Recently the Environmental Protection Agency established national regulations for the safe disposal of coal combustion residuals (CCRs) from coal-fired power plants. These CCR byproducts, such as fly ash and bottom ash, can be a real challenge for both small and large facilities to remove and manage. The Environmental Protection Agency's comprehensive set of requirements addresses the risks from coal ash disposal like leaking of contaminants into ground water, blowing of contaminants into the air as dust, and the catastrophic failure of coal ash surface impoundments. Geotextile tube dewatering technology can provide a unique approach for the management of coal combustion residuals. By incorporating geotextile tube technology, coal-fired facilities can dewater and contain CCRs. This technology can be utilized in the operation of existing surface impoundments, efforts to beneficially use consolidated ash, and the continued operation of coal-fired operations by direct sluicing the daily flows from the plant into geotextile tubes. This paper will discuss several unique approaches involving the remediation or clean closure of surface impoundments, beneficial use of dewatered CCRs, and direct sluicing operations incorporating geotextile tube technology for the safe disposal of by-products from coal-fired power plants.
展开▼
