US: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is considering making changes to the regulations managing coal combustion residuals (CCR), or coal ash, as non-hazardous waste under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). The agency has granted two petitions to look at the existing rules.
“In light of the EPA’s new statutory authority, it is important that we give the existing rule a hard look and consider improvements that may help states tailor their permit programs to the needs of their states, in a way that provides greater regulatory certainty, while also ensuring that human health and the environment remain protected,” said EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt.
The current regulations took effect in late 2015 and manage how coal ash generated from electric utilities and independent power producers is managed and disposed of in surface impoundments and landfills. The rule also defines what constitutes beneficial use of CCR and, therefore, is excluded from the rule’s requirements. Coal ash is used in a variety of industries including cement production.