Mine Placement of Coal Combustion Products (CCP’s) - Data Collection and Risk Assessment MRAM - An International and Interagency Cooperative Project

摘要

In April 2000, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued its regulatoryrndetermination with respect to the disposal of coal combustion byproducts, often calledrncombustion products or residuals. The agency determined at that time that these residuals, whilernshowing evidence of potential for risk to both human health and the environment, did not warrantrntreatment as hazardous wastes but, rather, should be managed in accordance with the provisionsrnof Subtitle D of RCRA; in effect passing enforcement authority to the States.rnAs a part of that regulatory determination, EPA also stated that it did not, at that time,rnhave enough data on minefilling practices to be able to pass judgment on the merits andrnprotectiveness of that practice on a nationwide basis. The practice of minefilling is a commonrnone, and various States have their own enforcement procedures on the books. Still, the varyingrngeochemistries and hydrologies, and the varying wastes, together with past mining practices thatrnhave in many cases seriously damaged the local environment, make the practice controversial.rnWith the help of many agencies, private firms, special interest groups and individuals,rnboth in the US and Canada, EPA began in 2001 a very wide ranging data collection effort aimedrnat determining what is happening at mine placement sites. To date these have all been coalrnmining sites, but there is no reason why, in principle, these same coal combustion products mightrnnot be used at other, non-coal mining, sites scarred and damaged by mining. All would dependrnon the chemistries and of course on the economics of haul-back. The following have beenrnleading players: EPA, DOE, DOI’s Office of Surface Mining, the Universities of West Virginiarnand North Dakota, representatives of Canadian utilities, several US states and theirrnrepresentatives, US industry represented by USWAG and CIBO, and a number of veryrnexperienced consulting firms as noted below.rnWe are starting to analyze data of varying quality from some 65 sites, with knowledge ofrnperhaps another 30-40 sites. We think, speaking only of coal mine sites, that upwards of anotherrn500 or more sites might be candidates for this practice if protective practices may be clearlyrnidentified and the non-protective practices, where such may exist, also identified. All partiesrn“own” these data; it is public information.