Mostly good news.
Bloede Dam removal project finished
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| Bloede Dam |
After a blast breached the Bloede Dam in the Patapsco River last September, the project to remove the century-old dam is now complete, Department of Natural Resources officials announced.
The 18-month project removed the dam, replaced portions of sewer lines in Baltimore and Howard counties and repaired part of the Grist Mill Trail through Patapsco Valley State Park.
The total cost of the removal project is estimated at $17.9 million, with funding from Maryland DNR, the State Highway Administration, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Coca-Cola Foundation and Keurig-Green Mountain.
The removal restores more than 65 miles of spawning habitat for fish species including blueback herring, alewife, American shad and hickory shad and more than 183 miles of spawning habitat for American eel, officials said. Until its removal, Bloede was the first barrier on the Patapsco River that blocked migratory fish swimming to and from the Chesapeake Bay.
. . .
The demolition of the dam and reconstruction of surrounding trails included moving a 42-inch diameter sewer line in Baltimore County and a 12-inch sewer line in Howard County and the repaving of a section of the Grist Mill Trail. Portions of Grist Mill have been damaged or totally destroyed since Ellicott City and surrounding areas flooded from a storm in May 2018.
I'll bet "moving" (more like demolishing and rebuilding) a 42-inch sewer line was a joy.
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| Brunner Island Power Plant on the Susquehanna River |
Brunner Island agrees to pay largest coal ash pollution penalty in state history
Talen Energy, the owner of the Brunner Island Power Plant in York Haven, has agreed to pay the largest penalty ever assessed in Pennsylvania for coal ash pollution.
The historic agreement between the power producer and four environmental groups will require Talen to pay a $1 million penalty, contribute an additional $100,000 to fund supplemental projects to reduce local water pollution, close and excavate one ash pond, and monitor/address leakage of pollutants from other waste sites.
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According to a release by EIP, Brunner Island creates 442,000 tons of ash and other coal combustion wastes annually. The plant added the capacity to burn natural gas in 2016, but it’s been indicated that the facility will continue to burn coal for about the next nine years.
Talen Energy disputed that number in an email, saying Brunner Island generated 97,000 tons of coal waste, with 90% of it going to beneficial use vs. into ash basins.
It's hard to imagine that a difference like that can be due to an honest interpretation of the data. I wonder who's lying.
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