EPD releases updated draft permit for Plant Hammond

On February 15th, the Environmental Protection Division released a new draft discharge permit for Plant Hammond, the coal-burning power plant located in Rome, GA.

Last month, Sierra Club and its allies—the Altamaha Riverkeeper, the Coosa River Basin Initiative, and the Savannah Riverkeeper—filed suit to compel EPD to revise and update long-expired National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (“NPDES”) permits on all of Georgia’s coal plants, including Hammond, which discharges into the Coosa River. The Coosa was again placed on the Georgia Water Coalition’s Dirty Dozen list, an annual report that spotlights ongoing threats to Georgia’s water and communities.

In response to the draft permit’s release, Sierra Club’s Atlanta-based Beyond Coal campaign organizer Ian Karra released the following statement:

“Hammond is one of the largest sources of toxic water pollution in the state and action on the permit there is long overdue. We look forward to reviewing the draft and working to ensure that it is consistent with the Clean Water Act and that it includes strong protections for our waters and for the public health of Floyd County residents.”

A public hearing on the draft permit will be at 7 p.m. April 12 at the E.C.O. Center, located at 393 Riverside Parkway in Rome.