Allegheny Energy- Hatfield's Ferry Coal Plant

A Dirty Power Plant, A Public Health Hazard

Hatfield's Ferry is the fifth worst sulfur dioxide polluter in the country and one of the nation’s greatest emitters of nitrogen oxide and mercury. From 2000 to 2002, the plant emitted:

• Over 500,000 tons of sulfur dioxide – a primary cause of acid rain and smog
  Over 70,000 tons of nitrogen oxides – a primary cause of smog and fine particulate
• Over 1,500 pounds of mercury - a dangerous neurotoxin

Allegheny Energy was under investigation by the Clinton-era EPA for violation of the Clean Air Act (CAA) at Hatfield’s Ferry and two other plants in Pennsylvania. The Bush administration dropped the case after it weakened the CAA.

Pollution from Hatfield’s Ferry causes 237 premature deaths every year, according to a recent study by the same researchers that the Bush administration commissioned to evaluate its energy plan.

Allegheny Energy is Committed to Dirty Energy

Allegheny Energy has no meaningful renewable energy program. Wind power is cost competitive with all other sources of electricity, and Pennsylvania has the potential to produce 45 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity a year by harnessing the wind, 22 percent of Pennsylvania's total energy consumption. Despite this potential, Allegheny Energy still does not offer its customers any clean energy options.

In fact, rather than offer positive solutions, Allegheny Energy uses negative rhetoric:

Efforts to reduce our dependence on coal would have serious economic consequences for our homes, businesses, transportation, industries, agriculture, and all facets of our current social structure. Clearly, the future of our region is closely tied to our reliance on coal. - Allegheny Energy’s website.

Allegheny Energy’s Political Connections 

Like nearly all other large energy companies, Allegheny Energy has funneled a significant amount of money to the Republican Party and the Bush campaign.

In 2000, Allegheny Energy gave $22,500 to the Bush campaign and the Republican National Committee. Additionally, since 1999, Allegheny Energy officers and members of its Board of Directors have made individual donations of over $190,000 to the Bush campaign, the Republican National Committee and state-level Republican organizations, Republican candidates and right-leaning Political Action Committees (PAC).

Allegheny Energy’s own PAC gave $5,000 to George W. Bush’s presidential campaign. The PAC also gave $260,500 to U.S. House and Senate candidates, contributing nearly twice as much to Republicans as Democrats.

The Bush Energy Plan's Devastating Effects

The Bush Energy Plan is allowing dirty power plants to continue unabated, causing pollution and health problems nationwide. In Pennsylvania alone, more than 8.5 million people live in areas with air quality that is considered unhealthy. EPA’s own consultants estimate that pollution from power plants shortens the lives of 1,825 Pennsylvanians each year, more than any other state2. In addition, EPA data indicates that each year in Pennsylvania, pollution from power plants causes:

• 200,110 lost work days
• 1,664 hospitalizations
• 35,405 asthma attacks (977 of which require emergency room visits)
• 194 lung cancer deaths
• 3,329 heart attacks