Big Sandy Power Plant
| Big Sandy Power Plant | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Country | United States |
| Location | Lawrence County, near Louisa, Kentucky |
| Coordinates | 38°10′20″N 82°37′03″W / 38.1722°N 82.6175°W |
| Commission date | 281 MW (1963) 816 MW (1969) |
| Owner | Kentucky Power Company |
| Thermal power station | |
| Primary fuel | Natural gas |
| Power generation | |
| Nameplate capacity | 1,097 MW |
| External links | |
| Commons | Related media on Commons |
The Big Sandy Power Plant is a Natural gas fired Power station owned and operated by American Electric Power near Louisa, Kentucky. It was established in 1963.[1] It was formerly a coal fired plant, but was converted to natural gas in 2016.
Plant Data
- Owner: Kentucky Power Company
- Parent Company: American Electric Power
- Plant Nameplate Capacity: 1,097 MW
- Units and In-Service Dates: 281 MW (1963), 816 MW (1969)
- Location: 23000 Highway 23 North, Louisa, KY 41230
- GPS Coordinates: 38.1722222, -82.6174900[2]
- Number of Employees: 135[1]
- Customers: 175,000+[1]
Emissions Data
- 2006 CO2 Emissions: 6,830,275 tons
- 2006 SO2 Emissions: 46,476 tons
- 2006 SO2 Emissions per MWh:
- 2006 NOx Emissions: 13,851 tons
- 2005 Mercury Emissions: 281 lb.
In January 2009, Sue Sturgis of the Institute of Southern Studies compiled a list of the 100 most polluting coal plants in the United States in terms of coal combustion waste (CCW) stored in surface impoundments like the one involved in the TVA Kingston Fossil Plant coal ash spill.[3] The data came from the EPA's Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) for 2006, the most recent year available.[4]
Big Sandy Plant ranked number 40 on the list, with 915,079 pounds of coal combustion waste released to surface impoundments in 2006.[3]
Big Sandy Plant's Fly Ash surface impoundment is on the EPA's official June 2009 list of Coal Combustion Residue (CCR) Surface Impoundments with High Hazard Potential Ratings. The rating applies to sites at which a dam failure would most likely cause loss of human life, but does not assess of the likelihood of such an event.
The data came from the EPA's Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) for 2006, the most recent year available.[4]
Conversion to natural gas
There is a discussion regarding a proposal to convert coal fired plants such as Big Sandy to natural gas to reduce fuel costs, greenhouse gas emissions, and airborne toxins. Initially Big Sandy's owner AEP proposed a billion dollar upgrade to allow it to continue to burn coal, however this upgrade was opposed by environmentalists, and also opposed by electricity consumers who oppose higher rates to pay for the upgrade.
Later AEP agreed to convert to natural gas. Gas is supplied by Columbia Natural Gas and the contractor building the pipeline and valve stations is Eagle Pipeline (contracted by Columbia).[5] Big Sandy's conversion to natural gas was supported by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, as New York is a consumer of Big Sandy's electricity.[5]
Conversion to natural gas was completed on May 30, 2016.[6]
See also
References
- ^ a b c Big Sandy Power Plant Monitors Real Time Operations Using High-Speed Internet Connection Retrieved on 2010-11-26
- ^ "Big Sandy Power Plant of the Kentucky Power Company". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved on 2010-11-26
- ^ a b Sue Sturgis, "Coal's ticking timebomb: Could disaster strike a coal ash dump near you?," Institute for Southern Studies, January 4, 2009.
- ^ a b TRI Explorer, EPA, accessed January 2009.
- ^ a b New York Times, By ERIC LIPTON, Published: May 29, 2012: Even in Coal Country, the Fight for an Industry
- ^ [1], Power Engineering, accessed November 2016.
External links
- Existing Electric Generating Units in the United States, 2005, Energy Information Administration, accessed Jan. 2009.
- Environmental Integrity Project, "Dirty Kilowatts: America's Most Polluting Power Plants", July 2007.
- Facility Registry System, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, accessed Jan. 2009.