Environmental Advocates Oppose Trump Coal Ash Rollbacks at U.S. EPA Virtual Hearing

Environmental advocates turned out in force at a virtual public comment hearing hosted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday to oppose proposed new regulations that would weaken requirements for utilities cleaning up toxic coal ash residue at hundreds of sites across the country.

“At a virtual public comment hearing hosted by the US Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday, a long line of environmental advocates voiced strong opposition to proposed new regulations weakening requirements that utilities must follow in cleaning up toxic coal ash residue at hundreds of sites across the country at which coal was burned to produce electricity”

Ars Technica

Lisa Evans, senior counsel at Earthjustice and a former EPA attorney, said in a statement, “The Trump administration has jeopardized the nation’s drinking water supplies as a favor to polluters,” adding, “It’s just not right.”

Ars Technica

The Trump administration announced in April it would repeal a rule put in place in 2024 by the Biden administration’s EPA that required utilities to monitor coal ash sites at inactive coal plants, and it also said it would loosen requirements for protecting groundwater near those sites.

The proposed rule would exempt sites where coal ash is stored from regulation and permit coal-fired power plant owners to minimize, delay, or avoid dealing with the coal ash at their facilities.

Coal ash, or coal combustion residuals, is the mineral residue left after burning coal to generate electricity, and it contains potentially toxic levels of substances like mercury, arsenic, and lead, all of which are associated with human health problems, including cancer.

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin called the proposed regulations “commonsense changes” and said they “reflect EPA’s commitment to restoring American energy dominance, strengthening cooperative federalism, and accommodating unique circumstances at certain [coal ash] facilities.”

In comments at the Thursday virtual session, a spokesman for the American Coal Ash Association lauded the Trump rollbacks as the right move forward.

Inside Climate News

John Ward, whose trade group focuses on advancing the management of materials made from coal ash, said the association is in support of the EPA’s move to eliminate criteria defining “beneficial use” for coal ash, calling coal ash an underutilized domestic mineral resource.

Leah Pilconis, vice president of government affairs and general counsel at the American Cement Association, said the proposed changes come as supply of coal ash declines and could improve access to legacy coal combustion residue.

Ars Technica also reported that the proposed rule would exempt sites where coal ash is stored from regulation and permit coal-fired power plant owners to minimize, delay, or avoid dealing with the coal ash at their facilities.

Environmental groups argued that the EPA’s proposed rule guts protections against the dangers of burning coal and puts the nation’s groundwater at risk, saying existing rules were built upon years of science, litigation, and documented harm.

“- If you use a wood-burning heater, do not throw away the ashes”

TF1 Info

Jennifer Cassel, another attorney with Earthjustice, said water near coal ash becomes thick with pollution, like a tea that is, as the Inside Climate News article begins to describe.

A 2022 study by Earthjustice and other environmental groups found that more than 90 percent of coal power plants across America were contaminating groundwater via coal ash residues.

The Inside Climate News account also describes how vast quantities of toxic residue are kept on-site at both active and retired coal plants, where it’s often covered with water or soil to prevent it from contaminating the air or waterways.

By contrast, the TF1 report on wood-heater ashes presents a different reuse pathway, saying, “We think it might be waste, but we can reuse them at home, in the garden or on indoor plants,” while advising that ashes be from very dry, untreated wood.