Illinois’ new coal ash rules have been in place for over a year now. As part of those rules, coal ash owners at some power plants have been proposing closure plans for their impoundments. When a company closes a coal ash impoundment, they typically either close it by removing the coal ash to another facility (‘removal’) or capping the coal ash and leaving it in place with a synthetic liner (‘cap in place’). For coal ash impoundments, this is a major decision point that will have long term consequences for the environment.
As of June 2022, the coal fired power plant industry in Illinois has proposed closure plans for 23 coal ash impoundments at 14 different coal fired power plants under our new rules. Those sites are outlined in the table below. The majority (16 impoundments, 70%) are proposed to be closed by ‘cap in place,’ potentially leaving ash permanently exposed to groundwater. Of those being removed, three are located at the Vermilion site, and the plan to remove is the result of an agreement between Vistra and the State of Illinois, a huge win from a long and hard-fought battle to protect the Middle Fork of the Vermilion River. Other ponds being removed are small, and often the ash is just being moved to another impoundment on site, where the owner plants to cap in place.
The US EPA recently prepared a list of coal ash impoundments with potential groundwater exposure, meaning that a cap will not stop the coal from getting wet. Eight of the above impoundments are on that list (Coffeen Ash Pond 1, Edwards Ash Pond, Joppa East Ash Pond, Kincaid Ash Pond, Newton Primary Ash Pond, Lincoln Stone Quarry, Powerton Former Ash Basin, Waukegan East Ash Pond). The US EPA list contains additional impoundments in Illinois that have either already closed, have a plan approved before our new rules, or have not yet proposed closure.
Are Illinois’ New Coal Ash Rules Working?
The jury is still out on whether Illinois’ new coal ash rules will do what they set out to do. As explained above, many of the coal ash owner’s proposed closure plans would leave coal ash permanently in groundwater. But the closure proposals are the first step in their closure process, where the regulator and the public have little influence. These closure plans are first submitted to the Illinois EPA (IEPA).
What happens next is critical – IEPA will choose to approve or deny the various proposals from coal ash owners then open comment periods for the public to provide input on those decisions. IEPA has not yet issued proposed approvals or denials for any of these sites yet. We’re anticipating some of these decisions to be made public soon, but the rules don’t put IEPA on a fixed timeline. This will be the first real test of our new coal ash rules. Will IEPA propose to approve plans that leave groundwater in coal ash? If so, the second test of the new rules will be the power of the public to influence those decisions through public comments and public hearings.
Keep an eye on https://illinoiscoalash.org/public-hearings and on our social media for the latest.
