EPA v. TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY (TVA) (FF)

Case summary

BIG CASE. The Compliance Agreement between EPA and TVA secures injunctive relief at all of TVA's coal-fired power plants across three states to resolve alleged violations of the Clean Air Act New Source Review provisions. Additional information on the entire settlement, as well as the Compliance Agreement, is available at http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/cases/civil/caa/tvacoal-fired.html The compliance agreement includes the following injunctive relief: An obligation to address 92 percent of TVA's coal-fired system between 2011 and 2018 with either the installation of state-of-the-art pollution controls such as selective catalytic reduction (SCR) or flue gas desulfurization (FGD), retirement, or repowering to renewable biomass: - For NOx, 60 percent of TVA's coal-fired system will be equipped with SCR, 16 percent will be retired, and 16 percent have the option to retire, retrofit with SCR, or repower to renewable biomass; - For SO2, 51 percent of TVA's coal-fired system will be equipped with FGD, 16 percent will be retired, and 25 percent have the option to retire, retrofit with FGD, or repower to renewable biomass; - Permanent retirement of 18 coal-fired units equating to about 16 percent of TVA's coal-fired electricity generating system; - Continuous operation of all new and existing SCRs and FGDs; - Optimization studies for existing PM controls to maximize PM emission reductions; - Compliance with annual descending system-wide tonnage caps for NOx and SO2; - Annual surrender of any excess NOx and SO2 allowances resulting from actions taken under the Compliance Agreement. This settlement also requires TVA to spend $350 million on environmental mitigation projects to address the impacts of past emissions. Communities near TVA’s facilities will directly benefit from $350 million in environmental projects designed to reduce harmful air pollution and advance EPA’s goals in addressing environmental justice issues. TVA will distribute a subset of the $350 million, a total of $60 million, to Alabama, Kentucky, North Carolina, and Tennessee for these states to implement projects of their choosing from a list of categories in the consent decree. Under the settlement with EPA, TVA will spend $290 million to perform the following projects: - $240 million as part of the Energy Efficiency Projects that are designed to increase efficiency in transmission and demand-side supply to displace utilization of coal-fired electricity generation. - $40 million to reduce greenhouse gases and other pollutants through the Clean/Renewable Energy Projects. - $8 million for a Clean Diesel Retrofit and Electric Vehicle Project that requires TVA to either retrofit in-service, public diesel engines with emission control equipment designed to reduce emissions of NOx and volatile organic compounds or to replace such vehicles with electric or hybrid-electric vehicles. - $1 million each to the National Park Service and the National Forest Service to improve, protect, or rehabilitate park and forest lands that have been injured by emissions from TV. In accordance with a separate but related Consent Agreement and Final Order (Docket No. CAA-04-2010-1528(b)) TVA is paying an $8 million penalty.

Defendants (1)

• TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITYNamed in settlement

Facilities (49)

• TVA

  900 STEAM PLANT ROAD, TUSCUMBIA, AL, 35674

  Registry ID: 110000367834

• TVA

  HWY 72, STEVENSON, AL, 35772

  Registry ID: 110000604944

• TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY - CUMBERLAND FOSSIL PLANT

  815 CUMBERLAND CITY ROAD, CUMBERLAND CITY, TN, 37050

  Registry ID: 110000493127

• TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY - CUMBERLAND FOSSIL PLANT

  815 CUMBERLAND CITY ROAD, CUMBERLAND CITY, TN, 37050

  Registry ID: 110000493127

• TVA

  900 STEAM PLANT ROAD, TUSCUMBIA, AL, 35674

  Registry ID: 110000367834

• TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY - JOHNSONVILLE COMBUSTION TURBINE PLANT

  535 STEAM PLANT ROAD, NEW JOHNSONVILLE, TN, 37134

  Registry ID: 110000370535

• TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY - CUMBERLAND FOSSIL PLANT

  815 CUMBERLAND CITY ROAD, CUMBERLAND CITY, TN, 37050

  Registry ID: 110000493127

• TVA

  900 STEAM PLANT ROAD, TUSCUMBIA, AL, 35674

  Registry ID: 110000367834

• TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY (TVA) - SHAWNEE FOSSIL PLANT

  7900 METROPOLIS LAKE RD, WEST PADUCAH, KY, 42086

  Registry ID: 110000493305

• TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY - CUMBERLAND FOSSIL PLANT

  815 CUMBERLAND CITY ROAD, CUMBERLAND CITY, TN, 37050

  Registry ID: 110000493127

• TVA

  HWY 72, STEVENSON, AL, 35772

  Registry ID: 110000604944

• TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY - CUMBERLAND FOSSIL PLANT

  815 CUMBERLAND CITY ROAD, CUMBERLAND CITY, TN, 37050

  Registry ID: 110000493127

• ALLEN FOSSIL PLANT TVA

  2574 PLANT ROAD, MEMPHIS, TN, 381093014

  Registry ID: 110000374130

• TVA

  HWY 72, STEVENSON, AL, 35772

  Registry ID: 110000604944

• TVA

  HWY 72, STEVENSON, AL, 35772

  Registry ID: 110000604944

• …and 34 more

Statutes cited

• CAA 165 — Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD)

Enforcement conclusions (1)

• TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITYentered 2011-06-13

  Primary law: CAA

Timeline (2 milestones)

• 2010-05-05Enforcement Action Data Entered
• 2011-06-13Final Order Issued