Got Coal Ash? Southeast Database Helps Watchdog Power Plants

Another database upgrade that will help environmental journalists is available from the group Southeast Coal Ash. Find it here.

Water contamination and other threats from combustion waste from coal-burning power plants has gotten increased media, political, and regulatory attention since the collapse of a TVA coal-ash containment dam in 2008. While they occur across the U.S., the problems are especially notable in the Southeast. This database site covers Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.

The group advocates tighter control of coal ash, which can contaminate drinking water supplies with heavy metals. The recently improved site presents a wide variety of information in a clear, map-based format — including satellite images, hazard ratings, and contamination info.

• "Q&A: An Improved Tool for Watchdogging Coal Ash in the Southeast," Southeast Energy News, October 18, 2016, by Rhiannon Fionn.