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Indian River Power Plant near Millsboro is by far the dirtiest of the 84 heavy industrial operations monitored annually by the state for pollution.
Delaware’s single worst polluter emitted 3.9 million pounds of federal- and state-designated toxins during 2003, making it more than twice as dirty as the second-ranked Edge Moor/Hay Road Power Plant in New Castle County, which emitted 1.8 million pounds of toxins in 2003.
The latest toxic release inventory data were made public, March 23, with comments from Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) Secretary John Hughes and Toxic Release Inventory data coordinator John Parker of DNREC’s air quality section.
The list of toxic chemicals in 2003 included 103 individual chemicals and 30 chemical categories.
In 2003, Indian River Power Plant, owned by NRG Energy, released 3,000,000 pounds of hydrochloric acid, 312,105 pounds of barium compounds, 140,000 pounds of sulfuric acid, 130,000 pounds of hydrogen fluoride, 66,755 pounds of vanadium compounds, 55,755 pounds of manganese compounds, 47,755 pounds of chromium compounds, 47,255 pounds of zinc compounds, 35,760 pounds of nickel compounds, 31,355 pounds of copper compounds, 19,540 pounds of lead compounds, 6,800 pounds of ammonia, 395 pounds of mercury compounds and one pound of polycyclic aromatic compounds.
Parker noted that the 2003 statewide on-site releases were 19.6 percent higher than last year. The primary reason for the large increase, Parker said, was due to a change in the way Indian River Power Plant estimated its hydrochloric acid release. In 2003, the plant used smokestack test data to determine its release. In past years, the coal-fired power plant used Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) emission factor estimates, which produced lower results.
The change in 2003 numbers can be attributed to what Parker described as more accurate smokestack testing techniques. Smokestack testing resulted in Indian River Power Plant registering a 90 percent increase over its 2002 hydrochloric acid emissions. Parker also noted that increased demands for electricity resulted in the plant burning more coal, the source of all toxic release emissions from the utility power generator.
“Although we want lower numbers, particularly in on-site releases, we also strive for data accuracy, and accuracy will not be sacrificed,” said Hughes. “I know that with the continued efforts of the public, industry and government, we can reestablish a downward trend in on-site releases.”
In 2003, the reported on-site releases to the air, water or land in Delaware totaled approximately 9.6 million pounds. Of that amount, about 7.4 million pounds were released to the air, 1.3 million pounds were released to land, and 916,000 pounds were released into water.
Placing the 2003 data alongside the 2002 data determined by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) provides a perspective for ranking Delaware in the larger, national toxic-release inventory picture.
That data ranks Delaware as 44th in the nation for total on-site releases. The state report notes that 58 industrial facilities in America each released more individually than all the regulated industries in Delaware combined.
The top 15 statewide rankings for industrial toxic on-site emissions were: Indian River Power Plant, Millsboro; Edge Moor/Hay Road Power Plant, Wilmington; Premcor/Motiva Enterprises, Delaware City; Invista/DuPont, Seaford; Daimler Chrysler, Newark; Perdue Farms, Georgetown; DuPont Edge Moor, Wilmington; General Motors, Wilmington; Formosa Plastics, Delaware City; Honeywell International, Claymont; NRG Power Plant, Dover; Sunoco Refining, North Claymont; Ciba Specialty, Newport; Rohm & Haas/Rodel, Newark; and Kaneka Delaware, Delaware City.
Most of Indian River Power Plant’s emissions in 2003 – 3.3 million pounds - were on-site air emissions, coming from four big smokestacks. A lined surface landfill was the storage area for the 607,140 pounds of the power plant’s on-site emissions. Less than 1 percent of the plant’s emissions – 3,105 pounds - were released into the water, the report states.
Except for Indian River Power Plant, which releases chemicals into the Indian River watershed, and Invista/DuPont Seaford, which releases chemicals into the Nanticoke River watershed, all other top 15 polluters in 2003 released their chemicals into receiving streams that empty into Delaware Bay.
On-site mercury releases at Indian River Power Plant also increased in 2003 as a result of applying stack-testing techniques and coal analysis. Mercury releases rose from 165 pounds in 2002 to 395 pounds in 2003. Mercury air releases decreased from 73 pounds in 2002 to 22 pounds in 2003. Mercury and mercury compounds released and stored in a lined on-site landfill increased from 92 pounds to 373 pounds. Mercury compounds are usually the byproducts produced from impurities in coal or oil combustion, the toxic release inventory report noted.
The report noted that the human nervous system is highly sensitive to all forms of mercury. Exposure to high levels of metallic, inorganic, or organic mercury may permanently damage the brain, kidneys and developing fetuses. Effects on brain functioning may result in irritability, shyness, tremors, changes in vision or hearing and memory problems.
The EPA this month announced its first-ever rule for reducing mercury air emissions. That rule sets a market-based cap-and-trade system that would allow a large utility company with several coal-fired power plants to trade mercury emissions credits nationwide. The rule drew immediate criticism from Delaware’s congressional delegation, which cited its concern that a large utility might tighten controls on some of its coal-fired plants and allow others to exist without tighter controls.
Congressman Mike Castle called the new rule inadequate for protecting human health and the environment.
Sen. Tom Carper called for more stringent cuts in mercury, including mandatory pollution reductions at every power plant.
The 2003 Toxic Release Inventory Report drew comment, March 24, from NRGEnergy Inc. spokeswoman Meredith C. Moore.
“Toxic Release Inventory substances released from Indian River Power Plant are the direct result of coal usage,” said Moore. “And the amount of coal we use is directly proportional to consumer demand for our electricity. Since energy demand, and therefore coal usage, increased in 2003, so did the substances we report to the EPA.”
Moore continued: “We at NRG take our environmental stewardship seriously. Every NRG facility meets or beats environmental requirements of both state and federal regulatory agencies. Electric generation has unavoidable byproducts, and we spend a lot of time working with our regulators and communities to find practical ways to reduce emissions while maintaining an affordable and reliable source of electricity.”
NRG Energy regional director of operations Barry T. O’Brien stood on the roof of Indian River Power Plant last spring and told Sen. George H. Bunting, D-Bethany Beach, that it would cost the company $80 million to reduce emissions at that one facility.
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