The Associated Press reports that the EPA is suing DTE Energy [Detroit Edison] in federal court because of improper renovations/permitting at its coal-fired Monroe, MI power plant.
The power plant is in Monroe County, 40 miles south of Detroit. The lawsuit says DTE modified it last spring without using the best equipment to control emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrous oxide, which come from burning coal.
Associated Press
The EPA has asked U.S. District Judge Bernard A. Friedman to shut one of four units at the plant until provisions of the Clean Air Act are met. DTE maintains that it did not need a permit for the renovations because the parts/processes involved are functionally equivalent. Daily fines could cost DTE $37,500. Replacement electricity would cost DTE $250,000.
DTE's Monroe power plant is the fifth largest coal burning power plant in the country. The plant was completed during the early 1970s and is considered the largest emitter of pollution in the State of Michigan.
Wikipedia Overview
This is an interesting lawsuit for a number of reasons. The recent failure of the climate change bill in Congress has placed a spotlight on the EPA. Will the Obama Administration and EPA attempt to force reduction of coal plant emissions via regulatory means? This could be an early sign of a new approach.
The lawsuit is also interesting because most of the press related to this plant in recent years has focused on major pollution abatement systems that are in the process of being installed. These scrubbers will remove sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and mercury from emissions.
Metromode
Concurrent retrofitting of the power plant boiler system, however, seems to be the subject of this lawsuit. The Monroe Evening News has a good overview of this work.
Monroe Evening News
Focused on the Unit 2 boiler, the scope of the work includes removing large sections of the tubing that has corroded or weakened over time and replacing them with new tubing. About 2,000 square feet of tubing or "water wall" sections are being replaced.
Replacement of the "economizer," a massive array of tubed sections that act much like a radiator and increase boiler efficiency, also is part of the job. About 642 of the sections are being installed to create an 80-foot wide array.
I think this plant and lawsuit shed light on how difficult it will be to implement a new regulatory scheme for existing power plants. How extensive does a renovation have to be in order to face newer, more stringent regulations? Will power plant operators be wary of installing cleaner and more efficient systems in existing power plants if it means increased EPA scrutiny? Are power plant operators like DTE simply putting lipstick on a pig by dressing up old coal burners in this way?
It will be interesting to follow this case.