Green River Generating Station

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Green River Generating Station is a retired power station in Central City, Muhlenberg, Kentucky, United States.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Plant name Location Coordinates (WGS 84)
Green River Generating Station Central City, Muhlenberg, Kentucky, United States 37.363133, -87.122142 (exact)

The map below shows the exact location of the power station.

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Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):

  • Unit 1, Unit 2, Unit 3, Unit 4: 37.363133, -87.122142

Project Details

Table 2: Unit-level details

Unit name Status Fuel(s) Capacity (MW) Technology Start year Retired year
Unit 1 retired coal - unknown 37.5 subcritical 1950 2003
Unit 2 retired coal - unknown 37.5 subcritical 1950 2003
Unit 3 retired coal - bituminous 75 subcritical 1954 2015
Unit 4 retired coal - bituminous 113.6 subcritical 1959 2015

Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details

Unit name Owner
Unit 1 Kentucky Utilities Co [100.0%]
Unit 2 Kentucky Utilities Co [100.0%]
Unit 3 Kentucky Utilities Co [100.0%]
Unit 4 Kentucky Utilities Co [100.0%]

Retirement

In September 2011, E.ON subsidiaries LG&E and Kentucky Utilities reportedly asked the Kentucky Public Service commission to approve the purchase of Bluegrass Generation Co’s 495 MW natural gas-fired power plant, to replace their Green River Generating Station and Tyrone Generating Station.[1]

On May 3, 2012, the purchase of the Bluegrass gas plant was approved by the Kentucky Public Service Commission.[2]

The coal-fired power station is planned for closure in 2016.[3] It was closed in September 2015.[4]

Emissions Data

  • 2006 CO2 Emissions: 1,169,616 tons
  • 2006 SO2 Emissions:
  • 2006 SO2 Emissions per MWh:
  • 2006 NOx Emissions:
  • 2005 Mercury Emissions:

Death and disease attributable to fine particle pollution from the Green River Generating Station

In 2010, Abt Associates issued a study commissioned by the Clean Air Task Force, a nonprofit research and advocacy organization, quantifying the deaths and other health effects attributable to fine particle pollution from coal-fired power plants.[5] The study found that over 13,000 deaths and tens of thousands of cases of chronic bronchitis, acute bronchitis, asthma-related episodes and asthma-related emergency room visits, congestive heart failure, acute myocardial infarction, dysrhythmia, ischemic heart disease, chronic lung disease, peneumonia each year are attributable to fine particle pollution from U.S. coal-fired power plants. Fine particle pollution is formed from a combination of soot, acid droplets, and heavy metals formed from sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, and soot. Among those particles, the most dangerous are the smallest (smaller than 2.5 microns), which are so tiny that they can evade the lung's natural defenses, enter the bloodstream, and be transported to vital organs. Impacts are especially severe among the elderly, children, and those with respiratory disease. Low-income and minority populations are disproportionately impacted as well, due to the tendency of companies to avoid locating power plants upwind of affluent communities.

The table below estimates the death and illness attributable to the Green River Generating Station. Abt assigned a value of $7,300,000 to each 2010 mortality, based on a range of government and private studies. Valuations of illnesses ranged from $52 for an asthma episode to $440,000 for a case of chronic bronchitis.[6]

Table 1: Death and disease attributable to fine particle pollution from the Green River Generating Station

Type of Impact Annual Incidence Valuation
Deaths 21 $150,000
Heart attacks 31 $3,300,000
Asthma attacks 340 $18,000
Hospital admissions 15 $350,000
Chronic bronchitis 13 $5,500,000
Asthma ER visits 20 $8,000

Source: "Find Your Risk from Power Plant Pollution," Clean Air Task Force interactive table, accessed February 2011

Citizen groups

Articles and Resources

References

Additional data

To access additional data, including an interactive map of coal-fired power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.