The Coal Combustion Residuals (CCR) Rule, first issued in April 2015, regulates the disposal of coal ash in landfills and surface impoundments under Subtitle D of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. It provides location restrictions, dam safety requirements, operating rules, and groundwater monitoring requirements. Landfills or Surface impoundments (CCR units) that fail specific requirements are required to retrofit or close. Operators must also take corrective actions to remediate and contain groundwater contamination, or releases resulting from a dam breach.
On December 2, 2019, EPA issued a proposed rule that would expand the types of CCR surface impoundments that must close or retrofit and would alter the time Surface impoundments have to stop accepting waste and initiate closure. In summary, EPA’s proposal contains three categories of amendments. First, EPA would no longer consider clay-lined (or compacted soil-lined) Surface impoundments as lined, making such units subject to closure regardless of whether they have been shown to be leaking. Second, EPA proposes to accelerate the deadline from October 31, 2020, to August 31, 2020, for stopping all new disposal (the “cease receipt of waste” deadline) at all Surface impoundments. Finally, EPA would offer new time extensions for deadlines that would otherwise apply to Surface impoundments. The rule does not change existing requirements for CCR landfills.
EPA is currently accepting comments on its proposal through January 31, 2020.
Background and Summary of Proposed ChangesAdditional Types of Surface Impoundments Must Close
The 2015 final rule allowed unlined Surface impoundments to continue operating unless and until the units contaminated groundwater. The rule also defined clay-lined Surface impoundments as lined, allowing continued operation so long as corrective action was taken to cure groundwater contamination or other releases. On August 21, 2018, the D.C. Circuit vacated these portions of the final rule and required EPA to revise the rule in accordance with its decision. Utility Solid Waste Activities Group, et al. v. EPA, 901 F.3d 414 (D.C. Circ. 2018) (USWAG). EPA’s proposal is intended to implement the D.C. Circuit’s decision.
EPA’s proposal would remove clay-lining from qualifying liners for Surface impoundments, thereby classifying these Surface impoundments as unlined. As a result of this amendment, all clay-lined Surface impoundments would need to stop accepting waste by August 31, 2020, unless an alternative date applies under § 257.103. (Once a unit stops accepting waste, the...
