Centralia Coal Plant

The Centralia Coal Plant, built in 1971, is located approximately 50 miles from Mt. Rainier National Park. Prior to NWEA’s advocacy, the plant emitted over 31,000 tons of nitrogen oxides—the largest source of nitrogen oxides in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Alaska—and 65,000 tons of sulfur dioxide—the largest single source west of the Mississippi. Sulfur dioxide has two primary environmental impacts: visibility impairment and acid rain. It also kills people.

Clean Air Act Protections for Mt. Rainier

Although federal studies had estimated the cost to human lives from the Centralia Coal Plant at 19 deaths and 660 illnesses each year, no federal law prevented its operating without any pollution controls. Instead, the only way in which the Clean Air Act could be brought to bear on Centralia’s pollution was through laws pertaining to visibility. Prior to NWEA’s lawsuit, there were clear and sunny days on which people could not see Mt. Rainer.

Visibility is affected by the amount of particulates in the air. Particles of sulfate were the single most significant contributor to Mt. Rainier’s visibility impairment. The primary source of sulfate particles is coal-fired electric facilities and industries. The National Park Service had determined that Centralia caused approximately one third of human-made visibility impairment on the 132 days in the year that would otherwise be clear. In addition, the Park Service had found that Centralia’s sulfate particles also adversely affected other areas as far away as the Columbia River Gorge Scenic Area.

Centralia’s huge sulfur emissions were also responsible for at least 30 percent of the acidification of forests, lakes and streams around Mt. Rainier. When sulfur emissions mix with rain or other water, acids form and fall to earth. These acid rain deposits weaken tree defenses to diseases resulting in deforestation. Data from the U.S. Forest Service showed that acidification around Mt. Rainier National Park was already in excess of protective levels for many types of native trees and plants, and is causing serious damage to park ecosystems. But the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act did not protect against that effect.

How the Clean Air Act Protected Mt. Rainer

The National Park System contains some of the world’s most spectacular scenery, unique cultural and historic resources, and diverse wildlife and ecosystems. Concerned about pollution impacts to visibility in national parks and wilderness areas, Congress created in the Clean Air Act a special three-step process for states to protect these areas. These federal provisions have been incorporated into Washington’s State Implementation Plan (SIP), the state’s formal agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to carry out the Clean Air Act. Once a SIP is in place, the state’s first step is to perform a visibility study every three years. Next, where the federal agencies have certified visibility impairment in protected areas, the state must identify the responsible industrial sources. Last, the state must determine the “Best Achievable Retrofit Technology” (BART) for each of these sources and require BART implementation.

NWEA’s Lawsuit Cleans Up Centralia Emissions

In response to the operation of Centralia with zero pollution controls, in 1998 NWEA filed a Clean Air Act lawsuit against three government agencies: the Washington Department of Ecology, the Southwest Air Pollution Control Authority (SWAPCA), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). NWEA’s suit, filed pursuant to the visibility requirements of the Clean Air Act, sought two regulatory actions: 1) Ecology’s performing the required visibility study, and 2) pollution controls on Centralia. Because the emission control equipment—known as “scrubbers”—would achieve a reduction of approximately 90 percent of the plant’s sulfur emissions but increase carbon dioxide emissions responsible for global climate change, NWEA advocated for plant shut down. Although NWEA eventually lost the lawsuit, the case jumpstarted a process that resulted in the installation of pollution controls at Centralia. Subsequently, the Washington legislature passed a bill in 2011—the TransAlta Energy Transition Bill—to close one boiler by the end of 2020 and the other by the end of 2025.