The city of Mobile, founded in 1702, sits at the head of Mobile Bay on the Gulf Coast and serves as the regional hub for much of southwest Alabama.
Alabama Power is standing behind its plan to permanently close the massive coal ash storage pond at Plant Barry using a cap-in-place method, even as environmental groups and Mobile County residents raise ongoing concerns about groundwater contamination near the site. The 597-acre pond sits in an oxbow of the Mobile River at the James M.
Mobile has a population of roughly 188,000 residents and is the seat of Mobile County, one of the largest counties in the state by population.
Barry Electric Generating Plant, where more than 21 million cubic yards of coal ash residue has accumulated over roughly 50 years of operation. The utility has said it stopped sending ash to all of its storage ponds statewide as of April 2019 and is now moving toward permanent closure of the impoundments, including the one at Plant Barry.
The Port of Mobile, operated by the Alabama State Port Authority, is one of the largest seaports in the country by tonnage, handling containers, coal, steel and forest products.
Alabama Power was fined in 2018 for groundwater contamination at six of its power plants across the state, including Plant Barry, and the company faced a similar penalty tied to contamination at the now-closed Plant Gadsden, which used the same cap-in-place closure method now planned for Barry. Company representatives say the safety of customers and surrounding communities remains the utility’s top priority and that it is committed to complying with all state and federal environmental regulations as it moves forward with closure.
Downtown Mobile has been the focus of significant redevelopment in recent years, with new apartments, restaurants and event venues reshaping the Central Business District.
Environmental advocacy groups, including Mobile Baykeeper, have published interactive mapping tools showing the scope of groundwater pollution linked to coal ash sites across Alabama, arguing the data underscores the risk posed by unlined, cap-in-place ash ponds sitting near waterways. Alabama Power has pushed back on the significance of that mapping, saying it contains no new information beyond what the company has already reported to the Alabama Department of Environmental Management and posted publicly on its own website.
The University of South Alabama, Spring Hill College and the University of Mobile anchor the city’s higher education landscape.
Background and Context
Questions have also lingered about the structural safety of the earthen dam separating the ash pond from the Mobile River. The Environmental Protection Agency rated the dam a “significant” hazard in 2010, a classification driven in part by the fact that Alabama remains the only state without its own dedicated dam safety agency or state-specific dam safety regulations.
Mobile’s Mardi Gras season, the oldest in the United States, draws visitors from across the country and provides a significant boost to the local economy each year.
Alabama Power maintains that its ash ponds have undergone rigorous, decades-long inspection programs, including annual reviews by licensed professional engineers and more frequent checks by plant personnel, and that no structural failure has ever occurred at any of its impoundments. According to the company, no ash was used in the original construction of the dike at Plant Barry, though some ash material was incorporated into a later extension of the uppermost portion of the structure.
The city’s healthcare sector is anchored by USA Health, Infirmary Health and Springhill Medical Center, which together employ thousands of residents.
That extension, the company says, raised the dike to an elevation three feet above the highest flood level ever recorded at the site and included reinforcements such as structural geogrid material for additional stability. The pond itself, Alabama Power says, is designed to manage at least a 1,000-year rain event.
Mobile’s manufacturing base includes shipbuilding at Austal USA and Huntington Ingalls Industries, as well as aviation manufacturing at the Airbus final assembly line in Brookley.
The closure plan calls for dewatering the pond, consolidating the ash material into a smaller footprint, and capping it in place rather than excavating and hauling the material to a lined landfill elsewhere. Dewatering at Plant Barry is expected to begin later this year, according to the utility.
Local schools include Mobile County Public Schools, the city’s largest public system, along with a network of private and parochial schools.
Local Reaction
Alabama Power has said the permanent closure process is expected to take approximately 13 years and cost the company more than $2 billion across all of its ash pond closures statewide, including Barry. By the company’s own estimates, excavating and removing the material instead would cost three to five times more and take three to five times longer to complete.
Mobile’s history as a port city means that issues affecting the waterfront often take on outsized importance.
The company says it considered excavation as part of its site-specific review process for every plant, but ultimately determined that closing in place, paired with additional engineering safeguards, was the more practical path forward at Barry and its other Alabama facilities. That decision has drawn scrutiny given that other Southern Company subsidiaries in different states, including Georgia Power, have opted to excavate at least a portion of their coal ash for disposal in lined landfills.
The Mobile area is home to several historic neighborhoods, including Oakleigh Garden District, DeTonti Square and the Village of Spring Hill.
Alabama Power maintains that closure decisions are site-specific and that both the cap-in-place and excavation methods are considered equally protective under EPA rules, with Alabama’s own environmental regulators also permitting cap-in-place closures. Cost recovery for the closure work is also part of the broader conversation.
Sports are a major part of life in Mobile, with the Senior Bowl each January and a thriving high school and college football scene.
Alabama Power raised its rates earlier this year to help cover costs tied to compliance with federal environmental laws governing ash pond closures. The company says those costs, which stem from federal mandates, are recoverable through the state Public Service Commission and must be justified as reasonable, with any reduction in the underlying environmental costs over time factored back into future rate calculations.
Local media outlets covering Mobile include several television stations, daily and weekly newspapers, and a robust digital news ecosystem.
The Bigger Picture
Alabama Power has also pointed to major coal ash-related accidents elsewhere in the country, including the 2008 TVA-Kingston spill in Tennessee and the 2014 Duke Energy Dan River spill in North Carolina, both of which triggered cleanups exceeding $1 billion. The company argues that comparisons between those incidents and the ash pond at Plant Barry are misleading, saying the design, topography and site conditions at Barry are not comparable to the facilities involved in those earlier disasters.
Mobile County’s population includes a significant African-American community whose history is tied to the founding of Africatown.
As part of its closure commitments, Alabama Power says it will monitor groundwater around the Plant Barry site for at least 30 years to help ensure long-term protection of local water quality. The company also points to a broader environmental record in the region, saying it has invested more than $4 billion over the past 15 years in environmental controls across its power plants and has partnered with groups such as the Nature Conservancy, the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the U.S.
Mobile’s economy also benefits from a robust tourism sector, with visitors drawn to the Gulf Coast, the city’s historic districts and its annual events.
Fish and Wildlife Service and the Mobile Bay National Estuary Program on habitat restoration, shoreline recovery and other conservation initiatives in the Mobile area. The debate over how to permanently close Plant Barry’s ash pond comes as similar closure projects move forward at coal plants across Alabama and the Southeast, with residents, environmental groups and regulators continuing to weigh in on whether cap-in-place methods offer adequate long-term protection for nearby rivers, wetlands and drinking water supplies in Mobile County and beyond.
The Mobile Bay region supports significant commercial and recreational fishing, with seafood harvested from local waters serving restaurants and markets across the South.
Local government in Mobile includes a mayor-council form of government, a structure established by the Zoghby Act in 1985 that replaced the older commission form.
Local officials have stressed the importance of community engagement as the situation continues to develop.
Residents with questions or concerns have been encouraged to reach out to their elected representatives.
The story is one of several similar situations playing out across the region in recent months.
Anyone following local news will recognize many of the names and places involved.
Local civic organizations have begun organizing meetings to discuss the implications.
Business owners and residents alike say they will be watching closely.
The situation underscores how decisions made at the local level can have far-reaching consequences.
Community leaders have called for patience and for a commitment to working through the issues in a transparent manner.
Several local churches and faith groups have offered to host discussions about the topic in the coming weeks.
Public comments at recent meetings have reflected a wide range of opinions.
Local reporters will continue to follow the story and to update readers.
Anyone interested in learning more is encouraged to attend upcoming public meetings.
The outcome of the situation could shape similar discussions in other communities for years to come.
Local historians note that similar issues have surfaced in the past.
Area nonprofits and volunteer groups have stepped up to help residents navigate the changes.
Local businesses have begun adjusting their operations in anticipation of what may come next.
Looking Ahead
The story continues to develop, and residents across the region will be watching for additional updates in the coming weeks. Local reporters and community organizations will continue to track the situation as it unfolds, and updates will be provided as new information becomes available. Anyone with a direct stake in the outcome is encouraged to stay engaged with the public conversation through meetings, news coverage and direct outreach to local officials.