Five of the 10 power plants with the highest sulfur dioxide emission rates in the nation are in Pennsylvania, according to a new report by the Environmental Integrity Project.

		Related coverage See a graphic that shows the nation's 10 dirtiest power plants. On the Internet Get a copy of the report and listen to audio clips from the "Dirty Kilowatts" news event.

The state's biggest sulfur dioxide emitters are Allegheny Energy's Hatfield's Ferry plant in Greene County and Armstrong plant in Kittanning; and Reliant Energy's power plants at Shawville, Clearfield County; Portland, Northampton County; and Keystone, Armstrong County. Four of the five are in the western half of the state.

According to the report, which uses data that the utilities provide to the federal government, the 50 dirtiest power plants spew half of the total sulfur dioxide emissions but produce just 14 percent of the nation's electricity.

Titled "Dirty Kilowatts," the report released yesterday in Washington, D.C., also measures emissions of mercury, nitrogen oxides and carbon dioxide by the nation's 359 largest power plants.

The Shawville, Armstrong and Keystone plants also rated among the top 13 in the nation for mercury emissions. Pennsylvania Power's Bruce Mansfield plant in Beaver County ranked 11th for carbon dioxide, emitting 17.65 million tons in 2004.

Eric Schaeffer, former head of civil enforcement for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and director and founder of the group that issued yesterday's report, said most of the unhealthy emissions were preventable.

"A huge share of these emissions comes from a handful of unnecessarily dirty power plants that have not yet installed modern pollution controls or which operate inefficiently," he said.

Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides emissions contribute to formation of fine airborne particles and soot, which trigger asthma attacks and cause lung and heart disease linked to more than 20,000 premature deaths a year.

Carbon dioxide gases contribute to the gradual warming of the planet. Mercury is a deadly neurotoxin, especially dangerous to developing fetuses.

"What's most outrageous about these dirty power plants is that the costs to both human health and the environment are avoidable," said Ilan Levin, one of the authors of the report. "Modern pollution controls are available and affordable."

Fred Solomon, a spokesman for Allegheny Energy, said sulfur dioxide emissions from the Hatfield's Ferry and Armstrong plants are high because neither has installed stack scrubbers to control the pollutant. He said the company, which was almost in bankruptcy two years ago, can't afford to reduce its pollutant emissions.

Solomon said pollution controls for Hatfield's Ferry are a priority but would cost more than double the $400 million the company is spending to install stack emissions scrubbers at its Fort Martin power plant in West Virginia, because of increased borrowing costs.

Reliant Energy did not return phone calls requesting comment.

Scott Segal, director of the Electric Reliability Coordinating Council, a consortium of power generating companies, said yesterday's was the latest in a long line of reports designed to mislead the public on air quality, which he said has been improving for decades.

Charles McPhedran, an attorney for Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future, said federal laws have been ineffective in controlling sulfur dioxide and mercury emissions in Pennsylvania, and urged the state to establish tougher standards.

PennFuture is one of 10 environmental, sportsmen's and health groups that petitioned the state Department of Environmental Protection last August to impose stricter limits on toxic emissions from coal-burning power plants.

McPhedran said the federal Clean Air Interstate Rule, which the Bush administration is scheduled to announce tomorrow, might cause some power plants to limit sulfur dioxide emissions, but it still allows utilities to avoid controls on some plants by buying emissions reduction credits from other utilities.

Ana Gomez, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Environmental Protection, said the state should issue a response to the groups' petition this summer.

The state recognizes the continuing pollution problems caused by power plant emissions, she said, and is reviewing the effectiveness of existing and new federal regulations.

Gov. Ed Rendell and administration officials have been critical of new federal mercury emissions regulations, Gomez said, and the state is reviewing whether to impose tighter emissions limits on the neurotoxin.

The Environmental Integrity Project report used 2004 emissions data, the latest available from the federal government for toxic releases from major pollution sources for sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and carbon dioxide. Its mercury calculations were based on 2002 reports by the utilities to the federal government, again the most current available.

Coincidentally, the EPA yesterday released its toxic release inventory for 2003, which shows 402.4 million pounds of 650 toxic chemicals were released into the nation's air, land and waterways.

That total is an increase from the 401.3 million pounds released in 2002, but a decrease of 13.4 percent from the 464.7 million pounds released in 2000.

In Pennsylvania, the three companies reporting the biggest on-site releases of pollutants were utilities.

Reliant's Keystone plant released 17 million pounds, primarily acid aerosols from coal combustion and land disposal of coal ash containing metals. The EME Homer City power plant in Indiana County was second with releases totaling 8.5 million pounds. Allegheny Energy's Hatfield's Ferry plant was third with releases of 7.9 million pounds.