E.C. Gaston Steam Plant has 37 groundwater monitoring wells, 14 of which have been polluted above federal advisory levels based on samples collected between March 23, 2016 and September 18, 2019. Groundwater at this site contains unsafe levels of molybdenum, lithium, arsenic, boron, sulfate, cobalt, radium, barium and lead.
Site descriptionE.C. Gaston Steam Plant is operated by Alabama Power Company, owned by Southern Co. and opened in 1960 along the banks of the Coosa River in Shelby County, AL. Plant Gaston is coal-fired, capable of producing about 1,800-MW total from its five units, of which four operate using natural gas and are scheduled to be retired by 2028. The fifth and largest 832-MW unit still operates as a completely coal-fired unit and is scheduled to be converted to natural gas by 2028, according to the Alabama Energy Company. Plant Gaston’s Ash Pond and Gypsum Pond are both regulated under the CCR rule.
You can find the industry-reported data here. For more information on the E.C. Gaston Steam Plant, see EIP’s 2019 National Coal Ash Report Coal's Poisonous Legacy.