According to an article in the Post & Courier:
Industrial plants in South Carolina pumped more than 46 million pounds of chemicals into the air in 2007, with coal-fired electric generators, paper mills and chemical companies responsible for the bulk of the pollution, new data by the Environmental Protection Agency shows.
Six of the top ten air pollution emitters were coal plants, including SCE&G facilities in Wateree and Berkeley counties, a Post and Courier Watchdog analysis of the EPA's Toxic Release Inventory shows. Both released more than 3 million pounds of pollutants, mostly hydrochloric and sulfuric acids, which contribute to acid rain.
The data is self-reported by polluters to the EPA. Stronger rules for reporting instituted by the Obama Administration are likely to lead to higher numbers next year.
Coal plants lead the way in polluting our state's air and water. Building new plants will only increase the burden on our health and our environment.
Source County Emissions(pounds) SCE&G Wateree Station Richland 3,334,003 SCE&G Williams Station Berkeley 3,042,473 International Paper Georgetown 1,954,087 Smurfit-Stone Container Florence 1,954,087 SCE&G Canadys Station Colleton 1,910,594 Intertape Polymer Richland 1,877,486 Santee Cooper Jefferies Station Berkeley 1,567,757 Santee Cooper Winyah Station Georgetown 1,541,087 Duke Energy Lee Station Anderson 1,510,859 MeadWestvaco (now KapStone) Charleston 1,430,604
Review the EPA data for yourself here (EPA 2007 TRI state database).
View a South Carolina pollution fact sheet here (EPA 2007 TRI State Fact Sheet). Check your own county's pollution levels.
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