The Water Values

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Frank Holleman, a lawyer with the Southern Environmental Law Center, joins The Water Values Podcast and discusses a number of issues concerning coal ash. The Kingston and Dan River coal ash spills focused much-needed attention on the disposal of coal ash from electric generating stations. From his perspective in the Southeast, Frank addresses the contaminants contained in coal ash, its historical manner of disposal and storage, the evolution of utilities in dealing with coal ash storage issues, and much more. While we still have some ground to cover in cleaning up coal ash storage sites and thereby protecting water quality, the good news is that utilities have in large measure evolved from coal ash lagoon storage to the more preferable solution of dry, lined storage, or even re-use of coal ash in products like cement.

In this session, you’ll learn about:

• The contaminants present in coal ash
• Why coal ash poses a water quality issue
• The historical method of coal ash disposal and storage
• The Kingston and Dan River coal ash spills
• How difficult it is to clean up a coal ash spill
• The impacts on water quality and even drinking water from a coal ash spill
• How the criminal liability provisions of the Clean Water Act have helped cause utilities to think differently about coal ash disposal and storage
• What utility executive are now saying is the preferred way to dispose of coal ash
• The potential areas of re-use for coal ash

Resources and links mentioned in or relevant to this session include:

• The Southern Environmental Law Center’s homepage
• Wikipedia page on Frank Holleman
• The EPA’s webpage on coal ash, or coal combustion residuals (CCR)
• Wikipedia page on the Kingston coal ash spill
• USA Today article with video on the five-year anniversary of the Kingston coal ash spill
• Wikipedia page on the Dan River, including a section on the coal ash spill
• Charlotte Observer article on Duke Energy’s guilty plea in Dan River coal ash spill
• Duke Energy’s webpage on coal ash management and safe basin closure
• EPA’s webpage on its final coal ash rule
• North Carolina Coal Ash Management Commission website
• EPA’s webpage on beneficial re-use of coal ash
• HR 1734 on GovTrack.us website
• UtilityDive article on HR 1734
• Statement of Administration Policy re HR 1734 on WhiteHouse.gov (Should HR 1734 pass Congress, it will be strongly recommended for a veto by President Obama)
• AP article dated September 15, 2015, and titled Court Clears Duke Energy Plan to Clean more Coal-Ash Pits

 Transcript

Click here to download the Transcript for Session 66 of The Water Values Podcast.

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