(Associated Press 5-19-2010) The Tennessee Valley Authority will permanently store onsite more than 2 million cubic yards of coal ash from a massive spill as part of the utility's second phase of clean up. At $270 million, the onsite storage will consist of 25-foot-tall heap with no liner system beside the Emory River west of Knoxville. It was the cheapest of several options TVA considered, and Steve McCracken, the utility's cleanup project manager, said it should keep overall costs within the projected $1.2 billion total.
 

(Greensource 5-10-2010) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on May 4 unveiled a draft rule to regulate coal ash, for the first time, under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. The proposal would require coal-fired powerplants to retrofit existing impoundments, which typically store ash in liquid form, with composite liners. It also would provide strong incentives to eventually close surface impoundments and shift to dry storage in landfills, EPA says. The new scrutiny follows a 2008 collapse of a Tennessee impoundment that spread ash over a 300-sq-mile area of land and water.

(Concrete Products 5-5-2010) EPA officials are set to open a 90-day public comment period for proposed rules that address disposal and management of coal-fired power plants’ ash and residue, while exempting higher-grade, lower-carbon fly ash suited to concrete mix designs, cement mill feed, and wallboard production.  

(New York Times 5-4-2010) The Environmental Protection Agency issued a long-awaited proposal Tuesday to regulate coal ash, the toxic byproduct of burning coal to produce power. But the agency deferred a decision on whether to treat it as hazardous waste, drawing criticism from environmentalists who had hoped for a stronger stance.