Client: Earthjustice
Authors: Joshua R. Castigliego, Tyler Comings, Sagal Alisalad, Liz Stanton, PhD
July 2021
On behalf of Earthjustice, Researcher Joshua Castigliego, Senior Researcher Tyler Comings, Assistant Researcher Sagal Alisalad, and Senior Economist Liz Stanton, PhD prepared a report outlining the benefits of coal ash cleanup and remediation at three power plants: Montana’s Colstrip Steam Electricity Station, South Carolina’s Grainger Generating Station, and Indiana’s Michigan City Generating Station.
AEC staff found that the more complete and more effective cleanup scenarios with full excavation of coal ash in contact with groundwater and contaminated soils results in more than double the jobs compared to the less effective cleanup plans. In all three case studies, workers’ income and local economic activity follow this same pattern with more stringent clean up protocols resulting in greater benefits for both workers and the community.
Following release of this report, on August 6, 2021, Michigan City Council passed a unanimous resolution supporting the more stringent coal ash cleanup option. Read the resolution below.
Link to Earthjustice Publication