Element Flow in Aquatic Systems Surrounding Coal-Fired Power Plants. Wisconsin Power Plant Impact Study

摘要

Water quality parameters of a 192-ha (480-acre) cooling pond adjacent to the Columbia Generating Station, Portage, Wisconsin, have been investigated. Analyses were made for major and minor elements, nutrients, pH, alkalinity, O2, chlorogranics, phenols, and polyaromatic hydrocarbons. Similar parameters were also measured in the nearby fly ash discharge basin and its associated drainage stream. Laboratory dissolution and precipitation studies of fly ash were performed in an effort to understand the chemistry of the discharged ash water and its potential effects on receiving waters. Mass balance calculations were made and are presented to ascertain whether the cooling pond acts as an efficient sink for inorganic and organic compounds, and if so, what the fate of these compounds is.