"TVA Moving Away From Coal-Fired Power"

"CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- The Tennessee Valley Authority has agreed to shutter 18 coal-fired units at three power plants and make major improvements at 10 other sites, in a deal that's being called one of the largest pollution reductions agreements in the nation's history.

TVA officials said other plant closings and pollution control upgrades are under consideration as the federal utility attempts to move toward being "one of the nation's leading providers of low-cost and cleaner energy" by 2020. ...

The deal, which resolves federal government enforcement actions and citizen lawsuits, nearly triples the coal-fired capacity from the 1,000 megawatts TVA had announced last year it planned to idle.

Plants in Tennessee, Alabama and Kentucky are affected by the plan, which will reduce the TVA coal fleet's nitrogen oxide emissions by 69 percent and sulfur dioxide emissions by 67 percent. The plan will also cut particulate matter pollution and carbon dioxide emissions, helping to reduce respiratory illnesses and combat global warming."

Ken Ward Jr. reports for the Charleston Gazette April 14, 2011.