LABADIE (AP) - Two additional air monitors will help to determine if Missouri's large coal-fired power plant complies with federal safety thresholds for an airborne pollutant.
The Environmental Protection Agency announced new safety standards for sulfur dioxide emissions more than six years ago. Ameren Missouri said its preliminary tests show the air near its coal-fired Labadie Energy Center meets the standard, but questions have been raised about the placement of existing sulfur dioxide monitors.
After the EPA said more information was needed, the utility agreed to install two additional monitors near the Labadie site in January and will use them, along with two already in operation, to gather three years of data to determine if Franklin and St. Charles counties exceed limits for sulfur dioxide. The pollutant is linked to respiratory ailments and other health problems.