Yesterday the Metro Air Pollution Control District sent a notice of violation letter to LG&E for seven air quality violations dating back to February, assessing the company with $24,000 in penalties. All but two of the violations involve coal ash leaving LG&E’s property at the Cane Run plant.

In April, LG&E reached a settlement with APCD over penalties handed down last year for repeated emissions of coal ash from their Cane Run landfill onto the neighborhood across the street, paying $19,500 to APCD, $3,000 to the Air Quality Trust Fund, and promising to come up with a plan to prevent fly ash from leaving their property.

Two of the new fly ash violations occurred after this settlement, including one after LG&E built a giant screen in front of the landfill.

The non-coal ash violations where for noxious sulfur odors coming from their coal sludge pond in March and April, and failure to report excess emissions from a smoke stack in June. LG&E was assessed $10,000 and $4,000 for these violations, respectively.

LG&E has until July 27 to come into compliance with these violations, according to the APCD.

And about that $24,000 fine… it should be noted that LG&E’s parent company PPL made $1.5 billion in profits last year. They might have to break open a piggy bank for this one. Meanwhile, the EPA remains completely powerless to regulate coal ash, and Kentucky’s state government is… well, come on, it’s Kentucky.