Coal Ash
EPA formally denies Alabama’s plan for coal ash waste
The federal agency says the state’s plan was not as protective as federal standards, allowing toxic waste to remain in unlined pits that may contaminate groundwater. Alabama officials say they will appeal.
Environmentalists rattled by radioactive risks of toxic coal ash
The EPA now recognizes the risks of gamma radiation from radium in coal ash, but many states aren’t even sure where the toxic waste has been used. In Alabama, environmental regulators say they do not track so-called ‘beneficial’ uses of coal ash.
In disposing coal ash, Alabama is not like other states
Toxic coal ash has polluted Alabama’s waters for years. Is the state doing enough to stop it?
EPA wants to reject Alabama’s coal ash program; says it is not protective enough
The EPA’s proposed denial claims Alabama’s proposed standards are too lax and don’t meet federal guidelines under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.
PowerSouth CEO Blames ‘Extremist Environmental Ideology’ for Shuttering a Coal-Fired Plant in South Alabama
One of Alabama’s oldest coal-fired power plants will close next year. PowerSouth Energy Cooperative’s chief executive blamed the closure on “extremist environmental ideologies” and “environmental activists” in announcing that the Charles R. Lowman electrical generation plant on the Tombigbee River would be shuttered.
Utility Filings Show Coal Ash Ponds Are Too Close to Groundwater Reservoirs. Environment Groups Again Call for Moving Toxic Material
All of Alabama Power Company’s open coal ash ponds sit within five feet of an aquifer, or groundwater reservoir, in violation of federal standards, recent company filings confirm.
Environmental Group Warns of Coal Ash Contamination
Alabama Power recently released coal ash inundation maps, meant to show areas that would be affected if dams around coal-ash storage ponds were to breach. The utility says that’s never happened and there’s no imminent danger. But a local environmental group disagrees.
Mixed feelings for landfill run deep in Tennessee
Residents protest the dump that generates millions in revenue for poor rural area.
