Violations and Penalties

Violations
PPL received seven notices of environmental violations in 2006, compared with an average of seven per year in the 2001-2005 period.

Penalties
PPL paid $282,100 in environmental penalties in 2006, compared with an average of $33,719 per year in the 2001-2005 period.

The 2006 penalties include a $183,000 settlement agreement for thermal discharges at the Brunner Island power plant in Pennsylvania. That money is being used to fund community environmental projects, and was part of a consent agreement under which PPL will install mechanical draft cooling towers at the Brunner Island plant.

The 2006 penalties also include an $85,000 fine for issues related to the use of cinders as a sealant for bulkheads at the Holtwood hydroelectric plant in Pennsylvania. This long-standing maintenance practice was ruled inappropriate by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection because PPL did not have a permit to discharge cinders, which are washed downriver when the bulkheads are removed. PPL is testing other sealant materials and applying for a permit to release cinders.

Penalties in 2001 reflect a consent agreement with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection for exceeding air opacity limits in the permit for Units 3 and 4 of the Martins Creek power plant.

Penalties have not yet been assessed in connection with the August 2005 release of fly ash and water from a basin at the Martins Creek power plant in Pennsylvania.

 This page addresses the following GRI indicators: 2.18, 2.19 and EN16