G. G. Allen Steam Station is a 1.155-GW coal

Coal

Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...

-fired electricity

Electricity

Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...

 generating facility, located in South Point Township

South Point Township, Gaston County, North Carolina

South Point Township is a township in southeastern Gaston County, North Carolina, United States. It is represented on the Gaston County Board of Commissioners by Mickey Price of Belmont, who serves as Board Chairman....

, Gaston County

Gaston County, North Carolina

Gaston County is a county located just west of Charlotte in the southern Piedmont in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the third largest county, by population, in the Charlotte Metropolitan Area, officially designated the Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord Metropolitan Statistical Area . As of...

, North Carolina

North Carolina

North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

, on man-made Lake Wylie

Lake Wylie

Lake Wylie is a reservoir, or man-made lake in the U.S. states of both South Carolina and North Carolina. The lake has a surface area of and features of shore line.-History:...

 (part of the Catawba River

Catawba River

The Catawba River is a tributary of the Wateree River in the U.S. states of North Carolina and South Carolina. The river is approximately 220 miles long...

). Units 1 and 2 (165 MW each) began operating in 1957; units 3, 4, and 5 (275 MW each) in 1959, 1960, and 1961 respectively. Named for George Garland Allen, a former president and first chairman of the board for Duke Power, the Allen facility is the only Duke Energy

Duke Energy

Duke Energy , headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, is an energy company with assets in the United States, Canada and Latin America.-Overview:...

 station with five units under one roof. The plant is equipped with an FGD

Flue gas desulfurization

Sulfur dioxide is one of the elements forming acid rain. Tall flue-gas stacks disperse emissions by diluting the pollutants in ambient air and transporting them to other regions....

 (Scrubber) system, completed in 2009, that decreases the air emissions coming from the plant.

Environmental impact

G. G. Allen Steam Station is still a major air and water polluter in the region.

1995–2001 data

Nitrous Oxide

Nitrous oxide

Nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas or sweet air, is a chemical compound with the formula . It is an oxide of nitrogen. At room temperature, it is a colorless non-flammable gas, with a slightly sweet odor and taste. It is used in surgery and dentistry for its anesthetic and analgesic...

, Sulfur Dioxide

Sulfur dioxide

Sulfur dioxide is the chemical compound with the formula . It is released by volcanoes and in various industrial processes. Since coal and petroleum often contain sulfur compounds, their combustion generates sulfur dioxide unless the sulfur compounds are removed before burning the fuel...

, and Carbon Dioxide

Carbon dioxide

Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...

 emissions, in ton

Ton

The ton is a unit of measure. It has a long history and has acquired a number of meanings and uses over the years. It is used principally as a unit of weight, and as a unit of volume. It can also be used as a measure of energy, for truck classification, or as a colloquial term.It is derived from...

s per year.

Year	NOx	SO2	CO2
2001	10,673	37,027	5,487,331
2000	13,054	34,058	5,914,264
1999	12,087	32,169	5,619,742
1998	9,655	25,224	4,508,312
1997	14,090	40,083	6,627,324
1996	15,184	35,291	5,545,956
1995	10,976	21,274	3,661,778

Toxic release inventory from G. G. Allen Steam Station for 2000.
All quantities are in pounds.

Pollutant	Air	Land	Water	Total on-site releases
Ammonia Ammonia Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . It is a colourless gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food and fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or...	1,605		1,500	3,105
Arsenic Arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As, atomic number 33 and relative atomic mass 74.92. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in conjunction with sulfur and metals, and also as a pure elemental crystal. It was first documented by Albertus Magnus in 1250.Arsenic is a metalloid...  compounds	1,105	49,005	3,200	53,310
Barium Barium Barium is a chemical element with the symbol Ba and atomic number 56. It is the fifth element in Group 2, a soft silvery metallic alkaline earth metal. Barium is never found in nature in its pure form due to its reactivity with air. Its oxide is historically known as baryta but it reacts with...  compounds	4,305	480,005	8,400	492,710
Chromium Chromium Chromium is a chemical element which has the symbol Cr and atomic number 24. It is the first element in Group 6. It is a steely-gray, lustrous, hard metal that takes a high polish and has a high melting point. It is also odorless, tasteless, and malleable...  compounds	995	84,005	600	85,600
Cobalt Cobalt Cobalt is a chemical element with symbol Co and atomic number 27. It is found naturally only in chemically combined form. The free element, produced by reductive smelting, is a hard, lustrous, silver-gray metal....  compounds	205	32,005	1,500	33,710
Copper Copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...  compounds	605	87,005	2,200	89,810
Hydrochloric acid Hydrochloric acid Hydrochloric acid is a solution of hydrogen chloride in water, that is a highly corrosive, strong mineral acid with many industrial uses. It is found naturally in gastric acid....	5,300,005			5,300,005
Hydrogen fluoride Hydrogen fluoride Hydrogen fluoride is a chemical compound with the formula HF. This colorless gas is the principal industrial source of fluorine, often in the aqueous form as hydrofluoric acid, and thus is the precursor to many important compounds including pharmaceuticals and polymers . HF is widely used in the...	340,005			340,005
Lead compounds	795	34,005	120	34,920
Manganese Manganese Manganese is a chemical element, designated by the symbol Mn. It has the atomic number 25. It is found as a free element in nature , and in many minerals...  compounds	1,205	100,005	4,200	105,410
Mercury Mercury (element) Mercury is a chemical element with the symbol Hg and atomic number 80. It is also known as quicksilver or hydrargyrum...  compounds	200	110	3	313
Nickel Nickel Nickel is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge. Nickel belongs to the transition metals and is hard and ductile...  compounds	735	55,005	300	56,040
Sulfuric acid Sulfuric acid Sulfuric acid is a strong mineral acid with the molecular formula . Its historical name is oil of vitriol. Pure sulfuric acid is a highly corrosive, colorless, viscous liquid. The salts of sulfuric acid are called sulfates...	340,005			340,005
Vanadium Vanadium Vanadium is a chemical element with the symbol V and atomic number 23. It is a hard, silvery gray, ductile and malleable transition metal. The formation of an oxide layer stabilizes the metal against oxidation. The element is found only in chemically combined form in nature...  compounds	1,005	99,005	750	100,760
Zinc Zinc Zinc , or spelter , is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2... compounds	1,005	60,005	750	61,760
TOTAL	5,993,780	1,080,160	23,523	7,097,463

External links

• Allen Steam Station, Duke Energy website.