DHEC proposes power plant mercury standard

Santee Cooper's proposed coal-fired power plant in the Pee Dee would be allowed to release about 93 pounds of mercury a year into the air, according to a new proposal by the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.

The limit is 45 pounds less than DHEC's earlier standard and about 21 pounds less than what Santee Cooper said in July was technically feasible.

"It's not a slam dunk whether we can operate within those (new) limits," said Laura Varn, Santee Cooper vice president of corporate communications. "We have to do some analysis and critical thinking and look at the technology to see if it's doable."

But Blan Holman, a lawyer for the Southern Environmental Law Center, said that the standard is still too weak, and that different types of coal plants would pump out less mercury.

"We don't think there needs to be a coal plant at all, but if you're going to build one in a state with a well-known mercury problem, it needs to be a plant with the best controls possible. It looks to us that DHEC isn't going to require that."

Santee Cooper is seeking permits to build a 1,200 megawatt power generator near Florence. The utility says without it the region could face blackouts or brownouts within a few years.

Mercury is a dangerous neurotoxin that causes health effects even in tiny amounts. Where some pollutants are measured in pounds and tons, mercury emissions are measured in ounces and pounds. Coal-fired power plants, incinerators and cement kilns are among the biggest man-made sources of mercury contamination.

In February, federal courts struck down the Bush administration's mercury pollution reduction strategy, forcing states to clarify their own mercury pollution limits for new and existing coal plants.

On Tuesday, DHEC unveiled its mercury emissions standard for the Pee Dee plant: 46.3 pounds of mercury a year per generator. (The utility is seeking permits for two generators.)

Previously, DHEC gave Santee Cooper preliminary approval to release 69 pounds of mercury per unit.

Santee Cooper said in July it could cut the plant's emissions to 57 pounds per unit with state-of-the-art scrubbers.

Before the new mercury standard is finalized, DHEC will hold a public hearing at 6 p.m. Oct. 23 at Hannah-Pamplico High School.

In a paper outlining its standard, DHEC officials said they examined boiler systems and pollution controls similar to what Santee Cooper wants to build, and that their figures represent the maximum removable amount of mercury.