TVA ponders future of Shawnee coal plant in Kentucky

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Arkansas-St. John's Live Blog

The Tennessee Valley Authority is considering shutting down another two coal-fired units in Kentucky.

TVA said today it is preparing an environmental assessment about whether it should install scrubbers and other pollution equipment at two units of its Shawnee Fossil Plant near Paducah, Ky., or simply close the two units.

After shuttering some or all of the John Sevier, Widows Creek, Allen and Paradise fossil plants, TVA is reviewing options for two of the nine units at Shawnee.

Units 1 and 4 at Shawnee are among 18 coal units TVA has committed to either clean up or shut down by 2018 under a pollution settlement with the U.S. Environmental Protections Agency three years ago.

TVA said in a notice today that it determined that converting the units to biomass generation would be too expensive.

"TVA's board of directors and management are committed to making the best decision at Shawnee to provide reliable, low cost electricity to the Valley, to safeguard the environment, and to support economic development," said Brenda Brickhouse, vice president of Environment. "Providing service to the Valley includes considering views of the people who live and work here. We want to hear from them."

The Shawnee Fossil Plant was completed in 1957 and produces approximately 8 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity per year, enough to supply 540,000 homes.

The public comment on the future of Shawnee runs through Nov. 10, 2014. Comments can be submitted in writing to Charles P. Nicholson, PhD, NEPA Compliance, Tennessee Valley Authority, 400 West Summit Hill Drive, WT 11B, Knoxville, TN 37902-1499, by email at cpnicholson@tva.gov or online at http://www.tva.com/environment/reports/shawnee_units1+4/index.htm.

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