British energy giant reports violating toxic pollutant limits at Louisiana wood pellet facilities

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — British energy giant Drax Global, already under scrutiny for running afoul of environmental laws in multiple states, has disclosed to the state of Louisiana that its wood pellet production facilities emit hazardous air pollutants above their permitted limits.

Drax is a key provider for British utilities and one of the renewable energy industry’s largest players, earning $1.53 billion in profits last year. It operates seven wood pellet production facilities across four states and paid out $2.5 million in fines for violating air emissions limits in Mississippi in 2020 and $3.2 million pollution-related settlements in Louisiana in 2022.

Following pressure from lawsuits brought by environmental advocacy groups, the company agreed to install pollution controls in 2021 in its three production facilities across Mississippi and Louisiana.

But it appears that the new controls did not bring the company within its permitted limits for more dangerous chemicals known as hazardous air pollutants at its Louisiana plants. The company conducted testing in August 2023 and about six months later informed the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality that both facilities should be considered a “major source” of hazardous air pollutant emissions.

The tests revealed that Morehouse BioEnergy LLC and LaSalle BioEnergy LLC emitted high rates of probable carcinogens acetaldehyde and formaldehyde and a total of more than 38 tons per year of toxic or hazardous air pollutants emitted from each site, company documents said. The current permitted limit for each facility is 10 tons for a single pollutant or 25 tons for a combination of hazardous air pollutants.

Michelli Martin, a spokesperson for the company, said in an emailed statement that Drax chose to test the Louisiana facilities based on new industry data, and was intended to “ensure full transparency” with authorities and “make necessary updates in 2024.” Drax said it was applying to update its permit to allow for the higher amounts of emissions.

Drax had been able to avoid testing for these pollutants in Louisiana for years because the Clean Air Act contains a “loophole” for wood pellet production, allowing states to make these determinations on a case-by-case basis, said Patrick Anderson, an attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center.

By contrast, Drax subsidiary Amite BioEnergy LLC in Mississippi has been required to test for hazardous air pollutants since 2021. Last year, the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality notified Drax that its facility was in violation of permitted levels of hazardous air pollutants. The Drax facility in Mississippi is currently spending $200,000 on mitigation plans, which appears to be part of a penalty still under negotiation related to the site's hazardous air pollution violations, Anderson said.

Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality Spokesperson Jan Schaefer said the agency was unable to comment on issues that “remain a matter of open enforcement.”

The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality did not respond to requests for comment.

Spurred by the EU’s classification of biomass as renewable energy, the wood pellet industry has rapidly grown in southern states despite concerns over its impacts on neighboring communities and the environment.

The predominantly Black community living near the Drax plant in Gloster, Mississippi, has been outspoken about the facility’s pollution in their community, saying it has increased asthma and led to unwanted exposure to air particles. But the two northern Louisiana communities, which share nearly identical plants to the one in Gloster, have lacked vocal opposition.

That’s because Drax has been an economic boon, said Kay King, CEO of the nonprofit Morehouse Economic Development Corporation, which helped bring Drax to rural Morehouse Parish.

King said the company was a lifeline for the region’s pine plantations and that it had “diligently” responded to pollution issues in the past.

Martin, the Drax spokesperson, stated that “in the event there is a need to engage with the community on mitigation actions, Drax will take aggressive action as determined and in cooperation with" the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality.”

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Brook is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Brook on the social platform X: @jack_brook96.