Under the terms of the settlement agreement, Hoosier is required to spend $5m on environmental projects and reduce air pollution by more than 24,500 tons per year.
As per EPA, in 2008, Hoosier made modifications at its Merom coal-fired power plant without first complying with New Source Review requirements, including obtaining pre-construction permits and limiting emissions by using control technology.
To resolve the allegation, Hoosier plans to spend between $250 and $300m upgrading and installing pollution controls at its Merom and Ratts Stations, to cut the emissions of sulfur dioxide by approximately 20,000 tons and nitrogen oxides by more than 1,800 tons and also reduce sulfuric acid mist and particulate matter emissions by the end of 2015.
In addition, Hoosier will spend $5m on environmental mitigation projects in its service territory, of which $200,000 will be used for projects to alleviate the harm caused by Hoosier’s excess emissions at lands owned by the US Forest Service.
The company will spend the remaining $4.8m on other projects, under which Hoosier will capture and combust methane from coal beds to generate at least 10MW of electricity and supply the resulting carbon dioxide emissions to a greenhouse for use as a fertilizer.
Under the proposed settlement, which is subject to a final court approval, Hoosier will also retrofit in-service, public diesel engines with emission control equipment and install solar power systems on public schools or on buildings housing non-profit groups in the company’s service territory.
