of Environmental Protection announced it has entered into a consent order and agreement (COA) with Seward Generation, LLC to resolve outstanding violations to the Air Pollution Control Act at its waste coal-fired, steam electrical generation station located at 595 Plant Road, New Florence, Pennsylvania 15944 in Indiana County.

As part of the agreement, Seward Generation will pay a $108,000 penalty.

In 2004, Reliant Energy, the original owner of the waste coal plant, installed state of the art equipment which reduced the percent sulfur by 95 percent, on a 12-month rolling average.

The removal efficiency was determined to be the Best Available Technology (required in Pennsylvania for all new sources) at that time. It became part of the company’s approval to install the plant and is now a condition in the facility’s Title V (federal Clean Air Act) operating permit.

This reduction continued to be achieved until 2017, when Seward Generation, LLC began using waste coal that contained lower amounts of sulfur than the plant was originally designed for.

As a result of the modification to its the feedstock, Seward Generation, LLC was no longer able to reduce the percent sulfur by its permitted 95 percent.

The modification did not, however, result in any exceedances of ton per year or pound per hour permit limitations for sulfur or any other air pollutant.

“Companies are required to install and maintain the best available technology to minimize the emissions from air pollution sources,” said John Holden, acting regional director of DEP’s Northwest Regional Office. “They are also responsible for anticipating changes to their operations to avoid violating the conditions of their permits.”

In cooperation with DEP, Seward Generation, LLC has entered into the COA and has agreed to pay a $108,000 civil penalty, submit a plan approval application for the modification, and submit detailed information about the operating conditions for the preceding month.

Click Here for a copy of the COA.  Media questions should be directed to: Tom Decker, DEP, 814-332-6615, thomadecke@pa.gov.

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[Posted: April 7, 2021]

4/12/2021