SAN ANTONIO AREA COAL POWER PLANT NAMED TOP ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTER

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SAN ANTONIO AREA COAL POWER PLANT NAMED TOP ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTER Stay tuned to KSAT for more related coverage on this pressing issue.

Welcome to San Antonio, where a local coal power plant has earned a dubious honor as one of the top 50 environmental polluters in the United States for 2022. The facility in question is CPS Energy’s J.K. Spruce coal power plant, located near Calaveras Lake in far southeast Bexar County.

A recent study by the Frontier Group identified Texas as home to eight of the top 50 facilities emitting the most greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the country. Most of these emissions come from the electric, industrial, and transportation sectors. Specifically, a third of all emissions in San Antonio in 2021 were attributed to the transportation sector.

CPS Energy’s J.K. Spruce coal power plant seen in 2011. (Google Maps)

The Frontier Group’s data revealed that the Spruce plant released seven million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions in 2022, earning it the unenviable title of the 42nd worst climate polluter in the country.

Despite coming online in 1992, the Spruce plant is no stranger to high emissions. In 2020, it emitted over 5.7 million tons of GHGs, with a peak of 15 million metric tons in 2014, according to EPA data.

In addition to its environmental impact, the Spruce plant has been linked to 170 excess deaths due to coal-powered plant pollution from 1999 to 2020, as disclosed by a 2023 study published in the journal “Science.”

Fortunately, measures are being taken to address the issue. CPS Energy’s board of directors voted to cease coal operations at the Spruce plant by 2028. One unit will be retired completely, while the other will be converted to run on methane gas.

Curiously, this is not an isolated case. Similar environmental challenges are faced by other sites like Port Arthur’s Motiva Refinery and the Martin Lake Power Plant in East Texas, as highlighted in the Frontier Group study.