CHENNAI: The State power utility is proposing to commission a new, bigger thermal power plant to replace the nearly five-decade-old decommissioned plant at Ennore, a move that has already attracted criticism from green activists who say that the industrial area is already battling intense pollution.
The 450 MW plant at the Ennore Thermal Power Station (ETPS) that was built in 1970 was decommissioned on March 31. To replace it, Tangedco has recommended a `4,800 crore project to commission a 660 MW plant.
While Tangedco officials say the plant is required for the energy needs of the future, activists charge that the new project could worsen the already-harsh living environment at Ennore.
The power stations were built near the Ennore creek, the swampy backwater spread across 13 km. It is home to a vast aquatic ecosystem and also provides livelihood to at least six fishing hamlets. But the creek, once a tourist marvel during colonial times, is now filled with power stations and industries leaving both air and water toxic.
A study by a Chennai-based organisation, Coastal Resource Centre (CRC), raised concerns about the poor ambient air quality in the area. “The air quality mostly ranged from unhealthy to very unhealthy. However, according to the Environmental Impact Assessment report for the replacement station that Tangedco has provided, all samples were within permissible limits,” said Pooja Kumar from CRC.
The pollution, she added, comes not only from the chimneys smoke but also from conveyor belts that carry coal, and ash ponds.
However, a senior official said no new conveyor belt would be built for the replacement plant. “We won’t be building a new coal conveyor belt and we won’t be building new pipeline to draw sea water. We will use the existing ones,” he said.
Meanwhile, questioning the rationale in investing in a new plant, environmental organisation Greenpeace India has raised questions about the efficiency of the power plants. According to the NGO, the top five coal fired thermal power plants in Tamil Nadu are running at a plant load factor of 55.84 per cent. “Which means, though their installed capacity is 5,250MW, they are currently producing only 3,096 MW - a deficit of 2,154 MW,” it said in a statement.
As per this calculation, the new plant could be avoided by improving the efficiency of the existing plants to 80 per cent.
But officials from the power utility maintained that the future needs and energy security of the State cannot be met with the existing plants.
“In fact, in order to decrease the burden on environment, we will use super-critical technology that will increase coal efficiency and reduce emissions,” he said.
The public hearing on the power station will be held on May 30 under the norms of Ministry of Environment and Forest.
The copy of the Environmental Impact Assessment is available at https://storyofennore.files.wordpress.com/2016/02/tangedco-eia.pdf.