They argue that companies should also be forced to clean up countless tons of coal ash mixed with dirt and used to build berms and roads or fill in the land on and near coal plant sites. While federal coal ash rules demand groundwater monitoring and cleanup of coal ash in more than 500 ponds and pits nationwide, advocates have long pushed to address landfills that were exempted under those regulations. “We’re not calling it a win, but they’re telling us they’ll consider closing the loophole,” said Susan Thomas, press, policy and legislation director for Transition Northwest Indiana. 3 consent decree has made environmentalists hopeful the legacy “loophole” may soon close, forcing utilities to reckon with countless tons of coal ash deposited at hundreds of sites before the 2015 rules took effect. The EPA is now enforcing those 2015 rules but still ignoring older sites not covered by the rules.Ī Feb. The development stems from a 2022 lawsuit naming sites in Indiana and Illinois and accusing the EPA of failing to regularly review its rules for so-called “legacy” or “historic” coal ash sites - landfills and dumps that were inactive before federal coal ash rules took effect in 2015. Environmental Protection Agency could for the first time impose regulations on hundreds of coal ash sites nationwide that are not covered by 2015 federal coal ash rules. A settlement between environmental groups and the U.S.
