MEADVILLE — Preliminary construction work is speeding up at the site of a proposed $350 million tires-to-energy plant in northwestern Pennsylvania after a settlement in a longstanding legal dispute. Major work on the Crawford Renewable Energy plant is expected to being in 2014.

Project manager Greg Rubino says the project now has all the environmental permits it needs. Under the terms of a settlement reached last month, the plant will provide emissions data, testing results, and information on permit violations to two environmental advocates. The plant would burn about 900 tons of chopped-up waste tires daily to produce enough electricity for about 45,000 homes.