[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2396 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2396
To amend the Solid Waste Disposal Act to ensure the safe disposal of
coal combustion residuals.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 8, 2021
Mr. Cohen introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Energy and Commerce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Solid Waste Disposal Act to ensure the safe disposal of
coal combustion residuals.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Ensuring Safe Disposal of Coal Ash
Act''.
SEC. 2. ENSURING SAFE DISPOSAL OF COAL ASH.
Section 4005(d) of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6945(d))
is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1)--
(A) in subparagraph (A), in the matter preceding
clause (i), by striking ``in lieu of regulation of coal
combustion residuals units'' and inserting ``as a
program of regulation of coal combustion residuals
units pursuant to this subsection'';
(B) in subparagraph (B)--
(i) in the matter preceding clause (i), by
striking ``after public notice and an
opportunity for public comment'' and inserting
``after public notice, an opportunity for
public comment, and an opportunity for a public
hearing''; and
(ii) in clause (i), by inserting ``as
revised pursuant to paragraph (8) of this
subsection'' after ``Code of Federal
Regulations'';
(C) in subparagraph (D)--
(i) in clause (i)(I), by striking ``12''
and inserting ``5'';
(ii) in clause (i)(II), by striking ``not
later than 3 years'' and inserting ``not later
than 1 year'';
(iii) in clause (ii)(II), by inserting
``clauses (i) and (ii) of'' before
``subparagraph (B)''; and
(iv) by adding at the end the following:
``(iii) Period for correction of
deficiencies.--The Administrator shall include
in a notice under clause (ii) a reasonable
period for the State to correct the
deficiencies identified under such clause,
which shall not exceed 180 days.''; and
(D) in subparagraph (E)--
(i) in clause (i), by inserting ``by the
end of the period included in the notice under
subparagraph (D)(iii)'' after ``identified by
the Administrator under subparagraph (D)(ii)'';
and
(ii) in clause (ii), by inserting ``by the
end of the period included in the notice under
subparagraph (D)(iii)'' after ``identified by
the Administrator under subparagraph (D)(ii)'';
(2) in paragraph (2)(B), by inserting ``as revised pursuant
to paragraph (8) of this subsection'' after ``Code of Federal
Regulations'';
(3) in paragraph (3), by inserting ``as revised pursuant to
paragraph (8) of this subsection'' after ``Code of Federal
Regulations''; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
``(8) Revision of regulations and review of approved state
programs.--Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment
of this paragraph, the Administrator shall--
``(A) finalize revisions to the criteria for coal
combustion residuals units under part 257 of title 40,
Code of Federal Regulations, to include any criteria
necessary to protect human health and the environment,
including the health of vulnerable or
disproportionately exposed subpopulations, as well as
the following minimum requirements:
``(i) Require meaningful public
participation in the issuance and renewal of
all permits or other prior approvals, including
notice, opportunity to comment, and public
hearings to ensure that--
``(I) potentially affected
residents of a community have an
appropriate opportunity to participate
in decisions regarding a proposed
activity that may affect the
environment or public health of the
community;
``(II) the public contribution can
influence the determination by the
Federal or State permitting agency;
``(III) the concerns of all
participants involved are taken into
consideration in the decision-making
process; and
``(IV) the Federal or State
permitting agency provides to
potentially affected members of the
public accurate information and
facilitates the involvement of
potentially affected members of the
public.
``(ii) Require financial assurance for all
coal combustion residuals units sufficient to
cover closure, post-closure care, and
corrective actions, and responsibility for
bodily injury and property damage to third
parties caused by sudden accidental occurrences
arising from operations of the facility, in the
form of a surety bond or irrevocable letter of
credit, with no allowance for insurance or for
financial tests, corporate guarantees, or other
forms of self-bonding.
``(iii) Prohibit the continued operation of
unlined impoundments, which shall include all
coal combustion residuals units that fail to
meet the design criteria for new impoundments
pursuant to part 257 of title 40, Code of
Federal Regulations.
``(iv) Limit fugitive dust emissions at
coal combustion residuals units and, including
during closure and corrective action, to no
more than 35 micrograms per square meter, or
another standard established by the
Administrator that will protect human health,
including the health of vulnerable or
disproportionately exposed subpopulations, and
require air monitoring and public reporting to
ensure such standard is met.
``(v) Require permit or other prior
approval terms that do not exceed 5 years.
``(vi) Require permits for operation,
closure, and corrective action that ensure
compliance with all applicable requirements,
and deny any permit for closure that would
allow coal combustion residuals to be--
``(I) in contact with ground water,
including on an intermittent or
seasonal basis; or
``(II) in a location that does not
meet the requirements for new coal
combustion residuals units under part
257 of title 40, Code of Federal
Regulations, including but not limited
to floodplains.
``(vii) Prohibit, as open dumping, the
unencapsulated use of coal combustion residuals
when placed on land, unless, in the case of
soil amendment for agricultural use, the
placement meets limits established by
Environmental Protection Agency to protect
health and the environment.
``(viii) Require compliance with the
criteria in part 257 of title 40, Code of
Federal Regulations, for any coal combustion
residuals unit, without regard to when the unit
ceased accepting coal combustion residuals.
``(ix) Require groundwater monitoring
methods that are sufficient to detect
contaminants at levels defined in applicable
groundwater protection standards.
``(x) Add boron, hexavalent chromium,
manganese, and sulfate to the constituents
listed in Appendix IV to part 257 of title 40,
Code of Federal Regulations.
``(xi) Require corrective action beyond
facility boundaries, as needed to protect human
health and the environment, including the
health of vulnerable or disproportionately
exposed subpopulations.
``(xii) Require owners and operators to
complete remedial activities to prevent further
releases, to remediate any releases and to
restore the affected area to original
conditions as soon as feasible and to publish
semi-annual progress reports on publicly
accessible websites from the date of remedy
selection until completion of the remedy.
``(xiii) Require owners and operators to
determine whether releases of coal combustion
residuals constituents from coal combustion
residuals units threaten drinking water wells
and to supply alternative sources of safe
drinking water as soon as feasible to well
users, if water is adversely impacted;
``(B) promulgate regulations that set forth minimum
requirements for State and Federal coal combustion
residuals permit programs, including but not limited to
public participation requirements in accordance with
paragraph (8)(A)(i), enforcement capabilities,
transparency of compliance documents, and equity in
application to low-income communities, communities of
color, and other disproportionately impacted
populations;
``(C) promulgate regulations to require owners of
closed coal combustion residuals disposal sites to
identify the locations of such sites through surveying,
platting, or other measures, together with recordation
of such information on the public record, to ensure
that the locations where such wastes are disposed of
are known and can be located in the future; and
``(D) review under paragraph (1)(D) any State
program that has been approved under paragraph (1)(B)
to ensure compliance with the revised criteria
promulgated under subparagraph (A) and the regulations
promulgated under subparagraphs (B) and (C).''.
<all>
Ensuring Safe Disposal of Coal Ash Act
#2396 | HR Congress #117
Policy Area: Environmental Protection
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory proceduresAir qualityCoalElectric power generation and transmissionEnvironmental Protection Agency (EPA)Environmental assessment, monitoring, researchEnvironmental healthEnvironmental regulatory proceduresGovernment information and archivesHazardous wastes and toxic substancesIntergovernmental relationsLicensing and registrationsPollution liabilityPublic participation and lobbyingSolid waste and recyclingState and local government operationsWater qualityWater use and supply
Last Action: Referred to the Subcommittee on Environment and Climate Change. (4/13/2021)
Bill Text Source: Congress.gov
Summary and Impacts
Original Text