Million Dollar Nitrogen Pollution Lawsuit Settled In Maryland
By Peak Johnson
Among continued struggles with algae in the Chesapeake Bay, regulators are cracking down on nutrient contributors.
State Attorney General Brian Frosh and Maryland Secretary of the Environment Ben Grumbles announced late last month that the owners of two Maryland power plants in the Washington suburbs would have to pay $1 million to settle a federal lawsuit.
The lawsuit, according to The Washington Post, claims illegal releases of nitrogen into the Potomac and Patuxent rivers, a major cause of pollution in the Chesapeake Bay.
Frosh and Grumbles announced the settlement with NRG Energy subsidiaries, who own both plants at the Chalk Point station in Prince George’s County and the Dickerson station in Montgomery County, reported The Washington Post.
To reduce future pollution at the two plants, operators will have to pay an extra $1 million in order to support environmental restoration projects in their watersheds while also investing a total of $10 million to upgrade the wastewater filtration systems at the two plants, according to The Washington Post.
The Baltimore Sun reported that the Chalk Point station and Dickerson station were accused of having violated the Clean Water Act from 2010 to 2013.
As both plants removed nitrogen from potential emissions into the air, they discharged more of the nutrient into their wastewater, according to The Baltimore Sun. By agreeing to the settlement, NRG Energy admitted no wrongdoing.
According to The Washington Post, Maryland filed a lawsuit in 2013 claiming that both power plants discharged wastewater that contained illegal amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus into the rivers.
"It's a strong statement that environmental laws must be respected," Grumbles told The Baltimore Sun.
According to The Washington Post, in 2009 and 2010, both plants set up wastewater treatment systems that had included pollutant-eating bacteria. These bacteria were supposed to cut back on harmful chemicals.
Maryland filed a lawsuit in 2013 claiming that both power plants discharged wastewater that contained illegal amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus into the rivers, The Washington Post reported.
However, the bacteria died soon after. The lawsuit said “that in some years, the Chalk Point facility released 20 times as much nitrogen into the Patuxent River as its permit allows,” according to The Washington Post.
“It's in the best interests of everyone for us to settle and move on,” Dave Gaier, an NRG spokesman told The Washington Post.
For similar stories visit Water Online’s Nutrient Removal Solutions Center.