St. Clair Power Plant

About St. Clair Power Plant

Facility Location and Operations

St. Clair Power Plant sits in East China Township, St. Clair County, Michigan, along the St. Clair River near Belle River. It has operated as one of the largest coal-fired electricity generating facilities in Michigan.

Key facility facts:

• Operator: DTE Electric Co. (formerly The Detroit Edison Company)
• Construction began: 1950s
• Peak capacity: Seven generating units
• Primary function: Coal-fired steam generation for regional power distribution
• Cooling system: Circulating water from the St. Clair River
• Current status: Undergoing unit retirements and decommissioning as part of a carbon reduction strategy

Why Asbestos-Containing Materials Were Used at This Facility

The St. Clair Power Plant, like virtually every large coal-fired power facility built in the United States during the 1940s–1980s — including Missouri River corridor facilities such as Labadie Energy Center, Portage des Sioux Power Plant, and Rush Island Energy Center, as well as Mississippi River corridor industrial facilities such as Granite City Steel — allegedly relied heavily on asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) throughout its construction, maintenance, and operation. The same product lines, the same manufacturers, and the same occupational trades were present across all of these facilities, making cross-facility asbestos exposure evidence directly relevant to litigation involving St. Clair workers.

1950s–1960s: Original Construction and Early Expansion

During initial construction and the addition of early generating units, asbestos-containing materials were reportedly used throughout the facility — standard industry practice for comparable DTE Electric Co. facilities built during the same period, and mirroring documented construction-era ACM use at Missouri facilities including Labadie Energy Center and Portage des Sioux Power Plant.

ACMs allegedly present in original construction:

• Asbestos-containing pipe insulation on steam and water lines, reportedly including products from, and Thermal Insulation Manufacturers
• calcium silicate pipe insulation rigid block insulation on boilers and high-temperature lines
• Thermobestos insulation products on critical thermal systems
• Gaskets, valve packing, and sealing compounds from gaskets and packing, Flexitallic, and John Crane
• Floor tiles and thermal insulation blocks containing asbestos binders
• Electrical insulation in panels and switchgear from General Electric, Westinghouse Electric, and Square D Company

1960s–1970s: Operational Maintenance and Ongoing Expansion

As additional generating units came online and routine maintenance continued, workers at St. Clair may have been exposed to ACMs through ongoing installation, maintenance, and repair activities. Missouri union members — including members of Heat and Frost Insulators Local 1 (St. Louis), UA Local 562 (pipefitters and steamfitters, St. Louis), and Boilermakers Local 27 (St. Louis) — who performed contract work at comparable Midwestern coal-fired utility facilities during this era may have accumulated equivalent exposures across multiple job sites throughout the Mississippi River industrial corridor.

• Insulators may have replaced calcium silicate pipe insulation, Thermobestos, high-temperature pipe insulation, and Pabco pipe insulation and gaskets
• Boilermakers may have worked on boiler fireboxes lined with refractory materials and asbestos-containing fireproofing
• Insulators may have applied and removed thermal insulation during scheduled outages using products from, and
• Electricians may have handled asbestos-containing electrical equipment from General Electric, Westinghouse Electric, and Square D, including arc chutes and insulating panels
• Maintenance workers and pipefitters may have disturbed in-place ACMs during routine repairs and replacements

1970s–1980s: Continued Use Despite Emerging Regulations

Many ACMs allegedly remained in place throughout the St. Clair facility even as OSHA regulations began imposing exposure limits — the same pattern documented at comparable Missouri and Illinois River corridor facilities.

• Maintenance and repair activities allegedly continued to disturb in-place asbestos-containing materials from, gaskets and packing, and other manufacturers
• Personal protective equipment was reportedly inconsistently provided and used
• Engineering controls to contain asbestos dust were often inadequate
• Industry records from comparable DTE Electric Co. facilities and from Missouri facilities including Labadie Energy Center reflect widespread reliance on aging asbestos-containing products despite known safety standards

1980s–Present: Abatement and Decommissioning

Federal and state regulations required abatement before renovation and demolition — and decommissioning created new exposure risks of its own.

• Abatement workers may have been exposed if proper removal procedures for asbestos-containing insulation products — including calcium silicate pipe insulation, Thermobestos, and high-temperature pipe insulation — were not followed (per Michigan environmental agency NESHAP asbestos notification records)
• Demolition workers may have encountered undisclosed or improperly abated ACMs from, and other manufacturers
• Environmental remediation triggered NESHAP notification requirements for removal of insulation, gaskets, and refractory materials
• Missouri and Illinois residents who performed abatement or decommissioning contract work at multiple facilities — including St. Clair, Labadie, and Portage des Sioux — may have accumulated compound exposures across job sites throughout the region