A yearslong court battle over the 21.7 million tons of coal ash sitting in one of Alabama’s most ecologically sensitive areas will continue after an appeals court ruling handed down Monday.
The U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a lawsuit by Alabama-based environmental group Mobile Baykeeper challenging Alabama Power’s plans to leave the coal ash in place can proceed, overturning the decision of a lower court that had dismissed the complaint.
Mobile Baykeeper’s lawsuit argues that the nearly 600-acre coal ash pond at Alabama Power’s James M. Barry Electric Generating Plant, near Mobile, violates the Environmental Protection Agency’s coal ash rules, largely because much of the coal ash remains saturated with groundwater.
Baykeeper’s Cade Kistler told Inside Climate News he hopes the ruling will spur Alabama Power to agree to remove the coal ash rather than continue to fight to leave toxic waste from the coal-fired power plant in the impoundment pond.
“We certainly feel vindicated, but more importantly, I think it feels like an opportunity here for Alabama Power to see that there’s a different way forward than battling this,” Kistler said.
