EPA Completes Series of Enforcement Actions to Protect Communities from Exposure to Coal Ash Pollution
Settlements advance EPA’s National Enforcement Priority of protecting communities from coal ash contamination
WASHINGTON – Today, Oct. 23, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced agreements with four companies to settle violations of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act’s regulations related to coal ash surface impoundments and landfills. The settlements, finalized in recent weeks, address facilities located in Alabama, Pennsylvania, Colorado and Puerto Rico, and require companies to take certain actions including addressing groundwater monitoring issues, conducting effective and protective groundwater cleanup, addressing emergency planning, and paying a fine.
The settlement advances EPA’s National Enforcement and Compliance Initiative, Protecting Communities from Coal Ash Contamination. This Initiative is delivering protections for communities affected by widespread noncompliance with the federal coal ash regulations. Coal ash, which is produced from the burning of coal for energy, is a large industrial waste stream (by volume) and contains certain contaminants known to cause cancer and other serious health effects. Prior to 2015, the management and disposal of coal ash was not regulated at the national level; instead, it was regulated to varying degrees, if at all, by some states. Historically, coal ash was typically disposed in unlined landfills and unlined surface impoundments many of which are in contact with groundwater.
Without proper containment and management, contaminants from coal ash can pollute waterways, groundwater, drinking water and the air. The additional enforcement resources under EPA’s National Enforcement and Compliance Initiative will help protect water sources, including drinking water, as well as the often-overburdened communities who live near these units.
“EPA is committed to protecting communities from coal ash contamination so that residents who live near coal-burning power plants can breathe clean air and drink safe water, just as everyone living in the United States deserves,” said David M. Uhlmann, Assistant Administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “These four settlements demonstrate how EPA is prioritizing coal ash contamination as part of the Agency’s national enforcement initiatives and ensuring that groundwater near coal ash facilities is adequately monitored and protected.”
The following is an overview of the four settlement agreements:
Puerto Rico (Region 2): AES Puerto Rico, L.P., which operates an electrical generating plant in Guayama, Puerto Rico, agreed to address groundwater monitoring issues and ensure proper reporting of its coal ash landfill and pay a civil penalty of $71,845. (Read the EPA settlement with AES Puerto Rico, L.P. news release.)
Pennsylvania (Region 3): Keystone-Conemaugh Projects, LLC (“KEY-CON”), which operates the Conemaugh Generating Station, certified and committed to ensure compliance with coal ash regulations at its four coal ash surface impoundments and pay a civil penalty of $185,927. (Read the EPA settles with Keystone-Conemaugh Projects, LLC news release.)
Alabama (Region 4): The Alabama Power Company (“Alabama Power”), which operates the James M. Barry Electric Generating Plant (“Plant Barry”), agreed to evaluate and expand its groundwater monitoring program associated with its coal ash surface impoundment, review and upgrade its Emergency Action Plan, and pay a civil penalty of $278,000. (Read the EPA Reaches Settlement with Alabama Power Company press release.)
Colorado (Region 8): The Public Service Company of Colorado (“PSCo”), which operates the Cherokee Station electrical generating plant, agreed to address groundwater monitoring deficiencies, conduct effective and protective groundwater cleanup, and pay a penalty of $134,500. Specific actions required under the settlement include developing and implementing a remedy for ash ponds, including the lithium releases). (Read the EPA settles with Public Service Company of Colorado press release.)
In April 2015, EPA established national rules for coal ash management and disposal to address:
- Risks from disposal of coal ash, including leaking of contaminants into groundwater.
- Blowing of contaminants into the air as dust.
- Catastrophic failure of coal ash surface impoundments.
These rules established a comprehensive set of requirements for the safe handling and disposal of coal ash from coal-fired power plants, including technical requirements for coal ash landfills and surface impoundments.
For more information on coal ash and the agency’s coal ash program activities, please visit EPA’s Coal Ash (CCR) website.