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Environmentalists decry proposed ‘permit lite’ for some Missouri coal ash ponds
A push by Missouri regulators to change permitting requirements for coal ash ponds has environmental groups worried important safeguards will be lifted and toxic chemicals and metals could leach into groundwater with few protections. The Missouri Department of Natural Resources is seeking to move some ash ponds from stringent, site-specific permits to the general permit […]
Missouri proposes ‘permit lite’ for leaking coal ash dumps | Opinion
Our environmental safeguards are being decimated by none other than the agency meant to protect us from pollution, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Staff from DNR met secretly with corporations and consulting firms before releasing a proposed rule that would drastically reduce oversight at coal ash dumps by allowing them to continue leaching […]
EPA denies extension for Ameren to stop dumping coal ash, gypsum at two power plants
Ameren Missouri must stop dumping waste from two of its coal-fired power plants into nearby pits following a federal crackdown on coal ash that denied the electric utility an extension to comply with new regulations. The move could force the utility to retire at least one of the facilities years ahead of schedule. The Environmental […]
Climate change means more flooding, raising concerns about Missouri coal ash ponds
This story was produced by Missouri Information Corps. Our warming planet is the catalyst behind heavier rains that threaten to bring about a hidden danger — rising water tables seeping into unlined coal ash pits, mixing with and contaminating groundwater used not only for agriculture, but as drinking water. In Missouri, out of the 16 coal-fired […]
Coal plant operators shirking responsibilities on ash cleanup, report contends
In the wake of major coal ash spills from power plant containment ponds in Tennessee and into the Dan River along the North Carolina and Virginia border, the federal Environmental Protection Agency in 2015 laid out the first federal rules for managing the ash, one of the nation’s largest waste streams, and the toxins it contains. But more than […]
Endangered fish, leaching ash ponds: Environmental groups oppose Missouri coal plant permit
For years, Lisa Zerbe said she biked, rode horses and ran near Ameren Missouri’s largest coal-fired power plant in Franklin County because she “naively believed” state environmental regulators were protecting citizens from pollution. Now, she won’t. “It is truly a disheartening feeling of betrayal from an agency in my younger years I would have imagined […]
Clash over climate change funding emerging in farm bill debate
WASHINGTON — As lawmakers begin envisioning the next farm bill, some U.S. House Republicans are wary of making climate change a priority for farmers and ranchers. The pushback from Republicans at a Tuesday hearing came as the Biden administration has tried to make significant new investments in climate change mitigation on farmland, last week […]
Ameren may turn to natural gas to make up for shuttering Rush Island coal plant
Ameren Missouri may restart natural gas burners to offset the court-ordered shuttering of a coal-fired power plant that violated federal law, the company told state regulators Wednesday. The St. Louis-based electric utility announced late last year that it would retire its Rush Island Energy Center in early 2024 after a federal court found in 2019 […]
Conservative blocs unleash litigation to curb public health powers
This story was originally published by Kaiser Health News. Through a wave of pandemic-related litigation, a trio of small but mighty conservative legal blocs has rolled back public health authority at the local, state, and federal levels, recasting America’s future battles against infectious diseases. Galvanized by what they’ve characterized as an overreach of COVID-related health […]
Former St. Louis teacher helping lead coalition pushing back on book bans
Heather Fleming, sitting on a bench in St. Louis’ Forest Park, takes in the view on a warm early afternoon in February. Behind her is the Jewel Box, the giant glass-paneled greenhouse that’s a park emblem. Before her are rows of tall trees, their branches stripped bare. And further on, on nearby walkways and trails, […]