Prairie State Coal Plant Tracker

NASHVILLE, IL — “Following a nearly one hour closed session at a special meeting Tuesday, the board voted unanimously to amend its landfill ordinance to allow the proposed coal combustion residual monofill site on a 720 acre tract of land west of the Prairie State coal-fired power plant in Lively Grove Township, as well as the agreement itself.

…Dale Wojtkowski presented a petition of 66 signatures of those who will live near he waste facility.

He told the board, ‘Most of these folks here are the people from the immediate area. They are my neighbors. They are people that I’ve lived with for 25 to 30 years, and we’re very concerned…When you’re destroying 640 acres of farm land, that is not a good idea. If it was 100 feet outside of Nashville here, people would be raising heck about it. It would be a whole different story, and you know that.’

Wojtkowski asked why the waste facility was being considered when prior assurances were reportedly made by Prairie State executives in 2005 that no such sites would be placed in Washington County, but he was informed by the county’s legal counsel that the company was interested in creating a monofill but could not acquire the necessary property at that time.”

— Jason Silvey, Centralia Sentinel

link to pdf of article

NASHVILLE, IL — The Washington County Board has held a series of finance committee meetings to discuss the proposed new Near Field Landfill for the Prairie State coal plant, but has closed the meetings to the public.

Documents received through a Freedom of Information Act request show that the committee closed the meetings on April 30, May 7, May 24, and June 7. Another finance committee meeting is scheduled for tonight, with a meeting of the full board scheduled for tomorrow (Tuesday,June 26, at 7 p.m.). County residents are circulating petitions in opposition to the proposed landfill.

— Dale Wojtkowski

Please Attend!

Special meeting of the Washington County Board

Tuesday, June 26th at 7p.m.

Washington Coounty Courthouse in Nashville

After stating on the record in 2005 that there would be No coal ash landfill in Washington County, Prairie State is now asking for a permit from the Washington County Board to dump coal ash onto a 720 acre tract adjacent to the plant just south of the Biddleborn church. This toxic ash pile will eventually be over 250 feet tall with nothing to prevent contaminated dust from blowing onto property and into homes near and far. And, contaminated water leaching into creeks and ground water will always be a threat.

Please attend the meeting on June 26 at 7 p.m. and/or call your county board representative to tell them:

1) You don’t want a toxic waste dump in Washington County.

2) Don’t sell out the residents of Washington County. Oppose the coal ash landfill.

3) Prairie State already has two permitted sites which are NOT near homes.

Please consider going the extra mile and notify your friends and neighbors in Washington County about this important issue.

Thank you so much.

If you have questions please contact Dale Wojtkowski

MARISSA, IL — The Washington County Board tabled a decision to allow the Prairie State coal plant to create a new coal ash landfill at its meeting Tuesday. The item was moved to the board’s next meeting, scheduled for July 10, at 3 pm. Area resident Dale Wojtkowski testified in opposition to the proposed landfill during the public comment portion of the meeting.  He cited the environmental hazards of turning 740 acres of farmland into a coal ash dump, and reminded the board that in 2005, when the plant was being proposed, Colin Kelly, president of Prairie State Generating System, had promised the zoning board that “all waste will be disposed outside of Washington County in disposal sites properly permitted by the State of Illinois.“