![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() "Many of these communities have been disproportionately impacted by pollution for far too long. It tends to have a larger impact on low-income, minority communities living near power plants. These facilities were not covered by the 2015 rule issued by former President Barack Obama's administration.Ĭoal ash contains hazardous pollutants including arsenic, chromium, lead, and mercury, which have been linked to cancer, heart and thyroid disease and other illnesses. The proposal requires safe management of coal ash that was dumped in currently unregulated areas, including inactive power plants with surface impoundments that are no longer in use. The proposed rule follows a legal petition by environmental groups last August asking the EPA to end exemptions to its 2015 coal ash rule that had enabled utilities across the country to sidestep responsibility for handling up to a half a billion tons of cancer-causing toxic waste. Environmental Protection Agency plans to force some utilities to clean up older piles of toxic coal ash at their power plants to prevent contamination of groundwater, the latest in a series of rules to reduce pollution in the sector. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |