The 16 hydroelectric coal plants in Texas pollute the state’s groundwater with toxic elements such as arsenic or lead at levels above those allowed, according to a report released today by an environmental group.
“We found pollutants everywhere we looked, from aquifers to recreation centers where the population practices recreational fishing,” said Abel Russ, one of the report’s authors and lawyer with the Enviromental Integrity Project (EIP) group, in a statement. .
The report assures Texas plants emit arsenic, lead, barium, cobalt, lithium and other toxic chemicals into groundwater, which have become unhealthy for human consumption.
The results confirm, says the report, that discarding large volumes of “toxic waste in inadequate pits is a bad idea and will worsen the ecosystem” if the Texas hydroelectric plants do not look for more viable alternatives for the discharge of the ashes generated by combustion. of the coal “.
Twelve plants concentrate more than 100 micrograms per liter of arsenic near groundwater, a figure that is 10 times higher than the level allowed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), reveals about this element that causes various types of cancer.
He also points out that ten of these plants concentrate high levels of boron, such as the San Miguel plant, located south of San Antonio, where concentrations of more than 30 milligrams per liter were found.
In addition, 14 plants have apparent leaks with high levels of cobalt, which could cause tissue damage and cause severe respiratory problems.
The permitted level of cobalt is six micrograms per liter, however, at San Miguel and Gibbons Creek plants, northwest of Houston, as well as in Welsh, east of Dallas, the level of cobalt in groundwater exceeded 600 micrograms per liter.
EIP also suggests the administration of President Donald Trump to seek more ironclad alternatives to protect the inhabitants of the state and the country instead of concentrating on reinforcing incentives to an industry that “is responsible for polluting the environment.”
The environmental group proposes that all hydroelectric plants take greater security measures and that they be prohibited from dumping toxic waste into the subsoil or where there is contact with groundwater.
Another suggestion is to force the municipal governments near these plants to carry out health tests on residential water for human consumption and to prohibit the disposal of toxic waste in communities with low economic resources or ethnic and racial minorities. (EFEUSA) .-
