Merrimack Station in Bow, New Hampshire. Photo via Flikr
August 3, 2021 (CONCORD, NH) – After a challenge from Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) and the Sierra Club, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will be required to revise the water discharge permit it issued to the Merrimack Station coal-fired power plant. The permit failed to include critical water pollution protections that the agency itself had previously proposed, and it would have resulted in unacceptable thermal pollution and killed thousands of fish.
“The Merrimack Station coal plant is destroying the health of the Merrimack River and it’s time they’re held accountable,” said Greg Cunningham, Vice President and Director of CLF’s Clean Energy and Climate Change program. “The permit for this fossil fuel plant must do more to protect this iconic waterbody, and the appeals board clearly agrees. CLF will continue to work with the EPA to make sure the next iteration of this permit protects the wildlife that call the river home.”
The EPA’s Environmental Appeals Board ordered that the Merrimack Station Clean Water Act wastewater discharge permit must go back to the EPA for reconsideration in a ruling issued today.
Experts are available for further comment.
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