In a bold act of disregard for Georgians' health and environment, Georgia Power is asking the state's permission to permanently bury more than a million tons of toxic coal ash in a leaking, unlined pit at Plant Hammond west of Rome, GA -- dangerously close to the Coosa River.

While this practice -- which Georgia Power calls “cap in place” -- may sound innocent, it allows toxic coal ash contaminants to leach into groundwater and contaminate our waterways.

Coal ash is toxic and contains dangerous chemicals and heavy metals, such as: arsenic, boron, cobalt, molybdenum, and sulfate. Testing has already found unsafe levels of these toxins in groundwater at Plant Hammond.

Georgia Power needs permits from the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) to finalize this dangerous plan. Georgia Power is hoping we won’t sound the alarm.

Sinkhole Update:

It was recently discovered that one month after Georgia Power began using Plant Hammond's third ash pond (AP-3) in July 1977, a 58-foot diameter sinkhole opened up directly beneath it. Approximately one million gallons a day were lost onto a neighboring church property.

Despite this catastrophic event, Georgia Power concluded in its History of Construction that "no structural instability issues have been observed for AP-3." The only mention of the sinkhole in Georgia Power's application for a coal ash permit came more than 1200 pages into the document in an unlabeled diagram with no explanation.

Failure to disclose the instability issues surrounding AP-3 put the groundwater and the public at risk if another sinkhole were to develop under AP-3.

Let’s call on the EPD to protect our water from coal ash pollution by making Georgia Power clean it up right. Tell the EPD that this plan is toxic and unacceptable, and that Georgia Power must move its toxic coal ash to a safely lined landfill away from waterways.

Remember to add a personal message saying why this issue matters to you.