Protect Jacksonville's River and Beaches from Coal Ash Pollution

Following a horrific coal ash spill in Jacksonville's port in March of 2021, Sufrider's First Coast Chapter partnered with St. John's Riverkeeper and Sierra Club of Northeast Chapter on a petition to end coal ash transport through Jacksonville. 

Coal ash is a waste product from the burning of coal in coal-fired power plants that contains toxic contaminants like mercury, cadmium, lead, selenium and arsenic. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “these contaminants can pollute waterways, groundwater, drinking water, and the air,” endangering wildlife and human health.

Due to serious health concerns, the Puerto Rico legislature passed laws in 2017 banning the disposal of coal ash in its landfills. As a result, the power company AES began shipping its coal ash on barges to a landfill in Osceola County, Florida. Residents in Osceola successfully stopped coal ash from being disposed in their community in 2019, so now the waste from AES is coming into the St. Johns River and Jacksonville before being transported to a landfill in Folkston, Georgia.

On Wednesday, December 15th, 2021 for the Jacksonville Waterways Commission met and after a very active exchange, decided to build a special subcomittee to hear more on ways to safely manage materials including coal ash on the St.John's River and through the mouth of the Atlantic Ocean.  Here's a news feed on the meeting. 

No resolution was voted upon. Surfrider continues to call for increased water quality testing and full funding for the Florida Healthy Beaches program to ensure proper public notification during spill events, and will coordinate with local community partners for future advocacy.