The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is continuing its review of regulations that may burden domestic energy-resource companies, this time with an eye toward coal ash. While utilities are looking for relief, environmentalists see the agency's actions as putting special interests ahead of clean water. EPA on June 6 proposed postponing compliance dates for utilities to reduce toxic materials from wastewater discharges at coal-fired plants, including from coalash impoundments, while the agency reconsiders the 2015 effluent limitation guidelines (ELG) requiring the use of best-available technology for waste streams. When the ELG was released, EPA estimated an annual compliance cost of $480 million for the 12% of steam-generating plants that would need to comply. A group of environmentalists has filed suit, seeking to block EPAs reconsideration.
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