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Site Visit Report

Lake Road Plant

1413 Lower Lake Road

St. Joseph, MO 64502

March 3, 2009

1.0 Background and Objectives

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is in the process of developing 

316(b) cooling water intake structure requirements that reflect the best technology

available (BTA) for minimizing adverse environmental impact for all existing 

power plants and manufacturing facilities. As part of this process, EPA staff is 

visiting electric generators and manufacturers to better understand the cooling 

water intake structure (CWIS) technologies in use at facilities, including the sitespecific characteristics of each facility and how these affect the selection and 

performance of CWIS technologies. EPA is also visiting facilities to better 

understand cooling water use and specific issues or technologies that can affect 

316(b) compliance. Lake Road was selected for a site visit due to its location on a 

large freshwater river.

2.0 Facility Description

Lake Road is owned and operated by the KCP&L Greater Missouri Operations 

Company (KCP&L GMO). It is located in an industrial section of St. Joseph, 

Missouri along the Missouri River1on a compact site of approximately 40 acres. 

Lake Road employs approximately 85 people and began operation in 1934.

Cooling and process water withdrawals from and wastewater discharges to the 

Missouri River are regulated under NPDES permit number MO0004898 which 

expired on June 12, 2008. Lake Road submitted its NPDES permit application in 

a timely manner and is awaiting renewal of its permit by the state.

3.0 Electricity Generation and Transmission

Lake Road has one coal-fired, steam-electric generating unit with a generating 

capacity of 99 MW. It is a baseload unit with an overall capacity utilization rate 

(CUR) of 85%. The fuel source is a combination (80%/20%) of low/high BTU,

low sulfur coal from the Powder River Basin in Wyoming and Colorado.2 

The facility typically has one routine maintenance outage during the spring and 

one in the fall that typically lasts 1-2 weeks. 

 

1 River velocity is 6-7 ft/s.

2

Facility representatives noted that the mixture helps to develop optimal bottom ash for resale, as well as 

meet a consent order for using low sulfur coal.
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Lake Road also produces, for sale, steam in one coal/gas, one gas and four oil/gas 

fed industrial boilers that have a total generating capacity of 60.2 MW. 

4.0 Cooling Water System and Intake Structure

Lake Road has one CWIS that provides once-through cooling water for the 

baseload generating unit. The CWIS is fitted with a trash rack and two standard 

(i.e., coarse mesh 3/8”) traveling screens. In addition, 2 circulating water pumps, 

each rated at 28,000 gpm (total 80.6 mgd), provide cooling water to the 

generating unit. The through-screen velocity is 2.8 feet per second (fps). In 1989, 

Lake Road added an anti-vortex device allowing it to lower the intake. 

The CWIS has an adjustable bulkhead that can be raised or lowered to prevent 

debris from going over top of the screens and into the condenser. The screens 

rotate when the pressure differential across the screen reaches 3 to 4 inches

allowing for cleaning with a high pressure spray that flows into a debris trough 

and discharges to the Missouri River. If this differential is not reached within a 

specified time limit, the screens automatically rotate for cleaning.

In addition, as necessary, Lake Road introduces warm water prior to the CWIS 

which effectively prevents icing. Facility representatives explained that they do 

not add biocides to prevent biofouling and that heavy scouring from debris helps 

keep the system clean. 

Lake Road inspects its traveling screens annually. It also cleans and rebuilds each 

screen every two years (one each year) during its routine maintenance outage 

period. Divers inspect the screens annually. Approximately every 2 years (during 

a regularly scheduled outage), Lake Road will clean the silt out of the CWIS. 

5.0 Impingement and Entrainment Information

Lake Road has not completed any impingement, entrainment, or source water 

body characterization studies. Following promulgation of the 2004 316(b) Phase 

II rule, Lake Road began an impingement study. When EPA suspended that rule, 

Lake Road similarly suspended its impingement study. Lake Road provided the 

results of its incomplete study as part of its response to EPRI’s recent survey. 

While Lake Road did not provide the results of its incomplete impingement study

during this site visit, facility representatives commented that the number of fish 

impinged during the study was low (3-4 fish collected in a 24 hour period). 

6.0 Cooling Tower Feasibility

Lake Road has three closed-cycle cooling towers: one for each of the three 

turbines that receive steam from the six industrial boilers. These mechanical draft 

towers are small3and have been in operation for a considerable time period, the 

 

3 The towers are two, three, and four cells.
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oldest since 1957. The towers are wooden with wide-spaced metal frame fill. 

Water for the steam generating boilers is withdrawn from groundwater wells.

Facility representatives noted that closed-cycle cooling for the generating units 

would be possible, but highly costly and problematic; across the KCP&L GMO

portfolio, it is likely some generating units would be forced to close.

7.0 Debris Handling

Debris at Lake Road typically consists of tree limbs and stumps. While the 

incoming water does not contain a lot of rocks, it does contain sand/mud and 

grasses. During high debris conditions, operators rotate the screens continuously

so that debris does not negatively impact operations.4 However, because of debris 

build-up in the condenser, Lake Road typically cleans some portion of the

condenser each weekend. 

8.0 Repowering/Future Uses

Lake Road has no short term plans for re-powering or upgrading. 

9.0 Cooling Ponds

Lake Road does not have any cooling ponds.

10.0 Ownership

Lake Road is owned by KCP&L GMO, a subsidiary of Great Plains Energy. 

Kansas City Power and Light Company is also a subsidiary of Great Plains 

Energy. Both subsidiaries operate under the KCP&L brand name. 

11.0 316(a)

EPA did not collect any information on 316(a).

12.0 Ash Handling

Lake Road beneficially uses all of its fly ash for fill and all of its slag for use in 

asphalt highways. 

13.0 Air Emissions Controls

EPA did not collect information on air controls at Lake Road during its visit.

 

4 Lake Road has not experienced any shut downs due to debris.
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14.0 Additional Information

Lake Road explained that the river bed in the Kansas City metro area is dropping. 

They referred to it as the “sinking river.”5In addition, Lake Road is limited by the 

Army Corps of Engineers in its ability to place structures that protrude into the 

river due to navigational requirements. 

Lake Road planned to rely on restoration for complying with the proposed 2004 

Phase II rule. Facility representatives commented that the State was also pushing 

them towards restoration.

Facility representatives noted that KCPL GMO is a small company in the 

electricity producing arena that depends heavily on EPRI and UWAG for research 

and 316(b) representation.

Attachments

Attachment A List of Attendees

Attachment B Aerial Photo

Attachment C Site Visit Photos

 

5 Lake Road does not know why the river is “sinking.”
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Attachment A--List of Attendees

Paul Shriner, EPA Headquarters

Jan Matuszko, EPA Headquarters

Jamie Hurley, EPA Headquarters

John Dunn, EPA Region VII

Mark Matthews, EPA Region VII

Kelly Meadows, Tetra Tech

Mark Howell, KCP&L

Steven Brooks, KCP&L

Paul Ling, KCP&L

Bob Beck, KCP&L
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Attachment B--Aerial Photo

Please see DCN 10-6525A accompanying this document.

Attachment C—Site Visit Photos

Please see DCN 10-6525B through G accompanying this document.