Environment Protection Agency’s updated Mercury and Air Toxic Standards (MATS) further limited the emission of toxic air pollutants including mercury, arsenic, and metals from coal and oil-fired power plants. This required DTE Energy to address necessary plant upgrades to meet the new standards by April 2015. If significant progress was shown on the upgrades, the State would grant a one-year extension to be fully compliant.
Barton Malow partnered with DTE Energy to provide Engineer-Procure-Construct (EPC) services on 11 coal-fired units in four power plants in metro Detroit – St. Clair, Belle River, River Rouge, and Trenton Channel. DSI (Dry Sorbent Injection) and ACI (Activated Carbon Injection) are cost-effective technologies that were applied to the plants to improve outgoing air quality. DSI controls hydrochloric acid emissions using Trona (sodium bicarbonate) and ACI controls mercury emissions using powdered activated carbon. Barton Malow self-performed civil and concrete to safely drive forward the schedule and earn DTE Energy the one-year extension from the state.
Community Impact
Implementing the environmental upgrades, rather than shutting down the facilities, kept over 700 DTE employees working across the four power plants. Additionally, throughout the duration of the design and construction of the project, over 300 local construction jobs were created and numerous pieces of equipment were rented from local vendors. Approximately 81% of the major consultants, subcontractors, and material suppliers were Michigan-based. The team exceeded the minority participation goal with a total of 9% minority participation.
