TVA had reportedly known about the dangers of using wet storage ponds for coal ash since a 1969 spill in Virginia in which coal ash seeped into the Clinch River and killed countless fish.
据报道，自从 1969 年弗吉尼亚州发生煤灰泄露事件，煤灰渗入克林奇河并导致无数鱼类死亡后，TVA 就知道了使用湿式储存池处理煤灰的危险性。