Oklahoma Gas & Electric officials are seeking approval to modify its permit that regulates coal dust emissions at its generating plant in Muskogee.

Company officials deny the move is an attempt to suppress fugitive coal dust that some say has been causing problems at the nearby Three Forks Harbor Marina. But if the permit modification is granted, officials say it could help curb coal dust emissions.

Laura Herron, an air quality coordinator for OG&E who helped with the company’s permit application, said the public utility plans to modify the control system used with the coal handling equipment used to move coal “from the pile to the boiler.”

Environmental laws, Herron said, require companies to seek modified permits anytime there is a change in the way things are done. She said the requested modification, which she described as a “very minor change,” may have been prompted by Occupational Safety and Health Administration rules.

According to OSHA, coal dust is considered a respiratory toxicant. Exposure can result from inhalation, ingestion and eye contact. State and federal environmental laws regulate coal dust emissions.

Herron said the changes for which approval is being sought would include the use of foam suppression system. The company now uses a “baghouse” to capture coal dust emissions.

According to the company’s application, implementation of the proposed control system would increase the efficiency of capturing coal dust emissions by about 5 percent — from 90 percent efficiency to 95 percent.

OG&E’s Muskogee plant, officials say, burns about 100 railroad carloads of coal daily. Throughout the day, coal is being unloaded from trains, pushed into piles and transported to the burners. All those activities are said to contribute to coal dust emissions that some allege have plagued boat owners and marina operators at Three Forks Harbor.

Before the permit can be approved, the utility company’s application is subject to public comments. The application may be reviewed at the Muskogee Public Library, 801 W. Okmulgee Ave., or at the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality office in Oklahoma City.

Herron said the comment period for OG&E’s application ends Oct. 23. If the application is approved, a draft permit will be published and a second comment period will open.