Georgia Power starting to drain their ash pond at Plant Scherer [Video]

MONROE COUNTY, Ga. — People in Juliette have voiced their concerns about the ash pond at Georgia Power’s coal plant in Monroe County. Ash is sitting at the bottom of a pond seeping into the groundwater at Plant Scherer.

John Kraft with Georgia Power said they plan to close their ash pond at Plant Scherer. The first step is to take out all the water sitting on top of the ash and put into the Ocmulgee River.

“And that’s a, of course, a necessary step towards closing the ash pond eventually,” Kraft said.

Georgia Power is spending more than $7 billion to close all of their ash ponds at their two remaining coal plants, Scherer and Bowen in Bartow County.

Monroe County Commissioner, Eddie Rowland, said these ponds collect the remains from the plant.

“The ash pond was a settling place …