Managing Coal Combustion Residues in Mines (2006) / Chapter Skim
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5 Current Regulatory Framework
5 Current Regulatory Framework
Pages 105-126
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From page 105... ...
THE SURFACE MINING CONTROL AND RECLAMATION ACT OF 1977 SMCRA establishes permitting, performance, and bonding requirements for the operation and reclamation of surface coal mining and the surface impacts of underground mining (30 U.S.C.
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From page 106... ...
· Establishes separate programs for industrial point-source pollution discharges, dredge and fill activities, non-point source pollution, and ambient water quality. · Coal mining operations typically obtain point-source discharge permits for their surface runoff.
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From page 107... ...
. SMCRA applies to all surface coal mining and reclamation operations, which are defined to encompass surface mining operations and "all activities necessary and incident to reclamation activities" (30 U.S.C.
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From page 108... ...
. and the collection of sufficient data for the mine site and surrounding areas so that an assessment can be made by the regulatory authority of the probable cumulative hydrologic impacts of all anticipated mining in the area upon the hydrology of the area .
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From page 109... ...
. Several of these performance standards could be applied without modification to mine placement of CCRs.
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From page 110... ...
insure that all debris, acid-forming materials, toxic materials, or materials constituting a fire hazard are treated or buried and compacted or otherwise dis posed of in a manner designed to prevent contamination of ground or surface waters and that contingency plans are developed to prevent sustained combustion; (16) insure that all reclamation efforts proceed in an environmentally sound manner and as contemporaneously as practicable with the surface coal mining operations .
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From page 111... ...
To the extent that these activities do not involve any remining, they are not subject to the same SMCRA standards that apply to active surface coal mining operations. Although as noted previously, remining projects may be eligible for AML money and are not subject to the same permit block and bonding standards that apply to other mines, these projects are otherwise subject to the same general regulatory standards that apply to active coal mining and reclamation activities.
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From page 112... ...
§§74017671q) can impact CCR management indirectly by mandating air pollution controls that affect the characteristics of the CCRs and thus its suitability for certain productive uses.
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From page 113... ...
CURRENT REGULATORY FRAMEWORK 113 SIDEBAR 5.1 One Person's Trash Is Another Person's Treasure: PURPA and Waste Coal Independent Power Producers In the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA) of 1978, Congress found that "the protection of the public health, safety, and welfare, the preservation of national security, and the proper exercise of congressional authority under the Constitution to regulate interstate commerce require -- (1)
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From page 114... ...
. Regular groundwater monitoring is part of this program, and the rules require remedial action to address releases that may pose a threat to human health or the environment.
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From page 115... ...
. While the standards apply only to public drinking 3The statute requires EPA to set both primary and secondary drinking water standards.
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From page 116... ...
. USDWs are aquifers or portions of aquifers that have water quantities adequate to supply a public water system and whose waters contain less than 10,000 mg/L total dissolved solids (i.e., water that could be treated to meet public drinking water standards)
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From page 117... ...
. One court has held, for example, that "surface runoff from rainfall, when collected and channeled by coal miners in connection with mining activities, constitutes point source pollution."4 Since all surface drainage from disturbed areas at surface coal mining operations must pass through a sediment discharge control structure before it leaves the mine site (see 30 CFR §816.46(b)
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From page 118... ...
These standards consist of both designated uses, which signify the purposes for which the water body is to be protected, and water quality criteria, which are maximum ambient pollution levels that must be achieved to safeguard the designated uses (33 U.S.C.
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From page 119... ...
CURRENT REGULATORY FRAMEWORK 119 controls (40 CFR part 76) could increase the chemical content in CCRs of constituents such as ammonia, which can adversely affect the pozzolanic properties of CCRs and render them less marketable (e.g., Butalia and Wolfe, 2000)
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From page 120... ...
Some of EPA's findings in making this determination are pertinent to the issues considered in this report and are summarized below. The Determination and RCRA C Versus RCRA D Chapter 4 reviewed some of EPA's findings from damage cases and other considerations related to the risks of CCR disposal in non-coal mine settings.
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From page 121... ...
. In the context of minefilling in particular, the EPA noted the concern expressed by the states and industry "that regulation under subtitle C could cause a halt in the use of coal combustion wastes to reclaim abandoned and active mine sites" (40 CFR Part 261)
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From page 122... ...
In cases such as AML and refuse-remining applications, the use of CCRs in reclamation may help to resolve serious, acute land-use and water quality problems, but may potentially produce undesirable consequences such as release of metals and other toxic elements into the environment. The EPA recognized these issues in its 2000 regulatory determination, in which it is explicitly noted that CCRs should remain exempt from regulation as hazardous wastes under RCRA to the extent that they are used for beneficial purposes other than minefilling.
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From page 123... ...
As a result, many citizen groups believe that treating mine placement of CCRs as a beneficial use translates into less rigorous permit conditions, a conclusion that is shared by some state regulators. As a consequence, the beneficial use of CCRs in minefilling has become a problematic issue.
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From page 124... ...
After reviewing the laws and other relevant literature, the committee concludes that although SMCRA does not specifically regulate CCR placement at mine sites, its scope is broad enough to encompass such regulation during reclamation activities. Furthermore, while SMCRA and its implementing regulations indirectly establish performance standards that could be used to regulate the manner in which CCRs may be placed in coal mines, neither the statute nor those
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From page 125... ...
CURRENT REGULATORY FRAMEWORK 125 rules explicitly address regulation of the use or placement of CCRs. The committee also believes that the use of CCRs in minefilling operations has advantages, but that it should not result in the circumvention of appropriate characterization and permitting processes.
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