"Coal Plant Tied To W.Va Governor Faces $1M Fine"

"A shuttered Alabama coal products company with ties to Republican West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice would pay a $925,000 fine as part of a settlement to resolve a Clean Air Act lawsuit brought last year by local regulators.

Under the proposed consent decree lodged Friday in state court, Bluestone Coke LLC would also have to install a fenceline monitoring system for sulfur dioxide if it opts to reopen the Birmingham-area plant and provide quarterly progress reports to the Jefferson County Health Department and the Greater-Birmingham Alliance to Stop Air Pollution (GASP), an environmental group.

If approved by a judge, the tentative deal would end the lawsuit brought last summer by the health department, which covers the county that includes Birmingham. Together with other requirements in the proposed settlement, it would ensure that Bluestone complies “with applicable regulations, and will further protect the public as well as the environment,” Wanda Heard, a spokesperson for the department said in an email."

Sean Reilly reports for E&E Newa December 12, 2022.

Source: E&E News, 12/14/2022