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The use of local water resources is a privilege that Edison International maintains by successfully meeting community water quality criteria and standards. Because these standards vary from region to region and site to site, and also depending on how the receiving body of water is used, each facility is given the responsibility to manage their water discharge permits, and to develop strategies to continuously improve their performance. In general, our facilities use water for equipment cooling and to handle various waste discharges.
At Edison Mission Energy, we address water quality in both the design and operation of our facilities. Edison Mission Energy operating facilities are required to develop spill prevention measures and emergency contingency plans to prevent the contamination of water resources.
At the Homer City, Pennsylvania plant, Edison Mission Energy's Midwest Generation team is working with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to protect water from the Two Lick Reservoir, a popular recreational spot, while also safeguarding the municipal drinking water treatment facility. The threat came from acid mine drainage which originated in two nearby mines that have since been shut down. In the spirit of civic and environmental responsibility, Midwest Generation voluntarily funded an interim solution and a longer-term response to the problem, using bio-cells of sulfate-reducing bacteria to neutralize the concentrations of metals in this acid mine drainage.
At Southern California Edison, we aggressively track and work to reduce the operational impact of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Stations (SONGS) on the local shoreline habitat. For example, specially engineered features at the facility include a series of diffusers along its cooling water discharge to prevent thermal pollution.
Finally, Edison International understands that water resources are often a precious resource in some areas, and that water ecosystems harbor a diverse and impressive array of species. For these reasons, we follow all applicable local, state, national and international requirements concerning water quality, to protect our health and the health of the local environment.
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