Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul has filed a lawsuit against City, Water, Light, and Power for allegedly releasing more than 700 tons of fly ash into the environment from the Dallman power station in August 2021.

Raoul’s office also filed an interim order that requires CWLP to report the extent of the incident to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and take precautions to prevent similar releases in the future. Raoul says the Dallman facility on Stevenson Drive is in an area the I-EPA has designated as an area of environmental justice concern.  The fly ash is normally trucked from CWLP and disposed of elsewhere.  He adds “All Illinois residents have a right to clean air, and I am committed to enforcing the environmental laws and regulations that protect that right.”

According to Raoul’s office, coal and other materials used in operations at CWLP’s Dallman power station generate fly ash, which is stored in a dry fly ash silo until it is conveyed through pipes and loaded onto trucks for disposal off site. The top of the silo is equipped with a vent-like filtration unit and baghouse. While the silo is being loaded, displaced air moves through the filter and out through the top of the silo. During previous maintenance on the filtration unit, a fabric filter separator bag fell from the top of the silo and eventually worked its way down until it became caught in a valve at the bottom of the silo, where it plugged the pipe and flow of fly ash.

Raoul’s lawsuit alleges that on Aug. 31, 2021, CWLP employees rolled back the valve in order to remove the fabric filter separator bag. Once the pipe was cleared, fly ash began flowing and filled the room, forcing employees to leave the room without replacing the valve. IEPA staff who responded to the incident allegedly observed a fly ash plume that spread beyond the Dallman facility even after CWLP employees were able to reattach the valve.

The lawsuit alleges CWLP violated the Illinois Environmental Protection Act, Illinois Pollution Control Board regulations and its Clean Air Act Permit Program permit. The lawsuit seeks to prohibit CWLP from future violations of state environmental laws and regulations, as well as civil penalties.

The agreed interim order in place while the lawsuit is pending requires CWLP to conduct a thorough analysis and report to the IEPA within 30 days of the order being entered by the court.