Coal Combustion Waste 

Damage Case Assessments 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 

Office of Solid Waste 

July 9, 2007 
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

With the exception of the documents listed below, the documents referenced throughout this 

assessment are available from the docket to the Notice of Data Availability on the Disposal of 

Coal Combustion Wastes in Landfills and Surface Impoundments at www.regulations.gov, 

docket ID EPA-HQ-RCRA-2006-0796, through internet links provided, or from other identified 

sources. 

1. Application of Don Frame Trucking, Inc. Petitioner for a Judgment Pursuant to Article 78 of 

the CPLR against the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation 

Respondent; Supreme Court of the State of New York County of Chautauqua (July 22, 

1988). Order G11278. 

2. Selenium Posting on Hyco Lake Rescinded, North Carolina Department of Health and 

Human Services (NCDHHS), August 2001. 

3. Feasibility Study for the Y-12 Chestnut Ridge Operable Unit 2 Filled Coal Ash Pond, Oak 

Ridge, Tennessee. DOE/OR/02-1259&D1. August 1994. 

4. Final Site Investigation Report on Groundwater Contamination, Township of Pines, Porter 

County, Indiana. December 2002. 

5. Texas Bureau of Health (TBH). 1992. Fish Advisory: Brandy Branch Reservoir. May 1992. 

6. Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). 2003. Improving Water Quality in 

Brandy Branch Reservoir; One TMDL for Selenium. February 2003. 

7. Report: Sulfate Investigation, Miamiview Landfill, Hamilton County, Ohio. Prepared for the 

Cincinnati Gas & Electric Company by Dames & Moore. December 13, 1994. Available in 

the docket titled Availability of Report to Congress on Fossil Fuel Combustion; Request for 

Comments and Announcement of Public Hearing, EPA-HQ-RCRA-1999-0022-0632. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Table of Contents 

 Description Page 

I. Summary..................................................................................................................... 2 

II. Proven Damage Cases .................................................................................................... 12 

1. Salem Acres Site, Massachusetts...................................................................................... 13 

2. City of Beverly/Vitale Brothers Fly Ash Pit, Massachusetts............................................ 14 

3. Don Frame Trucking, Inc. Fly Ash Landfill, New York .................................................. 15 

4. Virginia Electric Power Co. (VEPCO) Possum Point, VA .............................................. 16 

5. PEPCO Morgantown Generating Station Faulkner Off-site Disposal Facility, 

Maryland.................................................................................................................... 17 

6. Virginia Power Yorktown Power Station Chisman Creek Disposal Site, Virginia.......... 17 

7. Hyco Lake, Roxboro, North Carolina............................................................................... 19 

8. Georgia Power Company, Plant Bowen, Cartersville, GA............................................... 19 

9. Department of Energy - Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant Chestnut Ridge Operable Unit 2 ........... 20 

10. South Carolina Electric & Gas Canadys Plant, South Carolina........................................ 24 

11. Belews Lake, North Carolina............................................................................................ 25 

12. U.S. Department of Energy Savannah River Project, South Carolina.............................. 25 

13. Dairyland Power Cooperative E.J. Stoneman Generating Station Ash Disposal Pond, 

Wisconsin................................................................................................................... 26 

14. WEPCO Highway 59 Landfill, Wisconsin ....................................................................... 27 

15. Alliant (formerly Wisconsin Power & Light) Nelson Dewey Ash Disposal Facility, 

Wisconsin................................................................................................................... 27 

16. WEPCO Cedar-Sauk Landfill, Wisconsin........................................................................ 28 

17. Wisconsin Electric Power Co. (WEPCO) Port Washington Facility, Wisconsin............. 29 

18. Lansing Board of Water & Light (LBWL) North Lansing Landfill, Michigan................ 30 

19. Northern Indiana Public Service Corp. (NIPSCO) Yard 520 Landfill Site (Brown’s 

Landfill) Township of Pines, Porter County, IN............................................................... 32 

20. Brandy Branch Reservoir, Texas...................................................................................... 33 

21. Southwestern Electric Power Company Welsh Reservoir, Texas.................................... 34 

22. Texas Utilities Electric Martin Lake Reservoir, Texas..................................................... 34 

23. Basin Electric Power Cooperative W.J. Neal Station Surface Impoundment, North 

Dakota...................................................................................................................... 35 

24. Cooperative Power Association/United Power Coal Creek Station Surface 

Impoundments, North Dakota........................................................................................... 36 

III. Potential Damage Cases..... .............................................................................................. 38 

25. K.R. Rezendes South Main Street Ash Landfill, Freetown, Massachusetts..................... 38 

26. New England Power, Brayton Point, Massachusetts........................................................ 39 

27. AES Creative Resources Weber Ash Disposal Site, New York....................................... 40 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

 Description Page 

28. Central Hudson Gas and Electric Corporation Danskammer Waste Management Facility, 

New York................................................................................................................... 40 

29. C. R. Huntley Flyash Landfill, New York........................................................................ 40 

30. Elrama Plant, Pennsylvania .............................................................................................. 41 

31. Tennessee Valley Authority - Bull Run Steam Plant, Oak Ridge, Tennessee.................. 41 

32. Tennessee Valley Authority Widows Creek Fossil Fuel Plant, Alabama ........................ 41 

33. Tennessee Valley Authority Colbert Fossil Fuel Plant, Alabama .................................... 42 

34. Duke Power Allen Steam Generating Plant, North Carolina............................................ 42 

35. Cinergy East Bend Scrubber Sludge Landfill, Kentucky ................................................. 43 

36. Florida Power and Light Lansing Smith Plant, Florida .................................................... 43 

37. Florida Power and Light Port Everglades Plant, Florida .................................................. 44 

38. Florida Power and Light Riviera Plant ............................................................................. 44 

39. Florida Power and Light P.L. Bartow Plant...................................................................... 44 

40. Commonwealth Edison Powerton Plant - Mahoney Landfill, Pekin, Tazewell County, 

Illinois........................... ........................................................................................... 45 

41. Xcel Energy/Southern Minnesota Municipal Power Agency - Sherburne County 

(Sherco) Generating Plant Becker, Minnesota.................................................................. 45 

42. Alliant Rock River Ash Disposal Facility, Wisconsin...................................................... 46 

43. Michigan City Site, Michigan City, Indiana..................................................................... 46 

44. Bailly Generating Station, Indiana.................................................................................... 47 

45. Alliant Edgewater 1-4 Ash Disposal Site, Wisconsin ...................................................... 47 

46. Wisconsin Power Supply Co. (WPSC) Pulliam Ash Disposal Site, Wisconsin............... 48 

47. Central Illinois Light Co. Duck Creek Station, Illinois.................................................... 48 

48. Illinois Power Co. Hennepin Power Station, Illinois........................................................ 48 

49. Illinois Power Co. Havanna Power Plant, Illinois............................................................ 49 

50. Dairyland Power Alma On-site Fly Ash Landfill, Wisconsin .......................................... 49 

51. Dairyland Power Alma Off-site Fly Ash Landfill, Wisconsin ......................................... 50 

52. Illinois Power Vermillion Power Station, Illinois............................................................. 50 

53. Central Illinois Public Service Company Hutsonville Power Station, Illinois................. 51 

54. Illinois Power Company Wood River Power Station, Illinois.......................................... 51 

55. R.M. Schahfer Generating Station, IN.............................................................................. 51 

56. Coffeen/White & Brewer Trucking Fly Ash Landfill, Illinois......................................... 52 

57. Southern Indiana Gas and Electric Company (SIGECO) A.B Brown Generating Station, 

Indiana...................................................................................................................... 52 

58. Cincinnati Gas & Electric Co. Miamiview Landfill, Ohio ............................................... 52 

59. Indiana Power & Light Petersburg Generating Station, Indiana ...................................... 53 

60. Hoosier Energy Mermon Generating Station Coal Combustion Waste Landfill, Indiana 53 

61. Cinergy W.C. Beckjord Station, Ohio .............................................................................. 53 

62. Lemberger Landfill, Wisconsin ........................................................................................ 54 

63. Conesville Fixed FGD Sludge Landfill, Ohio .................................................................. 54 

64. Muscatine County Landfill, Iowa ..................................................................................... 56 

65. Dave Johnston Power Plant, Wyoming ............................................................................ 56 

66. Montana-Dakota Utilities R.M. Heskett Station, North Dakota....................................... 56 

67. Arizona Public Service Co. Cholla Steam Electric Generating Station, Arizona............. 57 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

 Description Page 

IV. Rejected Damage Cases..... .............................................................................................. 59 

68. American Coal Corporation #5 Landfill........................................................................... 59 

69. Cardinal PFBC Monofill.... .............................................................................................. 59 

70. Cardinal Fly Ash Reservoir II Impoundment ................................................................... 59 

71. Clinch River, Virginia ..................................................................................................... 60 

72. Copicut Road.................. ............................................................................................ 60 

73. Dixie Caverns County Landfill, Virginia.......................................................................... 60 

74. Gavin Impoundments........ .............................................................................................. 61 

75. Kyger Creek Power Plant Impoundments......................................................................... 61 

76. Lake Erie, Ohio............................................................................................................ 61 

77. Muskingum River Power Plant Impoundments................................................................ 62 

78. Muskogee Environmental Fly Ash Disposal Site, Oklahoma .......................................... 62 

79. Public Service Co Fly Ash Disposal Site, Oklahoma ....................................................... 63 

80. Star Coal Company #6 Landfill ........................................................................................ 63 

81. Star Coal Company #14 Landfill ...................................................................................... 63 

82. Stuart Station Impoundments............................................................................................ 63 

83. Thompson Landfill, Michigan .......................................................................................... 64 

84. Turris Coal Company Elkhart Mine, Illinois.................................................................... 64 

85. Western Farmers Electrical Fly Ash Site, Oklahoma ....................................................... 64 

List of Tables 

 Description Page 

Table 1. Eleven Damage Cases Cited in the May 2000 Regulatory Determination...................... 3 

Table 2. Fossil Fuel Combustion (FFC) Damage Case Resolution, excluding minefills.............. 8

Table 3. Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant Chestnut Ridge Operable Unit 2 Surface and Ground Water 

Monitoring Programs............................................................................21 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Summary of Coal Combustion Waste 

Damage Case Assessments 
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

I. Summary 

Under the Bevill Amendment for the “special waste” categories of the Solid Waste Disposal Act, 

EPA was statutorily required to examine “documented cases in which danger to human health or 

the environment has been proved” from the disposal of coal combustion wastes. The criteria 

used to determine whether danger to human health and the environment has been proven are 

described in detail in the May 2000 Regulatory Determination at 65 FR 32224. For the May

2000 Regulatory Determination for Wastes from the Combustion of Fossil Fuels (Regulatory 

Determination), the Agency determined there were approximately 300 CCW landfills and 300 

CCW surface impoundments used by 440 coal fired utilities. 

In comments on the March 1999 Report to Congress on Wastes from the Combustion of Fossil 

Fuels, public interest groups identified 59 cases in which they alleged damage to human health or 

the environment had been caused by fossil fuel combustion wastes1

. The Agency reviewed each 

of the cases. That review resulted in identifying nine of the 11 damage cases cited in the May 

2000 Regulatory Determination2

 (see Table 1 below for complete listing of the 11 proven

damage cases3). Of the remaining 50 cases, 25 were classified as “potential” damage cases as 

 

1

 Letter from the Hoosier Environmental Council to the RCRA Docket Information Center regarding the CCW 

RTC, June 11, 1999, Letter from the Hoosier Environmental Council and the Citizens Coal Council to the RCRA 

Docket Information Center regarding the CCW RTC, June 14, 1999 and Letter from the Hoosier Environmental 

Council, et. al., to Dennis Ruddy regarding the CCW RTC, September 24, 1999. 

2 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis 

Ruddy regarding Review of Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste Damage Cases, November 29, 2000. 

 

3

 Per the May 2000 Regulatory Determination, 65 FR 32224 (http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgibin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=2000_register&docid=fr22my00-22.pdf) and Section 1.4.4 of the 1999 Report to Congress 

(http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/other/fossil/volume_2.pdf), proven damage cases are those with (i)documented 

exceedances of primary MCLs or other health-based standards measured in ground water at sufficient distance from 

the waste management unit to indicate that hazardous constituents have migrated to the extent that they could cause 

human health concerns, and/or (ii) where a scientific study demonstrates there is documented evidence of another 

type of damage to human health or the environment (e.g., ecological damage), and/or (iii) where there has been an 

administrative ruling or court decision with an explicit finding of specific damage to human health or the 

environment. In cases of co-management of CCWs with other industrial waste types, CCWs must be clearly 

implicated in the reported damage. 

The May 2000 Regulatory Determination falls short of providing a comprehensive definition of the review criteria 

("test of proof") for assessing the validity of damage case allegations; it only discusses the review criteria in 

response to public comments on the review process of the Cement Kiln Dust (CKD) proposed rule, and focuses only 

on the location of the exceedance point with respect to the source term (32224 CFR 65): 

”Proven damage cases were those with documented MCL exceedances that were measured in ground water at a 

sufficient distance from the waste management unit to indicate that hazardous constituents had migrated to the 

extent that they could cause human health concerns.” 

The "test of proof" criteria were fully defined on pp. 3-4 of the Technical Background Document to the Report to

Congress on Remaining Waste from Fossil Fuel Combustion: Potential Damage Cases (1999): 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

defined in the Regulatory Determination4 and five cases were determined to be not applicable to 

the Regulatory Determination. Four of these five cases could not be linked to coal combustion 

wastes and the other was at a coal mine, which is outside the scope of this NODA. Of the 

remaining 20 cases, one damage case was the result of wastes other than coal combustion wastes; 

one was not considered because it was an illegal, unpermitted dump; and 18 cases were 

indeterminate due to insufficient information5. 

Table 1. Eleven Damage Cases Cited in the May 2000 Regulatory Determination 

Damage Case Wastes Present Event Criteria 

(Test of Proof)

Comment

Coal-Fired Utility Comanaged Wastes

Chisman Creek 

(VA) 

Coal ash and 

petroleum coke 

landfill.

Se primary MCL 

exceedance; 

V, Se, and sulfate in 

residential drinking 

water wells.

Scientific6/Admini

strative7 Was put on NPL. EPA required 

remediation: new 

water supply to 

nearby residents, 

capping disposal 

area, ground water 

treatment, 

relocation of 

surface water 

tributary; other 

possible sources of 

contamination.

 http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/other/fossil/ffc2_397.pdf. This language, in turn, is derived from the 1993 Report to 

Congress on Cement Kiln Dust Waste: http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/other/ckd/cement2.htm. 

 

According to the 1993 CKD Report to Congress (Chapter Five), Section 8002(o)(4) of RCRA requires that EPA's 

study of CKD waste examine "documented cases in which danger to human health or the environment has been 

proved." In order to address this requirement, EPA defined danger to human health to include both acute and chronic 

effects (e.g., directly observed health effects such as elevated blood lead levels or loss of life) associated with 

management of CKD waste. Danger to the environment includes the following types of impacts: (1) Significant 

impairment of natural resources; (2) Ecological effects resulting in degradation of the structure or function of natural 

ecosystems and habitats; and (3) Effects on wildlife resulting in damage to terrestrial or aquatic fauna. 

4

 Per the May 2000 Regulatory Determination, 65 FR 3224, potential damage cases are those with (1) documented 

exceedances of primary MCLs or other health-based standards only directly beneath or in very close proximity to 

the waste source, and/or (2) documented exceedances of secondary MCLs or other health-based standards on-site or 

off-site. 

5

 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

6 Where a scientific study demonstrates there is documented evidence of damage to human health or the 

environment other than ground water contamination (e.g., ecological damage). 

7

 Where there has been an administrative ruling by a state or federal agency, or court decision with an explicit 

finding of specific damage to human health or the environment [e.g., listing on EPA’s National Priorities List 

(NPL)]. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Damage Case Wastes Present Event Criteria 

(Test of Proof)

Comment

Faulkner Offsite 

Disposal Facility 

(MD) 

Coal ash and pyritic 

mill rejects.

Low pH; exceedance 

of State standard; 

landfill and collection 

pond seepage and 

discharges resulted 

in plant and fish 

impacts to adjacent 

wetlands.

Scientific/Administ

rative

State required 

remediation 

included pond 

liners, landfill cover, 

and sequestration 

of pyrites.

DPC – Old E.J. 

Stoneman Ash 

Pond (WI) 

Coal ash, 

demineralizer 

regenerant, other 

water treatment 

wastes.

Cd and Cr primary 

MCL exceedance; 

‘gross contamination’ 

by pond cited by 

State – Elevated 

levels of Zn and 

sulfate; Boron near 5 

mg/L in private 

drinking water well.

Administrative State required 

Closure plan and 

relocation of town 

water supply well. 

Basin Electric W.J. 

Neal Station (ND)

Coal ash and 

sludge; comanaged 

wastes probable.

Cr exceeded state 

standard and other 

metals detected at 

elevated levels in 

downgradient 

sediments and 

ground water.

Administrative 

(limited 

information 

available)

State required the 

site closed and 

capped, NFRAP 

(No Further 

Remedial Action 

Planned).

VEPCO – Possum 

Point (VA)

Coal ash, pyrites, oil 

ash, water 

treatment wastes, 

and boiler cleaning 

wastes

Cd primary MCL 

exceedance in 

ground water; 

ground water 

contaminated with 

Cd and Ni, attributed 

to pyrites and oil ash. 

Administrative Response included 

sequestration of oil 

ash, pyrites, and 

metal cleaning 

wastes to separate 

lined units.

WEPCO Hwy 59 

Ash Landfill (WI)

Coal ash and mill 

rejects; other 

comanaged wastes 

probable.

Boron exceedance 

of state standard in 

down gradient 

ground water; 

elevated levels of As, 

Fe, Se, Mn, sulfate in 

private drinking 

water wells.

Scientific / 

Administrative

State required 

additional 

monitoring for 

problem/damage 

assessment.

Alliant Nelson 

Dewey 

(WI)

Coal ash, 

comanaged wastes.

Boron exceedance 

of state standard in 

down gradient 

ground water; 

elevated levels of As, 

Se, Fl, sulfate in 

ground water.

Administrative State required 

company to 

investigate and 

assess problem; 

remedial action 

change to dry ash 

handling and 

modify landfill cover 

to reduce 

infiltration.

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Damage Case Wastes Present Event Criteria 

(Test of Proof)

Comment

Coal Creek Station 

(ND)

Coal ash, 

comanaged wastes.

Se and As 

exceedance of 

primary MCL in 

ground water on site; 

elevated sulfate and 

chloride levels in 

down gradient 

ground water.

Administrative Impacted shallow 

ground water 

aquifer. State 

required additional 

impoundment 

liners. 

Non-Utility Coal Combustion Waste Sites

Salem Acres (MA) Large volume; many 

other wastes 

present including 

municipal solid 

waste and industrial 

solid waste.

PAHs, VOCs, PCBs, 

metals including As 

and Cr; in soils, 

surface-waters, and 

ground water.

Administrative 

(on NPL)8

Contribution of FFC 

wastes to damage 

not separable from 

other wastes. 

Remedial measures 

taken including 

excavation, 

treatment, removal 

of sludges and 

soils.

Lemberger Landfill, 

Inc.9

(WI)

Comanaged 

wastes; many other 

materials including 

municipal solid 

waste; adjacent site 

contains industrial 

solid waste.

Elevated levels of 

As, Cr, and Pb 

onsite, VOCs, PCBs.

VOCs in private 

water wells initiated 

action.

Administrative 

(on NPL)10

Contribution of FFC 

wastes to damage 

not separable from 

other wastes.

Don Frame 

Trucking Fly Ash 

Landfill 

(NY)

Coal ash, other 

materials.

Pb exceedance of 

primary MCL action 

level in down 

gradient ground 

water; elevated 

levels of Mn, sulfate, 

TDS in a water 

supply well.

Administrative State required 

remedial action: site 

closure landfill 

cover; post-closure 

care and 

monitoring.

Soon after the publication of the Regulatory Determination, the Agency conducted a reevaluation 

of the damage cases identified in the Regulatory Determination, including the 11 proven damage 

 

8

 

http://yosemite.epa.gov/r1/npl_pad.nsf/f52fa5c31fa8f5c885256adc0050b631/C8A4A5BEC0121F048525691F0063F

6F3?OpenDocument

9 Reclassified as a potential damage case. See Section III., Potential Damage Cases. Memorandum from SAIC to 

Dennis Ruddy regarding Review of Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste Damage Cases, November 29, 

2000. 

10 http://www.epa.gov/superfund/sites/npl/nar735.htm

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

cases, the four additional ecological damage cases11 which were identified in comments on the 

1999 Report to Congress, the illegal disposal case, and the two potential damage cases attributed 

to non-utility coal combustion waste in the 1999 Report to Congress. As a result of this review, 

one of the cases identified in the Regulatory Determination as an ecological damage case, and 

the case identified as an illegal disposal case were reclassified as proven damage cases due to 

contamination of ground water from the disposal of CCW in sand and gravel pits and another 

site, the Lemberger Landfill, was reclassified as a potential damage case 12. 

In October 2000, the Agency began collecting additional information from its own experience, 

from state agencies, and from commenters to clarify the details of the 18 previously 

indeterminate cases, which were included as part of the 59 cases identified by the public interest 

groups in their comments on the March 1999 Report to Congress. After analyzing this additional 

information, EPA classified three of the 18 cases as proven damage cases, nine as potential 

damage cases, and six as cases without documented evidence of proven or potential damage or 

where the damage could not be clearly attributed to CCW. Two of the three proven damage 

cases involved management of CCW in sand and gravel pits and the third - a surface 

impoundment13. 

Finally, in February 2002, environmental- and citizen-organizations submitted to the Agency 16 

alleged cases of damage14. Some of these cases had been submitted to EPA previously and 

evaluated for the 1999 Report to Congress. The Agency evaluated ten of the 16 cases15; one 

case was not evaluated because it involves minefilling of CCW, which, while under the scope of 

the 2000 Regulatory Determination, is outside the scope of this NODA that deals exclusively 

with surface disposal. The other five cases were not evaluated because they involved allegations 

with little or no supporting information. Of the ten cases evaluated, one case has been 

categorized as a proven damage case with documented off-site damages to ground water, while 

six cases were categorized as potential damage cases due to on-site exceedances of primary or 

secondary MCLs16. Another damage case was determined to be a proven ecological damage 

case as a result of documented impacts to fish and other wildlife on-site; this case also has been 

categorized as a potential (human health) damage case due to documented exceedances of 

primary and secondary MCLs attributable to an inactive CCW surface impoundment detected in 

on-site monitoring wells. Finally, one case was rejected because monitoring data for the site 

 

11 Ecological damages are damages to mammals, amphibians, fish, benthic layer organisms and plants. 

12 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Review of Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste 

Damage Cases, November 29, 2000. 

13 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Final Revised Report on Resolution of 18 Previously 

Indeterminate Candidate Damage Cases, March 5, 2003. 

14 Letter from the Hoosier Environmental Council, et. al., to Dennis Ruddy regarding the CCW RTC, September 

24, 1999. 

15 Compendium of nineteen alleged coal combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007. 

16 See Potential DCs, Section III of this document.

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

revealed no exceedances of primary or secondary MCLs attributable to coal combustion waste 

placement at the site, while another site is an oil burning facility and, therefore, is not covered by 

the May 2000 Regulatory Determination17. 

In August 2005, another damage case was recorded when a dam confining a surface 

impoundment in eastern Pennsylvania failed. This damage case resulted in discharge of coal-ash 

contaminated water into the Delaware River and concomitant pollution of ground water when an 

unlined surface impoundment was temporarily used to divert the ash from the breached 

impoundment. Other than obtaining verification of the event from state authorities, the Agency 

did not conduct an independent evaluation of this case18. 

In summary, EPA gathered or received information on 135 possible damage cases and has 

evaluated 85 of these cases. Six of the 50 cases that were not evaluated were minefills and 

outside the scope of this NODA. The remaining 44 cases that were not evaluated involved 

allegations with little or no supporting information. (See Table 2: Fossil Fuel Combustion (FFC) 

Damage Case Resolution, excluding minefills) 

Of the 85 cases evaluated, EPA determined that 24 were proven cases of damage19. Sixteen 

were determined to be proven damages to ground water and eight were determined to be proven 

damages to surface water. Four of the proven damages to ground water were from unlined 

landfills, five were from unlined surface impoundments, one was due to a liner failure at a 

surface impoundment, and the remaining six were from unlined sand and gravel pits. Another 43 

cases were determined to be potential damages to ground water or surface water. Four of the 

potential damage cases were attributable to oil combustion wastes. The remaining 18 alleged 

damage cases were not considered to be proven or potential damage cases; they were, therefore, 

rejected due to either (1) lack of any evidence of damage or (2) lack of evidence that damages 

were uniquely associated with CCW20. 

Of the 16 proven cases of damages to ground water, the Agency has been able to confirm that 

corrective actions have been completed in six cases and are ongoing in nine cases. The Agency 

has not received information regarding the one remaining case. Corrective actions measures at 

these CCW management units vary depending on site specific circumstances and include formal 

closure of the unit, capping, the installation of new liners, ground water treatment, ground water 

monitoring, and combinations of these measures. 

 

17 Status of Alleged Damage Cases Submitted by HEC, et. al., to Dennis Ruddy, February, 2002. 

18 PA DEP Press Release, December 27, 2005. 

19 See Proven Damage Cases, Section II of this document. In addition to the documents previously cited, additional 

discussions of proven damages can be found in the Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Additional 

Information Regarding Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000; and Ecological Assessment 

of Ash Deposition and Removal, Euharlee Creek, Georgia Power Bowen Plant. 

20 See Rejected Cases Excluding Minefills, Section IV of this document. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Table 2. Fossil Fuel Combustion (FFC) Damage Case Resolution, excluding minefills 

(Updated 2/03/05) 

Final Final Final Indeter- Not re- Sand & Oil Comb. EcoOccurence State Proven Potential Rejected minate evaluated Non-FFC Gravel Pit Non-Utility Waste Damage 

TVA Widows Creek AL X 

TVA Colbert Plant AL X 

Arizona Public Serv Cholla Station AZ X 

Comanche, PSCC CO X 

Pierce Site CT X 

Hunts Brook Watershed (3 sites) CT X 

FP&L - Lansing Smith Plant (part 1) FL X 

TECO Big Bend Electric Plant FL 

TECO Polk Power Station FL 

FP&L Port Everglades (EPRI #6) FL X (oil) X 

FP&L Riviera (EPRI #10) FL X (oil) X 

FPC P.L. Bartow (EPRI #66) FL X (oil) X 

Georgia Power Bowen GA X 

Muscatine County IA X 

American Coal Corp. #5 CCR Landfill IA X 

Star Coal Co. #6 CCR Landfill IA X 

Star Coal Co. #14 CCR Landfill IA X 

Powerton Plant IL X X 

Central IL Light Duck Creek IL X 

IL Power Hennepin Station IL X 

IL Power Havana Plant IL X 

IL Power - Vermillion IL X 

Cent. IL PSC - Hutsonville Station IL X 

IL Power - Wood RIver IL X 

Cofeen, White, Brewer Ash Landfill IL X 

Turris Coal Company Elkhart Mine IL X 

Michigan City Site IN X 

Bailly Station IN X 

RM Schaffer Station (Schahfer) IN X 

SIGECO - AB Brown IN X 

IP&L - Petersburg Station IN X 

Hoosier Energy Merom Landfill IN X 

Yard 520 Landfill Pines IN X 

Indiana-Kentucky Electric Clifty Creek 

Station IN X 

Cinergy/Cinn. G&E - East Bend/Boon 

County - FGD KY X 

LG&E Mill Creek Plant KY X 

LG&E Cane Run Plant KY X 

Salem Acres MA X 

Vitale Fly Ash Pit MA X X 

Rezendes Ash Landfill (South Main Street 

Site/Freetown) MA X X 

Copicut Road Monofill, Freetown MA X X 

PG&E Salem Harbor, Salem MA X 

Brayton Point (EPRI #27) MA X (oil) X 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Table 2. Fossil Fuel Combustion (FFC) Damage Case Resolution, excluding minefills 

(Updated 2/03/05) 

Final Final Final Indeter- Not re- Sand & Oil Comb. EcoOccurence State Proven Potential Rejected minate evaluated Non-FFC Gravel Pit Non-Utility Waste Damage 

PEPCO Faulkner MD X 

Constellation Energy Crofton MD X 

Brandywine Disposal Site MD X 

Lansing Board P&L - N. Lansing Landfill MI X X 

Thompson Landfill MI X 

Motor Wheel, Inc MI X 

Dagget Sand & Gravel, Inc MI X X 

Sherburne County Plant MN X 

Colstrip Power Plant MT 

Hyco Lake (CP&L Roxboro) NC X X 

Belews Lake NC X X 

Duke Power - Allen Plant NC X 

Ecusta Ash Monofill NC X X 

BASF Industrial Landfill NC X X 

Neal Station BESI ND X 

Coop Power & United Power - Coal Creek ND X 

Montana-Dakota - Heskett Station ND X 

Stanton Site, United Power ND X 

Leland Olds Site, Basin Electric ND X 

Don Frame Trucking NY X 

AES Creative Weber Site NY X 

Central Hudson G&E - Danskammer Site NY X 

C.R. Huntley Ash Landfill NY X 

Cinergy/Cinn. G&E - Miamiview Landfill OH X X 

Cinergy/Cinn. G&E - Beckjord Station OH X 

Muskingum River Power Plant 

Impoundments OH X 

Cardinal Fly Ash Reservoir II 

Impoundment OH X 

Cardinal PFBC Monofill OH X 

Stuart Station Monofill OH X 

Gavin Impoundments OH X 

Kyger Creek Power Plant Impoundments OH X 

Lake Erie OH X X 

Conesville FGD Landfill (part 1) OH X 

Tristate Asphalt Flyash Landfill OH X 

Muskogee Env. Ash Site OK X 

Western Farmers Ash Site OK X 

Public Service Ash Site OK X 

Fort Gibson Fly Ash Monofill OK X 

Grand River Dam Authority OK X 

IMCO OK X 

Elrama Plant PA X 

Hatsfield Ferry Power Plant, Greene 

County PA X 

Zullinger Quarry PA X 

9
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Table 2. Fossil Fuel Combustion (FFC) Damage Case Resolution, excluding minefills

 (Updated 2/03/05)

Final Final Final Indeter- Not re- Sand & Oil Comb. EcoOccurence State Proven Potential Rejected minate evaluated Non-FFC Gravel Pit Non-Utility Waste Damage 

Veterans Quarry, Domino Salvage PA X 

Shawville Site, Penelec PA X 

Montour Ash Disposal Area PA X 

SC Elec & Gas Canadys Plant SC X 

Savannah Riv. Project SC X X 

SCE&G McMeekin Station SC X 

Chestnut Ridge Y-12 Steam Plant 

Operable Unit 2 TN X X 

TVA Bull Run Steam Plant TN X 

Brandy Branch Reservoir TX X X 

Welsh Reservoir TX X X 

Martin Creek Reservoir TX X X 

JT Deely Power Plant, San Antonio 

Public Services TX X 

VEPCO Possum Pt (Virginia Power) VA X 

OCW & 

CCW 

VEPCO Chisman (Virginia Power) VA X X 

Clinch River (part 1) VA X X 

Dixie Caverns Landfill VA X X 

Chesterfield, Virginia Power VA X 

Georgia Pacific Industrial Waste 

Landfill, Big Island VA X X 

Dairyland Power Stoneman (Old E.J. 

Stoneman) WI X 

WEPCO Hwy 59 WI X X 

Alliant Nelson Dewey WI X 

WEPCO Cedar Sauk Landfill (part 1) WI X X 

WEPCO Port Washington WI X X 

Alliant Rock River WI X 

Alliant Edgewater 1-4 WI X 

Wisconsin Power Pulliam Ash WI X 

Dairyland Power Alma On-site Landfill WI X 

Dairyland Power Alma Off-site Landfill WI X 

Lemberger Landfill WI X X 

Genoa #3, Dairyland Power 

Cooperative (DPC) WI X 

Old Columbia, WPL WI X 

Oak Creek, WEPCO WI X 

New Columbia, WPL WI X 

Locks Mill Landfill WI X X 

Biron On-site Landfill WI X X 

Kraft Division Off-site Landfill WI X X 

Niagara of Wisconsin Paper 

Corporation Flyash Landfill WI X X 

RPC Landfill #1 WI X X 

RPC Landfill #2 WI X X 

RPC Pine Lake Landfill WI X X 

Ward Paper Company Landfill WI X X 

Pleasant Prairie, WEPCO WI X 

Dave Johnston Power Plant WY X 

10
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Proven Coal Combustion Waste 

Damage Cases 
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

II. Proven Damage Cases 

Per the 2000 Regulatory Determination, 65 FR 32224 and the Technical Background Document 

to the Report to Congress on Remaining Waste from Fossil Fuel Combustion: Potential Damage 

Cases (1999), classifying damage to groundwater as a proven damage case requires the 

satisfaction of at least one of the following "tests of proof"21

: 

1) Scientific investigation: Damages that are found to exist as part of the findings of a 

scientific study. Such studies should include both formal investigations supporting 

litigation or a state enforcement action, and the results of technical tests (such as 

monitoring of wells). Scientific studies must demonstrate that damages are significant in 

terms of impacts on human health or the environment. For example, information on 

contamination of drinking water aquifer must indicate that contaminant levels exceed 

drinking water standards. 

(2) Administrative ruling. Damages are found to exist through a formal administrative 

ruling, such as the conclusions of a site report by a field inspector, or through existence of 

an enforcement that cited specific health or environmental damages. 

(3) Court decision. Damages are found to exist through the ruling of a court or through 

an out-of-court settlement. 

(4) As a practical matter, EPA employed a fourth criterion in determining whether 

damages are proven: available information needed to clearly implicate fossil fuel 

combustion wastes in the damage observed. 

The above definition does not limit proven damage cases only to those sites with a primary MCL 

exceedance(s) in ground water distant from the waste management unit. A case still may be 

considered proven under the scientific investigation test if a scientific study demonstrates there is 

 

21 The May 2000 Regulatory Determination falls short of providing a comprehensive definition of the review 

criteria ("test of proof") for assessing the validity of damage case allegations; it only discusses the review criteria in 

response to public comments on the review process of the Cement Kiln Dust (CKD) proposed rule, and focuses only 

on the location of the exceedance point with respect to the source term (32224 CFR 65): 

”Proven damage cases were those with documented MCL exceedances that were measured in ground water at a 

sufficient distance from the waste management unit to indicate that hazardous constituents had migrated to the 

extent that they could cause human health concerns.” 

The "test of proof" criteria were fully defined on pp. 3-4 of the Technical Background Document to the Report to

Congress on Remaining Waste from Fossil Fuel Combustion: Potential Damage Cases (1999): 

http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/other/fossil/ffc2_397.pdf. This language, in turn, is derived from the 1993 Report to 

Congress on Cement Kiln Dust Waste: http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/other/ckd/cement2.htm. 

 

According to the 1993 CKD Report to Congress (Chapter Five), Section 8002(o)(4) of RCRA requires that EPA's 

study of CKD waste examine "documented cases in which danger to human health or the environment has been 

proved." In order to address this requirement, EPA defined danger to human health to include both acute and chronic 

effects (e.g., directly observed health effects such as elevated blood lead levels or loss of life) associated with 

management of CKD waste. Danger to the environment includes the following types of impacts: (1) Significant 

impairment of natural resources; (2) Ecological effects resulting in degradation of the structure or function of natural 

ecosystems and habitats; and (3) Effects on wildlife resulting in damage to terrestrial or aquatic fauna. 

12
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

documented evidence of another type of damage to human health or the environment (e.g., 

ecological damage).

1. Salem Acres Site, Massachusetts22

History: Fly ash disposal occurred at this site from at least 1952 to 1969. The site was originally 

contaminated by fly ash, sewage sludge, tannery waste and materials from a landfill on the site. 

The contamination was confined to the southernmost 13 acres of the 235 acre parcel and 

consisted of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), 

dioxins/furans, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), chromium, arsenic, beryllium, vanadium 

and thallium.

EPA proposed adding the Salem Acres site to the NPL on October 15, 1984, and added it to the 

final list on June 10, 198623. On May 26, 1987, EPA signed a Consent Order with the South 

Essex Sewerage District (SESD) to perform the studies to examine the nature and extent of 

contamination and present technical options for cleanup. In December 1993, EPA signed a 

Consent Decree with the SESD to clean up the lagoons. The EPA also signed a separate Consent 

Decree with the Massachusetts Electric Company to clean up the fly ash pile on site. In October 

1994, the EPA signed a Consent Order with DiBase Salem Realty Trust, the owner of the 

property and remaining party, to clean up the landfill and three debris piles. 

Cleanup of the site was addressed in two stages: initial actions and a long-term remedial phase 

focusing on cleanup of the entire site. In 1987, lagoon water was removed and disposed of, the 

slurry wall at the disposal areas was capped and a fence was installed. In 1988, EPA covered 

the sludge pits with a high density polyethylene synthetic cap, removed the liquid wastes from 

the disposal pits to an off-site storage facility, and constructed concrete cut-off walls to prevent 

further releases into the wetlands. In 1990, repairs were made to a monitoring well and a 

security fence on site, and signs were posted to further restrict access. 

The South Essex Sewerage District completed an investigation into the nature and extent of the 

soil and sludge contamination in early 1993. The investigation defined the contaminants of 

concern and recommended alternatives for final cleanup. Ground water at the site and adjacent 

wetlands demonstrated only minor contamination and therefore, no further remedial actions were 

planned. EPA selected a final remedy for the site, including sludge-fixation with fly ash and 

other substances such as cement and soil, as necessary and disposed of off-site to a secured 

landfill. A contingent remedy includes the installation of an EPA-approved cap. In 1995, the fly 

ash area and “old landfill” on site were excavated and the contaminated material was taken off 

site to a municipal landfill. Final site restoration of these areas occurred in 1996. The sludge 

lagoon cleanup was completed in the fall of 1997 and final site restoration was completed in the 

 

22 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Additional Information Regarding Fossil Fuel Combustion 

Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

23 

http://yosemite.epa.gov/r1/npl_pad.nsf/f52fa5c31fa8f5c885256adc0050b631/C8A4A5BEC0121F048525691F0063F

6F3?OpenDocument

13
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

spring of 1998. In the summer of 1999, fly ash was removed from the wetland adjacent to the 

former fly ash pile. The wetland was restored at this time. The site was officially deleted from 

the National Priorities List (NPL) effective July 23, 200124. The site now allows for unrestricted 

land use 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: The criteria for classifying this site as a 

proven damage case were (1) Scientific – Arsenic and chromium exceeded (health-based) 

primary MCLs, and (2) Administrative – The site has been placed on the NPL list, and EPA 

signed a Consent Order with the owner to clean up the lagoons. 

2. City of Beverly/Vitale Brothers Fly Ash Pit, Massachusetts25

History: This site is an abandoned gravel and sand mine that was used as an unpermitted landfill 

from the 1950’s until the mid-1970s. The site was operated by the Vitale Brothers until 1980, 

when the City of Beverly Conservation Commission gained ownership because of failure to pay 

property taxes. On the site, the Vitale Brothers accepted and disposed saltwater-quenched fly 

ash from New England Power Company along with other wastes. Leaking underground storage 

tanks containing petroleum products were also located at the site. In 1973, fly ash at the site 

eroded into a nearby swamp and a stream that is a tributary to a surface drinking water supply. 

The erosion created a damming effect and resulted in flooding of neighboring property. In 1988, 

surface water sampling of the stream revealed levels of iron and manganese significantly greater 

than upstream levels. Additionally, there were complaints of fugitive dust from the site from 

neighbors located 500 feet away. Air sampling on one occasion in 1988 revealed arsenic 

concentrations of 2 parts per billion. Finally, 1988 ground water sampling found arsenic and 

selenium in excess of their primary MCLs and aluminum, iron, and manganese in excess of 

secondary MCLs. According to the State, fly ash is the suspected source of contamination in all 

of these media. 

Fly ash is disposed at the site at depths from 14 to 36 feet. Not only is the site unlined, but 

ground water depth at the site is between 10 and 21 feet, indicating the likelihood of direct 

contact with fly ash. Fly ash also is observed to be present at the surface of the site with no 

cover or other surface runoff, erosion, or fugitive dust controls. Finally, the site is located in 

close proximity to a wetland and a surface water body. 

The site has a long history of noncompliance with local and State laws and regulations. 

Following the completion of a Comprehensive Site Assessment and Risk Characterization in 

preparation for potential remedial action under Massachusetts regulations for the assessment and 

cleanup of hazardous waste sites, the fly ash was removed and the site was redesigned with 

special attention to protecting the adjacent water courses from erosion26. The Vitale Flyash site 

 

24 Ibid 

25 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Review of Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste 

Damage Cases, November 29, 2000. 

26 http://www.erosioncontrol.com/ecm_0603_erosion.html

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

submitted a site closure report February 1, 2007, and a preliminary screening of the site closure 

report is underway27. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: This case was not counted as a proven 

damage case in the 1999 Regulatory Determination because it was a case of illegal disposal not 

representative of historical or current disposal practices. The case, however, otherwise meets the 

criteria for a proven damage case for the following reasons: (1) Scientific – (i) selenium and 

arsenic exceeded (health-based) primary MCLs, and (ii) there is evidence of contamination of 

nearby wetlands and surface waters; and (2) Administrative - the facility was the subject of 

several citations and the State has enforced remedial actions. 

3. Don Frame Trucking, Inc. Fly Ash Landfill, New York28 

History: This solid waste management facility had been used for disposal of fly ash, bottom ash, 

and other material including yard sweepings generated by the Niagara Mohawk Power 

Corporation’s Dunkirk Steam Station. The age of the facility was not identified in the materials 

provided. The available monitoring data for this facility include quarterly water quality analysis 

and various miscellaneous data collected at the facility from March 1989 through September 

1998. These data show down-gradient levels of lead greater than the primary MCL Action 

Level. These exceedances occurred in 1989 and 1996. The data also document elevations from 

background of sulfate, total dissolved solids, and manganese, including levels of manganese in a 

water supply well greater than the secondary MCL. 

As a result of the contamination, Don Frame Trucking recommended to the New York State 

Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) that the affected water supply well 

should immediately be connected to a public water supply. Also, on September 16, 1988, Don 

Frame Trucking, Inc. was directed to cease receiving the aforementioned wastes at the facility no 

later than October 15, 1988, in accordance with the standards contained in 6 NYCRR Part 360.29 

The site was divided into five separate sections. The NYSDEC directed Don Frame Trucking, 

Inc. to place two feet of a “final cover” over Section I. The soil should have a coefficient of 

permeability of 1 x 10-5 cm/sec. NYSDEC directed Section II to be covered with 18 inches of 

clay cover with a coefficient of permeability of 1 x 10-7 in two shifts. Once the permeability was 

tested and considered acceptable, NYSDEC directed Don Frame Trucking, Inc. to place six 

additional inches of topsoil was over the clay cover and then seed and mulch the section. 

Eighteen inches of clay with a coefficient of permeability of 1 x 10-7 was also directed to be 

placed on Sections III, IV, and V, followed by reseeding and mulching. Don Frame Trucking, 

Inc. was instructed to finish all remediation procedures by October 15, 1988, and then provide 

 

27 MADEP tracking number 3-00230; email message from Patricia Donahue, MADEP, July 9, 2007. 

28 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

29 Application of Don Frame Trucking, Inc. Petitioner for a Judgment Pursuant to Article 78 of the CPLR against 

the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Respondent; Supreme Court of the State of New 

York County of Chautauqua (July 22, 1988). Order G11278. 

15
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

certification by a licensed professional engineer that the facility was closed in accordance with 

the rules and regulations as stipulated by the NYSDEC by October 21, 1988. Post-closure 

ground water and surface water monitoring and maintenance were also expected to continue for 

30 years after final closure of the entire facility. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case:(1) Scientific - The lead levels found in downgradient wells exceed the primary MCL Action Level; (2) Administrative - The State has 

required remedial action as a result of the contamination; and (3) Court order – The owner was 

directed, by the Supreme Court of the State of New York County of Chautauqua (July 22, 1988), 

to cease receiving the aforementioned wastes at the facility no later than October 15, 1988. 

4. Virginia Electric Power Co. (VEPCO) Possum Point, VA30 

History: EPA identified this site as a proven damage case in the March 1999 Report to Congress. 

It is described in detail in the Report and supporting technical background documents in the 

rulemaking docket. 

The technical background document31 states: “One additional documented damage case is the 

Virginia Electric and Power Company (VEPCO) Possum Point Site, described in the 1993 

Regulatory Determination. This is an active facility with 40-acre unlined ash ponds with solids 

dredged to 80-acre lined ponds. These ponds received coal ash, pyrites, water treatment wastes, 

boiler cleaning wastes, and oil ash. Ground water monitoring found cadmium at concentrations 

3.6 times and nickel, at 26.4 times the primary MCLs. Monitoring for vanadium was conducted 

but no results were given. The elevated concentrations were attributed to the pyrites and oil ash. 

These wastes, along with metal cleaning wastes, were ordered sequestered to separate lined 

units.” 

The 1999 Report to Congress32 states: “Possum Point, Virginia (described in the 1993 

Supplemental Analysis). At this site, oil ash, pyrites, boiler chemical cleaning wastes, coal fly 

ash, and coal bottom ash were comanaged in an unlined pond, with solids dredged to a second 

pond. Levels of cadmium above 0.01 mg/L were recorded prior to 1986 (the primary MCL is 

0.005 mg/L). After that time, remedial actions were undertaken to segregate wastes (oil ash and 

low volume wastes were believed to be the source of contamination). Following this action, 

cadmium concentrations were below 0.01 mg/L.” 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: Based on evidence on exceedances of 

cadmium and nickel, the State pursued an Administrative Action by requiring the removal of the 

waste, thus qualifying it as a proven damage case. 

 

30 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

31 Technical Background Document For the Report to Congress On Remaining Wastes from Fossil Fuel 

Combustion: Potential Damage Cases, March 15, 1999 (http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/other/fossil/ffc2_397.pdf) 

32 http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/other/fossil/volume_2.pdf

16
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

5. PEPCO Morgantown Generating Station Faulkner Off-site Disposal Facility, 

Maryland33

History: Landfills at this site manage fly ash, bottom ash, and pyrites from the Morgantown 

Generating Station starting in 1970. Unlined settling ponds also are used at the site to manage 

stormwater runoff and leachate from the ash disposal area. In 1991, the State found that water 

quality was degraded in the underlying aquifer and that ground water contamination had 

migrated to nearby surface waters (including a stream and a wetland area). The impacts included 

vegetative damages, orange staining from iron precipitation, and low pH. Because of the ground 

water migration, the operator was cited for unpermitted discharges to surface water. The low pH 

impacts are believed to have resulted from pyrite oxidation. The low pH may also have 

contributed to the migration of other contaminants. Additionally, ground water beneath the 

facility is shallow. Documentation shows the water table is very close to the bottom of the ash 

disposal area at the down-gradient end of the facility and well above the base of the settling 

ponds used to manage stormwater runoff and leachate from the ash disposal area. 

Remedial measures at the site included closure and capping of older units, installation of liners in 

newer units, installation of a slurry wall to prevent ground water migration, and sequestration of 

pyrites. EPA identified this site as a proven damage case in the March 1999 Report to Congress. 

It is described in detail in the Report and supporting technical background documents in the 

rulemaking docket. 

Basis for Consideration as a proven Damage Case: EPA has categorized this case as a proven 

damage case for the following reasons: (1) Scientific - Ground water contamination migrated 

off-site; and (2) Administrative - The State required remedial action. 

6. Virginia Power Yorktown Power Station Chisman Creek Disposal Site, Virginia34

History: This site consists of three parcels of land that cover 27 acres. Between 1957 and 1974, 

abandoned sand and gravel pits at the site received fly ash from the combustion of coal and 

petroleum coke at the Yorktown Power Station. Disposal at the site ended in 1974 when 

Virginia Power began burning oil at the Yorktown plant. In 1980, nearby shallow residential 

wells became contaminated with vanadium and selenium. Water in the wells turned green and 

contained selenium above the primary MCL and sulfate above the secondary MCL. 

Investigations in response to the discolored drinking water found heavy metal contamination in 

the ground water around the fly ash disposal areas, in onsite ponds, and in the sediments of 

Chisman Creek and its tributaries. Arsenic, beryllium, chromium, copper, molybdenum, nickel, 

vanadium, and selenium were detected above background levels. 

 

33 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis 

Ruddy regarding Review of Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste Damage Cases, November 29, 2000. 

34 Ibid. Compendium of nineteen alleged coal combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007. 

17
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

The contamination at the site’s vicinity was caused by the combination of several factors: (i) The 

facility was operated with no dust or erosion controls; (ii) The facility is unlined and located in 

close proximity to drinking water wells, and ground water at the site was very shallow and 

possibly in contact with disposed waste.; (iii) A surface water tributary passed through or near 

the disposal areas. 

In September 1983, EPA added the site to the National Priorities List (NPL)35 under the 

Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liabilities Act (CERCLA). 

Cleanup began in late 1986 and was conducted in two parts. The first part addressed the fly ash 

pits and contaminated ground water and included the following steps: 

• Extension of public water to 55 homes with contaminated well water, 

• Capping the disposal pits with soil (2 pits) or compacted clay (1 pit) overlain with topsoil and 

vegetative growth, 

• Ground water and leachate collection for treatment and to lower the water table beneath the 

pits, and 

• Post-closure monitoring. 

The second part addressed the onsite ponds, a freshwater tributary stream, and the Chisman 

Creek estuary and included the following steps: 

• Relocation of a 600-foot portion of the tributary to minimize contact with the fly ash disposal 

areas, 

• Diversion of surface runoff, and 

• Long-term monitoring for the ponds, tributary, and estuary. 

Construction of all cleanup components was completed on December 21, 1990. The site has 

been redeveloped as a public park. Following the completion (in December 2006) of its third 

five-year review of the site, EPA determined that the remedial action at Operable Unit 1 is 

protective in the short term because the extent of the vanadium contamination in the shallow 

ground water aquifer is not presently known. EPA is presently working with Virginia Power to 

determine the extent of the vanadium contamination and to amend the restriction to make sure it 

provides the necessary assurance that it will be protective over time. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: EPA identified this site as a proven damage 

case in the March 1999 Report to Congress. It is described in detail in the Report and supporting 

technical background documents in the rulemaking docket. EPA has categorized this case as a 

proven damage case for the following reasons: (1) Scientific – (i) Drinking water wells contained 

selenium above the (health-based) primary MCL and (ii) There is evidence of surface water and 

sediment contamination; and (2) Administrative - The site was remediated under CERCLA. 

 

35 http://epa.gov/reg3hwmd/npl/VAD980712913.htm

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

7. Hyco Lake, Roxboro, North Carolina36

History: This case was originally identified by a public interest group in a table alleging 

selenium contamination, and a selenium fish consumption advisory37. 

Hyco Lake was constructed in 1964 as a cooling water source for the CP&L Roxboro Steam 

Electric Plant. The lake received discharges from the plant’s ash-settling ponds containing high 

levels of selenium. The selenium accumulated in the fish in the lake, affecting reproduction and 

causing declines in fish populations in the late 1970s and 1980s. The North Carolina Department 

of Health and Human Services issued a fish consumption advisory in 198838. 

In 1990, CP&L installed a dry ash handling system to meet new permit limits for selenium. To 

determine the effectiveness of the new handling system, the Department of Water Quality is 

requiring long-term monitoring of the lake. Based on the results of fish tissue sampling, the fish 

consumption advisory has been rescinded in stages starting in 199439. It was completely 

rescinded in August, 200140. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: This case is categorized as a proven 

ecological damage case for the following reasons: (1) Scientific - declines in fish populations 

were observed (1970s & 1980s); (2) Administrative - The State concluded that the impacts were 

attributable to the ash ponds, and issued a fish consumption advisory as a result of the 

contamination. 

8. Georgia Power Company, Plant Bowen, Cartersville, GA41

History: This unlined CCW management unit was put in service in 1968. On July 28, 2002, a 

sinkhole developed in the (coal) ash pond of the Georgia Power Company - Plant Bowen Facility 

(coal-fired generating facility). The sinkhole ultimately reached four acres and a depth of thirty 

 

36 Compendium of nineteen alleged coal combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007. 

37 Letter from the Hoosier Environmental Council to the RCRA Docket Information Center regarding comments on 

the May 2000 Regulatory Determination, September 19, 2000. 

38 Selenium Posting on Hyco Lake Rescinded, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services 

(NCDHHS), August 2001. 

39 Roanoke River Basinwide Water Quality Plan, Section B, Chapter 5: Roanoke River Subbasin 03-02-05, North 

Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NCDENR), July 2001. Available at 

http://h2o.enr.state.nc.us/basinwide/roanoke/2001/2001_Roanoke_wq_management_plan.htm

40 Selenium Posting on Hyco Lake Rescinded, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services 

(NCDHHS), August 2001. 

41 Compendium of nineteen alleged coal combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007. Ecological Assessment of 

Ash Deposition and Removal, Euharlee Creek, Georgia Power Bowen Plant, available in the docket to the CCW 

NODA (EPA-HQ-RCRA-2006-0796). 

19
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

feet. The integrity of the ash pond dikes did not appear to be compromised. The company 

estimated that 2.25 million gallons of ash/water mixture was released to an unnamed tributary of 

the Euharlee Creek, containing 281 tons of ash. Georgia’s Department of Natural Resources 

alleges an unpermitted discharge of water containing approximately 80 tons of ash slurry entered 

Euharlee Creek through a stormwater drainage pipe resulting in a temporary degradation of 

public waters. 

Georgia Department of Natural Resources issued a consent order on November 20, 2002. The 

order contained the following provisions: 

• Fine of $31,250 was imposed; 

• Company to perform ecological impact study of the ash discharge into Euharlee 

Creek and recommend remedial action; 

• Company to submit proposed dredging plan if necessitated by impact study; 

• Company to submit report on actions taken to fill sinkhole and grout fissures 

under the dike; 

• Company to perform geological engineering assessment of the ash pond stability 

and recommend corrective actions to address future sinkhole development; 

• Company to submit a revised ash water management plan; 

• Georgia EPD approved corrective action plans shall be implemented; and 

• Company shall submit interim progress report and final schedule for completion 

of implementation of corrective action plans. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: (1) Scientific - unpermitted discharge of 

water containing ash slurry into the Euharlee Creek resulting in a temporary degradation of 

public waters; and (2) Administrative - Georgia Department of Natural Resources issued a 

consent order requiring, among others, a fine and corrective action. 

9. Department of Energy - Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant Chestnut Ridge Operable Unit 2 

DOE Oak Ridge Reservation, Oak Ridge, Tennessee42

History: This case was originally identified by public commenters in a table that alleged 

aluminum, arsenic, iron, and selenium contamination, as well as fish deformities and a region of 

a stream where no fish are found43. 

Chestnut Ridge Operable Unit (OU) 2 consists of Upper McCoy Branch, the Filled Coal Ash 

Pond (FCAP), and the area surrounding the sluice channel formerly associated with coal ash 

disposal in the FCAP. Upper McCoy Branch runs from the top of Chestnut Ridge across the 

FCAP into Rogers Quarry. The FCAP is an 8.5 acre area. The sluice channel area extends 

approximately 1,000 feet from the crest of Chestnut Ridge to the edge of the FCAP. 

 

42 Compendium of nineteen alleged coal combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007. 

43 Letter from HEC et. al., to Dennis Ruddy, February, 2002. 

20
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

The FCAP is an ash retention impoundment used to dispose of coal ash slurry from the Y-12 

steam plant. It was constructed in 1955 by building an earthen dam across a northern tributary of 

Upper McCoy Branch, and was designed to hold 20 years of ash. By July of 1967, the 

impoundment was filled to within four feet of the top of the earthen dam. Once the 

impoundment was no longer able to retain the ash solids, the slurry was released directly into 

Upper McCoy Branch through direct flow over the earthen dam. In 1967 and 1968, Upper 

McCoy Branch was diverted into Rogers Quarry. Between 1967 and 1989, the ash slurry flowed 

directly from the FCAP into Upper McCoy Branch and then into Rogers Quarry. In 1989, a 

bypass pipe was constructed to carry the slurry directly from the steam plant to Rogers Quarry. 

Disposal of ash into Rogers Quarry was discontinued in 1990, when a chemical vacuum system 

and a bottom ash dewatering system were installed at the plant. Both fly ash and bottom ash are 

now disposed in a landfill. Existing ash deposits were left in place. Erosion of both the spillway 

and the ash itself has occurred, leading to releases of ash into Upper McCoy Branch44. 

In the mid-1980s, the Y-12 plant began investigation and ground water monitoring at a number 

of locations within its boundaries, as required under RCRA and by the Tennessee Department of 

Environmental Conservation (TDEC). The entire Oak Ridge Reservation was placed on the NPL 

in 1989. CERCLA requires all sites under investigation to complete a remedial investigation to 

determine the nature and extent of contamination, evaluate the risks to public health and the 

environment, and determine remedial action goals. The Remedial Investigation for OU 

conducted in two phases. Phase I was conducted by CH2M Hill in the Upper McCoy Branch 

zone. Phase II was conducted by CDM Federal in the FCAP and sluice area zones. Both 

investigations consisted of surface and ground water, soil, and ash sampling. The table below 

shows a summary of the results of the monitoring programs45. 

Table 3. Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant Chestnut Ridge Operable Unit 2 

Surface and Ground Water Monitoring Programs 

Monitoring type Monitoring 

location 

Constituents with exceedances 

of ambient/ 

reference/background 

concentrations 

Constituents with 

exceedance of MCLs 

or SMCLs 

Upper McCoy 

Branch (Phase I) 

Al, Fe, Cu Al, As, Fe, Mn 

Upper McCoy 

Branch (Phase II) 

Al, As, Ca, Mn, K, Na Al, As, Mn 

Surface Water 

FCAP Pond Water Al, As, Ba, Ca, Cr, Cu, Fe, 

Pb, Mg, Mn, K, Na, V, Zn 

Al, As, Fe, Mn 

 

44 Feasibility Study for the Y-12 Chestnut Ridge Operable Unit 2 Filled Coal Ash Pond, Oak Ridge, Tennessee. 

DOE/OR/02-1259&D1. August 1994.

45 Ibid. 

21
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Monitoring type Monitoring 

location 

Constituents with exceedances 

of ambient/ 

reference/background 

concentrations 

Constituents with 

exceedance of MCLs 

or SMCLs 

Spring Water Al, As, Ba, Ca, Pb, Mn, Hg, 

K, V, Zn 

Al, As, Fe, Pb, Mn 

Upper McCoy 

Branch (Phase I) 

Al, Ba, Ca, Co, Cu, Fe, K, 

Mg, Mn, Na, Se, Zn 

Al, Fe, Mn 

Upper McCoy 

Branch (Phase II) 

information not provided Mn 

Ground Water 

Sluice Channel 

Area 

information not provided Mn 

Near Upper 

McCoy Branch 

(Phase II) 

Soil Al, As, Ba, Fe, Mn, K, Na Not applicable 

Near FCAP Al, As, K, Na Not applicable 

Ash Entire Site No background data Not applicable 

Biological monitoring has also been conducted at the site as part of a RCRA Facility 

Investigation (RFI) required by the 1984 Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments to RCRA, 

and as part of the Phase I Remedial Investigation. The biological monitoring conducted for the 

RFI included toxicity testing, bioaccumulation studies, fish community assessments, and a 

benthic macro-invertebrate community assessment. Biological monitoring for the Phase I RI 

consisted of toxicity testing, a benthic macro-invertebrate assessment, a soil (ash) invertebrate 

survey, and bioaccumulation studies46. 

The conclusions for the RFI biological monitoring programs were as follows: 

• Toxicity testing: The results of the toxicity testing did not show significant evidence for 

toxic conditions in Upper McCoy Branch. 

• Bioaccumulation studies: 

• Concentrations of selenium, arsenic, and possibly thallium were elevated in 

largemouth bass from Rogers Quarry, relative to bass from another nearby site; 

• Arsenic exceeded screening criteria; 

• Some fish from Rogers Quarry had deformed bony structures (these effects were 

not described in literature as effects of arsenic or selenium); and 

• Bioaccumulation was not indicated in Upper McCoy Branch discharge 

 

46 Ibid. 

22
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

• Fish community assessment: The results indicate that Upper McCoy Branch is under 

severe stress: 

• No fish populations were found above Rogers Quarry; and 

• Downstream sunfish populations had high percentages of deformed heads and 

eroded fins. 

• Benthic Macro-invertebrate Community Assessment: The results were indicative of 

moderate stress. The stress appears to be habitat alteration as a result of ash deposition 

within the stream channel and possibly leaching of potential toxicants from the ash. 

The conclusions for the RI biological monitoring programs were as follows: 

• Toxicity testing: The results did not show toxic conditions in Upper McCoy Branch. 

• Benthic Macro-invertebrate Assessment: The results exhibited no strong evidence of 

impact at Upper McCoy Branch. There were some differences in July samples, which 

could be due to natural variations between the two locations, or could be due to low flow 

conditions increasing concentrations of contaminants from the ash. 

• Soil (ash) Invertebrate Study: No invertebrates were found in samples from the sluice 

channel area or the FCAP, indicating this is not a possible pathway for contamination of 

the food chain. 

• Bioaccumulation Studies: 

• Vegetation: The results show that selenium uptake into plants is a possible source 

of exposure to soil invertebrates and small mammals. 

• Small mammals: The study found higher concentrations of arsenic, selenium and 

lead in animals from the FCAP than in animals from a reference site. 

A remedial action was conducted to stabilize the filled coal ash pond, McCoy Bridge dam 

holding contaminated pond sediments in place. A wetland, removed during stabilization 

activities, was re-constructed as part of the remedial action. Physical work was completed in 

March 1997. The remedial action report was approved in May 199747. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: This case has been categorized as a proven 

ecological damage case based on scientific documentation of impacts to fish and other wildlife 

on-site. This case has also been categorized as a potential (human health) damage case based on 

(1) Scientific basis - Exceedances of primary and secondary MCLs were detected in on-site 

monitoring locations, and (2) Administrative grounds - Federal RCRA and the Tennessee 

Department of Environmental Conservation (TDEC) requirements, including placement of the 

entire Oak Ridge Reservation on the NPL. 

 

47 http://www.epa.gov/region4/waste/npl/npltn/oakridtn.htm

23
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

10. South Carolina Electric & Gas Canadys Plant, South Carolina48 

History: This facility is a coal-fired power plant located along the Edisto River approximately 10 

miles south of St. George, South Carolina. Ash from the power plant is mixed with water and 

managed in an ash storage pond. The facility operated an unlined, 80-acre ash pond from 1974 

to 1989. A new, 95-acre ash pond lined with a bentonite slurry wall began operation in 1989. 

Since 1982, arsenic has consistently been found in monitoring wells surrounding the old ash 

pond at levels above the MCL. Nickel also has occasionally been found above a State standard 

in a single monitoring well adjacent to the old ash pond. Because of these results, DHEC 

required the facility to delineate the extent of the contamination surrounding the old ash pond. 

The contamination was found to extend beyond the original property boundary of the facility, but 

the operator was allowed to buy neighboring property under State policy at the time. The 

investigation also showed that the contamination was not reaching the Edisto River and that its 

vertical extent was limited by a confining geologic unit 15 to 30 feet below the property. The 

facility is currently deactivating the old ash pond, with ash being removed and sold to a cement 

company. DHEC concluded that further migration of contaminants was not likely given the 

ground water conditions and the ongoing deactivation. In 1996, therefore, DHEC approved a 

mixing zone with ongoing monitoring around the old ash pond. The mixing zone establishes a 

compliance boundary around the old ash pond. Arsenic concentrations above the MCL are 

permitted within the mixing zone, but not at or outside of the compliance boundary. 

The new ash pond extends beyond the compliance boundary of the old ash pond. Sampling in 

May 2000 found arsenic above its MCL at, and external to, the compliance boundary in wells 

that are adjacent to the new ash pond. Resampling in June 2000 confirmed the noncompliance. 

The facility’s engineering contractor and DHEC suspect this arsenic contamination is associated 

with a separate plume originating from the new ash pond. DHEC suspects improper anchoring 

or a breach of the slurry wall surrounding the new ash pond. Based on a geophysical 

investigation, the facility’s engineering contractor concluded that the slurry wall appears to have 

failed in various locations, allowing multiple seeps. The contractor noted that drought-like 

conditions during the preceding three years have caused a site-wide decrease in the water table. 

The increase in potentiometric head between the new ash pond and the falling water table may be 

a contributing factor to the breaches in the slurry wall. The facility has proposed additional 

monitoring to delineate the extent of the new arsenic plume and an extension of the compliance 

boundary to encompass the new ash pond. The facility also is evaluating possible corrective 

action alternatives for repairing or replacing the slurry wall. The extent of the new plume has not 

yet been fully delineated and DHEC has not yet determined what response may be required of 

the facility. 

This site was initially classified as indeterminate because there was no information on the extent 

of the contamination (on-site or off-site), quantitative data on whether arsenic levels exceeded 

State standards, or confirmation that the contamination was attributable to fossil fuel combustion 

waste. In a follow-up assessment conducted after the Regulatory Determination, a representative 

 

48 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Final Revised Report on Resolution of 18 Previously 

Indeterminate Candidate Damage Cases, March 5, 2003. 

24
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

from South Carolina’s Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) confirmed that 

there is arsenic contamination attributable to two coal combustion waste (CCW) management 

units at this site. According to the DHEC contact, it is unlikely that there are any ground water 

supply wells or other human exposure points in the vicinity of the facility. Furthermore, ground 

water supply wells in the region typically are drilled beneath the underlying confining geologic 

unit. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: Scientific - There are exceedances of the 

health-based standard for arsenic at this site. While there are no known human exposure points 

nearby, some recent exceedances have been detected outside an established regulatory boundary. 

11. Belews Lake, North Carolina49

History: This Lake was impounded in the early 1970s to serve as a cooling reservoir for a large 

coal-fired power plant. Fly ash produced by the power plant was disposed in a settling basin, 

which released selenium-laden effluent in return flows to the Lake. Due to the selenium 

contamination, 16 of the 20 fish species originally present in the reservoir were entirely 

eliminated, including all the primary sport fish. The pattern of selenium contamination from the 

plant and fish impacts persisted from 1974 to 1985. In late 1985, under mandates from the State 

of North Carolina, the power company changed operations for fly ash disposal, and seleniumladen effluent no longer entered the Lake. 

A fish advisory was issued for selenium in 1993 which was rescinded December 31, 200050. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: EPA has categorized this case as a proven 

ecological damage case for the following reasons: (1) Scientific evidence of extensive impacts 

on fish populations due to direct discharge to a surface water body, and (2) Administrative - The 

State required changes in operating practices to mitigate the contamination. 

12. U.S. Department of Energy Savannah River Project, South Carolina51

History: The Savannah River Project commenced operations and disposal of ash in 1952. At this 

site, a coal-fired power plant sluices fly ash to a series of open settling basins. A continuous 

flow of sluice water exits the basins, overflows, and enters a swamp that in turn discharges to 

Beaver Dam Creek. Observations of bullfrogs of all developmental stages in the settling basins 

and swamp suggest that the mixture of pollutants that characterize the site does not prevent 

 

49 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Review of Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste 

Damage Cases, November 29, 2000. 

50 http://134.67.99.49/scripts/esrimap.dll?Name=Listing&Cmd=NameQuery&Left=-178.215026855469&Right=-

52.6202812194824&Top=83.1083221435547&Bottom=-

14.3755550384521&shp=3&shp=6&idChoice=3&loc=on&NameZoom=NC%20-%20Belews%20Lake

51 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Review of Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste 

Damage Cases, November 29, 2000. 

 

25
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

completion of the life cycle. However, bullfrog tadpoles inhabiting the site have oral deformities 

and impaired swimming and predator avoidance abilities. There also is evidence of metabolic 

impacts on water snakes inhabiting the site. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: EPA has categorized this case as a proven 

ecological damage case for the following reasons: (1) Scientific evidence of impacts on several 

species in a nearby wetland caused by releases from the ash settling ponds. 

13. Dairyland Power Cooperative E.J. Stoneman Generating Station Ash Disposal Pond, 

Wisconsin52

History: This facility is an unlined pond that managed ash, demineralizer regenerant, and sand 

filter backwash from the 1950’s until 1987. During the facility’s operating life, ground water 

monitoring of on-site wells around the pond found cadmium and chromium in excess of primary 

MCLs and sulfate, manganese, iron, and zinc in excess of secondary MCLs. Nearby private 

drinking water wells showed levels of sulfate and boron elevated from background. As a result, 

the State concluded that other constituents could reach the drinking water wells in the future.53 

Because of the evidence of ground water contamination and because the facility violated State 

location standards, the State denied the operator’s proposal to continue operation of the pond. 

The State also required the operator to close the facility and provide alternative drinking water to 

the affected residences. The history of contamination also led the State to require a new landfill 

on the site to be constructed with a double liner and leachate collection. 

In addition to being unlined, the unconsolidated soils beneath the site consist of highly 

permeable sand and gravel (estimated permeability of 10-2 cm/sec). The pond was located close 

to the Mississippi River, in violation of the State’s requirement for 300 feet of separation from 

navigable rivers. The proximity to the river caused variable water table levels and periods of 

ground water mounding, during which the depth of ground water beneath the unit was very 

shallow (possibly as low as 1 foot). Finally, the pond was located closer to 15 water supply 

wells than allowed by State standards. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: EPA identified this site as a proven damage 

case in the March 1999 Report to Congress. It is described in detail in the Report and supporting 

technical background documents in the rulemaking docket. EPA has categorized this case as a 

proven damage case for the following reasons: (1) Scientific - Cadmium and chromium exceeded 

(health-based) primary MCLs, and contamination migrated to nearby, private drinking water 

wells; and (2) Administrative - The State required closure of the facility. 

 

52 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis 

Ruddy regarding Review of Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste Damage Cases, November 29, 2000. 

53 More recent monitoring data confirm this conclusion, with cadmium exceeding the primary MCL and iron and 

manganese exceeding secondary MCLs in the drinking water wells. 

26
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

14. WEPCO Highway 59 Landfill, Wisconsin54

History: This site is located in an old sand and gravel pit and received fly ash and bottom ash 

between 1969 and 1978. Ground water monitoring between 1988 and 1998 found sulfate, boron, 

manganese, chloride, and iron above the State’s Enforcement Standards (ES) and arsenic above 

the State’s Preventive Action Level (PAL) in nearby private wells. Other down-gradient 

monitoring wells showed sulfate, boron, iron, and manganese in excess of the ES and selenium 

and chloride in excess of PALs. State agency staff considered this site one of the most seriously 

affected coal ash sites in the State. The State required a continuation of monitoring at this closed 

facility in 1982 and an investigation into ground water contamination in 1994. 

The facility is unlined and the soil underlying the site consists of fine to coarse sands and gravel 

with minor amounts of silt and clay and is believed to be relatively permeable. The original sand 

and gravel pit included an area of standing water. The presence of the standing water is 

attributed to the elevation of the ground water table exceeding the base of the pit in this area. 

Waste was disposed directly into this area to a depth of 5 to 10 feet below the water table. (Note 

also that the facility is located in close proximity to a wetland, although there is no 

documentation of impact to flora in the wetland.) 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: EPA has categorized this case as a proven 

damage case of the following reasons: (1) Scientific - Although the boron standard was not 

health-based at the time of the exceedances, the boron levels reported for the facility would have 

exceeded the State’s recently promulgated health-based ES for boron; and contamination from 

the facility appears to have migrated to off-site private wells; and (2) Administrative - As a result 

of the various PAL and ES exceedances, the State required a ground water investigation. 

15. Alliant (formerly Wisconsin Power & Light) Nelson Dewey Ash Disposal Facility, 

Wisconsin55

History: This facility was originally constructed in the early 1960’s as a series of settling basins 

for sluiced ash and permitted by the State in 1979. Waste disposal at the site resulted in 

exceedances of the State’s Preventative Action Levels (PALs) for arsenic, selenium, sulfate, 

boron, and fluoride. These exceedances occurred within the design management zone of the 

facility. Waste disposal also has resulted in exceedances of the State’s Enforcement Standards 

(ES) for boron, fluoride, and sulfate outside the design management zone of the facility. As a 

result of these exceedances, the State required an investigation of ground water contamination in 

1993. In 1996, the facility began converting to dry ash management and covering/closing phases 

of the facility. 

 

54 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis 

Ruddy regarding Review of Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste Damage Cases, November 29, 2000. 

55 Ibid. 

27
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Soil underlying the site consists of unconsolidated glacial outwash deposits of relatively high 

permeability (estimated between 10-2 and 10-5 cm/sec). The facility is not only unlined, but was 

originally designed to allow sluiced liquids to infiltrate to ground water, with direct discharge to 

surface water occurring only occasionally. For much of their life, the basins operated with a 

relatively high hydraulic head. In fact, in 1986, the facility began using direct discharge to 

reduce the hydraulic head in response to PAL exceedances for sulfate. This combination of 

conditions resulted in a ground water mound beneath the ash disposal area. While depth to 

ground water at the site is generally approximately 10 feet, the height of the ground water mound 

was estimated at 5 to 8 feet, resulting in an estimated effective depth to ground water of only 2 to 

5 feet underneath the disposal area. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: EPA has categorized this case as a proven 

damage case for the following reasons: (1) Scientific - Although the boron standard was not 

health-based at the time of the exceedances, the boron levels reported for the facility would have 

exceeded the State’s recently promulgated health-based ES for boron; and (2) Administrative - 

As a result of the various PAL and ES exceedances, the State required a ground water 

investigation, and the facility took action to remediate ground water contamination and prevent 

further contamination. 

16. WEPCO Cedar-Sauk Landfill, Wisconsin56

History: This facility is an abandoned sand and gravel pit that received coal combustion waste 

from the WEPCO Port Washington Power Plant from 1969 to 1979. After closure of the facility, 

ground water monitoring revealed exceedances of the primary MCL for selenium, the State 

standard for boron, and the secondary MCL for sulfate. Vegetative damage resulting from boron 

uptake also was observed in a nearby wetland. Presumably, this damage is the result of ground 

water migration to the wetland. As a result, the State required installation of relief wells to 

confine and remediate the contamination plume and installation of an upgraded cover at the site. 

The facility is not only unlined, but was constructed over shallow ground water57 in highly 

permeable (10-3 to 10-2 cm/sec) media. Some time after closure, the water table rose, saturating 

portions of the ash fill. Furthermore, the original soil cover installed at closure -- less than 2 feet 

in places -- was found to be insufficient. Finally, the site was located in close proximity to a 

wetland. 

EPA identified this site in its original 1988 Report to Congress on Wastes from the Combustion 

of Fossil Fuels by Electric Utility Power Plants and analyzed it further in the supplemental 

analysis conducted for its 1993 Regulatory Determination58. This case was not counted as a 

 

56 Ibid. 

57 Quantitative data on the original depth to ground water are not available, but documentation on the site reports 

that the water table was near the base of the original pit. 

58 Supplemental Analysis of Potential Risks to Human Health and the Environment from Large-Volume Coal 

Combustion Waste. U.S. EPA., July 30, 1993. Available from the docket for the 1993 Regulatory Determination 

for Fossil Fuel Combustion (Part 1), EPA-HQ-RCRA-1993-0042-1642. 

28
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

proven damage case in the 1999 Report to Congress, however, because there was no evidence of 

comanagement of low-volume wastes at the site. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: EPA has categorized this case as a proven 

damage case for the following reasons: (1) Scientific - Selenium in ground water exceeded the 

(health-based) primary MCL, and there was clear evidence of vegetative damage; and (2) 

Administrative - The State required remedial action. 

17. Wisconsin Electric Power Co. (WEPCO) Port Washington Facility, Wisconsin59

History: Originally, the commenters identified this Wisconsin site in a table that alleged fly ash 

contaminated several drinking water wells with boron and selenium. Following a preliminary 

evaluation by the EPA, this site was initially classified as indeterminate because (i) the 

commenters did not identify the source of the information, and (ii) 

No quantitative data or further information about this site was available. 

In the course of reassessment conducted following the Regulatory Determination, a copy of the 

original Water Well Journal article cited by the commenters was obtained from the National 

Ground Water Association (NGWA). The article presented instances in which boron and 

selenium concentrations exceeded standards in a well located down-gradient of the CCW 

disposal site. Contact was established with Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) 

Waste Management Program. The DNR representative reported that the site affects a residential, 

private water well supply. He located the well at about 250 feet south of an old quarry that was 

filled to 40-60 feet in depth with fly ash from the Wisconsin Electric Power Company. The 

power company placed fly ash in the quarry from 1948-1971, so the ash had been there at least 

20 years prior to the contamination described by the article. 

In lieu of providing up-gradient well monitoring data, the DNR representative stated with 

certainty that in his best professional judgment the boron levels reported for the well are not 

naturally occurring. He also is confident that the contaminants come from the quarry because of 

the proximity to the monitoring well. He added that boron is characteristic of coal ash and that 

geologically there is no naturally-occurring source in that area of Wisconsin that would produce 

boron levels that high. However, he was not aware that a boron standard existed at the time of 

the exceedances. He reiterated that the selenium concentration exceeds the selenium standard 

reported in the article. Based on today’s standard of 50ug/L, the levels of selenium reported 

would not be considered a compliance problem. 

Based on the information provided by the State, contamination from this facility appears to have 

migrated to off-site private wells. Documentation to confirm this analysis was received in the 

form of a laboratory report from the State Laboratory of Hygiene. Samples collected at the John 

& Dolly Keating Port Washington Sample Tap Pit (an off-site drinking water well) showed very 

high concentrations of boron. Although the State did not have a health-based standard for boron 

at the time of the exceedances, the boron levels reported for the facility would have exceeded the 

State’s recently promulgated health-based enforcement standard for boron. Samples collected 

 

59 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Final Revised Report on Resolution of 18 Previously 

Indeterminate Candidate Damage Cases, March 5, 2003. 

29
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

also showed elevated selenium concentrations, but the levels detected would not exceed the 

current primary MCL. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: This case is categorized as a proven damage 

case based on a scientific observation - The off-site exceedance of a health-based standard for 

selenium, caused by the fact that the site is an unlined former sand and gravel quarry and is in 

close proximity to drinking water wells. 

18. Lansing Board of Water & Light (LBWL) North Lansing Landfill, Michigan60

History: The North Lansing Landfill (NLL), a former gravel quarry pit, was licensed in 1974 for 

disposal of inert fill materials including soil, concrete, and brick. From 1980 to 1997, the NLL 

was used for disposal of coal ash from the Lansing Board of Water and Light (LBWL) electric 

and steam generating plants. The NLL has three disposal areas, two of which were used for coal 

ash disposal. Filling of Area I ceased in 1988 and a temporary cover was placed over the ash. 

Area III was the active disposal area from 1988 to January 1997. A temporary cover was placed 

over Area III in September 1998 and grass was planted on this cover. Area II was not actively 

used for disposal, although some ash has washed into this area. Since 1992, Area II has usually 

contained standing water from on- and off-site storm water runoff. 

Among the damages that commenters alleged existed at this site were down-gradient selenium 

and arsenic exceeding their MCLs and down-gradient sulfate greater than “allowable water 

quality standards.” The commenters also stated that an adjacent municipal well field is 

“threatened.” 

The site owner claimed that sulfate contamination is due to wastes other than fly ash in the 

landfill or else is due to off-site sources. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality 

(MDEQ) confirmed in writing that ground water contamination had occurred at this historic 

landfill, which was constructed before current State regulations were in place. The site was 

eventually closed because the inadequate control of contamination violated current regulatory 

requirements. According to the letter, the NLL was forced to take remedial action to address the 

contamination. 

This site was initially classified as indeterminate because (i) the documents and quantitative data 

supporting the alleged damages were not available; (ii) information was needed to positively 

identify the source of the contamination; and (iii) more information was needed to describe the 

extent of ground water contamination and to establish whether this contamination extends offsite. 

In an effort to reassess this alleged damage case, EPA’s contractor contacted MDEQ and found 

that this site was in the process of a Remedial Investigation (RI) and Feasibility Study (FS). The 

following information is based on the RI Report, published in May 1999 and revised in 

December 1999. 

 

60 Ibid. 

30
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

There are two aquifers beneath the NLL. The upper aquifer is highly permeable, but is not used 

for drinking water. The lower aquifer (the Saginaw), however, supplies the City of Lansing with 

drinking water. Fill underlying the ash has lower hydraulic conductivity than the underlying 

aquifer, but does not constitute a liner. The underlying fill has settled in places and the water 

table has risen, so that lower portions of the ash are now saturated in Areas I and III. The 

standing water in Area II has merged with ground water, forming a mound in the water table. 

According to the Lansing Board of Water and Light North Lansing Landfill Remedial 

Investigation Report (the RI Report), this mounding effect likely extends laterally into the ash, 

thereby increasing the saturated ash thickness, and consequently the volume of ash subject to 

leaching in Areas I and III. Because of the rise in the water table, the facility no longer meets the 

State’s requirement for a 4-foot isolation distance between wastes and ground water. Moreover, 

in mid- to late-1993, abrupt increases were observed in sulfate and selenium concentrations in an 

on-site monitoring well. As a result, LBWL was required to perform a remedial investigation 

and feasibility study. The RI Report concluded that the timing of the increase in contamination 

indicated that leachate released from the saturated fly ash was the source of the contamination. 

The objectives of the RI included characterization of site conditions, definition of the nature and 

extent of ground water impacts, and estimation of future migration. This analysis is complicated 

by the presence of other known or potential sources of ground water contamination both upgradient and down-gradient of the NLL site. Therefore, the remedial investigation used 

statistical comparisons (i.e., tolerance intervals calculated from up-gradient and background 

monitoring data) to delineate ground water impacts from the NLL. Ground water concentrations 

were compared to Michigan’s Part 201 criteria. The Part 201 standards for ground water identify 

contaminant concentrations that are safe for long-term, daily consumption. The investigation’s 

statistical analysis, modeling results, and conclusions form the basis for the analysis of the NLL 

as a damage case. 

For a variety of reasons, the RI Report concluded that boron, iron, pH, strontium, selenium, and 

sulfate are of little concern. The RI Report concluded that the constituents of the most concern 

are lithium, manganese, and potassium. Based on statistical analysis and consideration of sitespecific factors, however, the following cannot be conclusively linked to the NLL: boron, iron, 

pH, and sulfate. Of the remaining contaminants of concern: 

• Lithium appears to be attributable to the NLL and concentrations are above health-based 

standards off-site; 

• Manganese contamination on-site appears to be attributable to the NLL and concentrations are 

above non-health based-standards. (Note that off-site concentrations of manganese also are 

above non-health-based standards, but do not appear to be attributable to the NLL); 

• Potassium appears to be attributable to the NLL, but has no regulatory standard; 

• Selenium appears to be attributable to the NLL and concentrations are above health-based 

standards on-site, but not off-site; 

• Strontium appears, based on statistics, to be attributable to the NLL, but concentrations are 

below health based standards. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: This site was classified as a proven damage 

case based on a scientific observation of off-site exceedances of the State’s health-based standard 

31
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

for lithium. The exceedance was caused by the fact that the site is an unlined former gravel 

quarry with an elevated ground water table leading to ground water contact. 

19. Northern Indiana Public Service Corp. (NIPSCO) Yard 520 Landfill Site (Brown’s 

Landfill) Township of Pines, Porter County, IN61

History: NIPSCO’s Bailly and Michigan City power plants have deposited an estimated 1 

million tons of fly ash in the Town of Pines since 1983. Fly ash was buried in the landfill and 

used as construction fill in the town. The ash is pervasive on site, visible in roads and 

driveways62. 

Pines is located near the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, about 2 miles south of Lake 

Michigan. This is a region of sand dune ridges which separate low-lying, poorly drained wetland 

areas. The soil is very sandy, unconsolidated, highly-acidic, and with a high organic content. 

These sands overlie a less permeable clay-rich unit. The ground water flows in a northerly 

direction from the Yard 520 landfill toward the town63. 

In April 2000, Indiana DEM received a complaint from a Pines resident that water from her 

private well tasted foul. IDEM conducted sampling and found residential wells contaminated 

with elevated levels of benzene, arsenic, manganese, and VOCs including benzene. In 2001, 

EPA’s Superfund program conducted a preliminary assessment and site investigation, and found 

elevated levels of MTBE, boron, manganese, and molybdenum. In January 2002, IDEM 

recommended the site for EPA’s National Priorities List64. 

Additional site investigations indicate that the Pines Yard 520 Landfill site is the likely source of 

contamination of residential water wells, caused by leaching of heavy metals (manganese, boron, 

molybdenum, arsenic, lead) from fly ash that was buried in the landfill and used as construction 

fill. The presence of elevated levels of contaminants that are not associated with coal ash, such 

as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and MTBE, indicate that there are additional sources of 

contamination that are not related to coal ash65. 

EPA and the responsible parties signed an Administrative Order of Consent effective January 

2003 to cover costs of connecting the affected areas to Michigan City’s water system (USEPA 

2003a). In April 2004, EPA and IDEM negotiated an Administrative Order of Consent with the 

 

61 Compendium of nineteen alleged coal combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007. 

62 Tim Drexler, Remedial Project Manager, telephone communications with Bonnie Robinson, USEPA. June 5, 

2003. 

63 Final Site Investigation Report on Ground water Contamination, Township of Pines, Porter County, Indiana. 

December 2002. 

64 EPA Announces Investigation Results at Pines Site (Fact Sheet). January 2003. 

65 Final Site Investigation Report on Ground water Contamination, Township of Pines, Porter County, Indiana. 

December 2002. 

32
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

responsible parties for continued work at the site66. . In January 2004, the Hoosier 

Environmental Council, Inc. filed a complaint for declaratory and injunctive relief against 

NISOURCE, the parent company of NIPSCO (U.S. District Court). 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: This site was classified as a proven damage 

case based on (1) Scientific evidence for boron, molybdenum, arsenic and lead exceeding healthbased standards in water wells away from the Pines Yard 520 Landfill site, and (2) 

Administrative Orders of consent signed between the EPA and IDEM with responsible parties 

for continued work at the site. 

20. Brandy Branch Reservoir, Texas67 

History: This case was originally identified by a public interest group in a table alleging 

selenium and chromium contamination, and a selenium fish consumption advisory68. 

The Brandy Branch Reservoir is a power plant cooling reservoir built in 1983 for Southwestern 

Electric Power Company’s Pirkey Power Plant. The cooling reservoir received discharges from 

ash ponds containing elevated levels of selenium, resulting in increased selenium concentrations 

in fish from the reservoir. From 1986 to 1989, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department reported 

that average selenium concentrations in fish from the Brandy Branch Reservoir increased from 

0.81 to 2.29ppm69. In 1992, the Texas Department of Health (TDH) issued a fish consumption 

advisory for the reservoir70. 

The advisory recommended that adults consume no more than eight ounces of fish from the 

reservoir per week; children seven years and older - no more than four ounces/week; and 

children under six and pregnant women or women who may become pregnant should not 

consume any fish from the reservoir. In 1996 and 1997, TDH collected 17 fish from the 

reservoir. Selenium concentrations in these fish ranged between 0.46 and 1.79ppm, with an 

average concentration of 0.87ppm (ATSDR 1998). 

A total maximum daily load (TMDL) project has been initiated by the Texas Commission on 

Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to determine the necessary steps to improve water quality in 

Brandy Branch reservoir. The project involved a fish sampling and analysis program and a 

 

66 http://www.epa.gov/region5/sites/pines/

67 Compendium of nineteen alleged coal combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007. 

68 Letter from the Hoosier Environmental Council to the RCRA Docket Information Center regarding comments on 

the May 2000 Regulatory Determination, September 19, 2000. 

69 Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), 1998. Health Consultation: Brandy Branch 

Reservoir, Marshall, Harrison County, Texas. September 1998. Available at 

http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/HAC/PHA/marshall/mar_toc.html. 

70 Texas Bureau of Health (TBH). 1992. Fish Advisory: Brandy Branch Reservoir. May 1992. 

33
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

human health risk assessment, and was completed in August 200371. Based on its findings, The 

Texas Commissioner of Health fish advisory was lifted in March 200472. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: This case is categorized as a proven 

ecological damage case for the following reasons: (1) Observations of impacts on fish 

populations were confirmed by scientific study, based on which the State concluded that the 

impacts were attributable to the ash ponds; and (2) Administrative - The State issued a fish 

consumption advisory as a result of the contamination. 

21. Southwestern Electric Power Company Welsh Reservoir, Texas73

History: This Lake was constructed in 1976 to serve as a cooling reservoir for a power plant and 

receives discharges from an open ash settling pond system. The Texas Parks and Wildlife 

Department’s (TPWDs) monitoring program documents elevated levels of selenium and other 

metals in fish. In 1992 the Texas Commissioner of Health issued a fish consumption advisory 

for selenium similar to the one issued for the Brandy Branch Reservoir described above74. The 

TPWD’s report concludes that “discharges from the open ash settling ponds may be a source for 

the elevated levels of selenium in fish.” The Texas Commissioner of Health fish advisory was 

lifted in March 200475.

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: EPA has categorized this case as a proven 

ecological damage case for the following reasons: (1) the State concluded that, based on 

scientific evidence, selenium accumulation in fish may be attributable to the ash settling ponds; 

and (2) Administrative - The State has issued a fish consumption advisory as a result of the 

contamination. 

22. Texas Utilities Electric Martin Lake Reservoir, Texas76

History: This Lake was constructed in 1974 to serve as a cooling reservoir for a power plant and 

was the site of a series of major fish kills in 1978 and 1979. Investigations determined that 

unpermitted discharges from ash settling ponds resulted in elevated levels of selenium in the 

 

71 Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). 2003. Improving Water Quality in Brandy Branch 

Reservoir; One TMDL for Selenium. February 2003. 

72 Assessing the Fish Consumption Use, Water Quality in Brandy Branch Reservoir, TCEQ, March 2004. 

73 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis 

Ruddy regarding Review of Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste Damage Cases, November 29, 2000. 

74 http://www.tceq.state.tx.us/implementation/water/tmdl/14-welshreservoir.html

75 Assessing the Fish Consumption Use, Water Quality in Welsh Reservoir, TCEQ, March 2004. 

76 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis 

Ruddy regarding Review of Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste Damage Cases, November 29, 2000.

34
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

water and fish. The State’s monitoring program continues to document elevated levels of 

selenium and other metals in fish at the Lake. The Texas Commissioner of Health issued a fish 

consumption advisory for this Lake similar to the one issued for the Brandy Branch Reservoir 

described above in 199277. There also is evidence of elevated selenium concentrations in birds 

nesting near the Lake. The Texas Commissioner of Health fish advisory was lifted October 14, 

200478. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: EPA has categorized this case as a proven 

ecological damage case for the following reasons: (1) Scientifically based evidence of adverse 

effects on wildlife - impacts on fish populations were observed, and the State concluded that the 

impacts were attributable to the ash setting ponds; and (2) Administrative - The State has issued 

a fish consumption advisory as a result of the contamination. 

23. Basin Electric Power Cooperative W.J. Neal Station Surface Impoundment, North 

Dakota79 

History: This site was an unlined, 44-acre surface impoundment that received fly ash and 

scrubber sludge from a coal-fired power plant, along with other wastes (including ash from the 

combustion of sunflower seed hulls), from the 1950’s until the late 1980’s. Sampling in 1982 

found chromium at 8.15 parts per million in the pond sediment and in excess of the primary 

MCL in down-gradient ground water. The State issued a special use disposal permit to allow 

disposal to continue, but required a continuation of monitoring and began negotiations for 

closure of the site. The facility was closed between 1989 and 1990, when the impoundment 

sediments were consolidated to a 22-acre area and capped. Under the Comprehensive 

Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), the site underwent a 

preliminary assessment (PA) in 1990 and a site inspection (SI) in 1995. The PA found sediments 

in a marshy area adjacent to the closed facility with antimony, arsenic, chromium, manganese, 

selenium, and sodium elevated above background. The PA also found arsenic in excess of the 

primary MCL and aluminum in excess of the secondary MCL in down-gradient ground water. 

The SI found arsenic elevated above background in the marsh sediments and in surface water 

passing through the wetland. The SI also found cadmium and lead in excess of primary MCLs 

and zinc in excess of the secondary MCL in a public water supply well. The SI concluded that 

releases had occurred from the surface impoundment to ground water and surface water. 

Soils underlying the facility are characterized by one source as relatively permeable (10-4

cm/sec). Regionally, the surficial aquifer varies in depth from 3 to 25 feet below the surface. 

While a precise mapping of the water table at the site is not available, the SI characterizes ground 

water beneath the closed, unlined impoundment as “very shallow.” Other information in the 

literature confirms this and possibly suggests ground water may directly contact the disposed 

material, specifically: 

 

77 http://www.tceq.state.tx.us/implementation/water/tmdl/12-martincreekreservoir.html

78 Assessing the Fish Consumption Use, Water Quality in Martin Creek Reservoir, TCEQ, March 2004. 

79 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Review of Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste 

Damage Cases, November 29, 2000. 

35
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

• Depth to water in the monitoring wells surrounding the facility ranges from 5.5 to 16 feet, 

while the depth of the ash fill is estimated at approximately 10 feet. 

• According to the PA, regionally, “many lakes and potholes represent “windows” into the 

water table ...” and an on-site pond located directly up-gradient and adjacent to the disposal 

area may be “a surface expression of the ground water onsite.” 

Additionally, the site was operated without any control of surface waters from the impoundment. 

A tributary to the marsh and a nearby creek formerly flowed through the ash disposal areas. 

Even as late as 1989, surface water ran directly off the site from the surface impoundment dike 

into the marsh. This direct discharge was not documented as being permitted under State or 

Federal regulations. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: EPA has categorized this case as a proven 

damage case for the following reasons: (1) Scientific investigation - Several constituents have 

exceeded their (health-based) primary MCLs in down-gradient ground water, and the site 

inspection found documentation of releases to ground water and surface water from the site; and 

(2) Administrative - The State required closure of the facility. 

24. Cooperative Power Association/United Power Coal Creek Station Surface 

Impoundments, North Dakota80

History: This site includes a number of evaporation ponds and ash storage/disposal ponds that 

were constructed in 1978 and 1979. The ponds were originally lined but developed severe leaks 

in the late 1970’s. The ponds are operated as a zero discharge facility. While quantitative data 

on the depth to ground water are not available, documentation from the State agency indicates 

that the ponds were constructed “directly over and adjacent to” the Weller Slough Aquifer, 

suggesting the presence of shallow ground water. Ground water monitoring at the site showed 

arsenic in excess of the primary MCL in 1987 and selenium in excess of the primary MCL in 

1992 and 1993. Down-gradient monitoring data also have shown sulfate and chloride above 

secondary MCLs and elevated levels of boron. In the facility’s 1990 permit application, the 

State required relining of the ponds with a composite liner. 

Basis for Consideration as a Proven Damage Case: EPA has categorized this case as a proven 

damage case for the following reasons: (1) Scientific evidence - Arsenic and selenium exceeded 

(health-based) primary MCLs, and (2) Administrative - The State required remedial action. 

 

80 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis 

Ruddy regarding Review of Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste Damage Cases, November 29, 2000. 

36
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Potential Coal Combustion Waste 

Damage Cases 

 
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

III. Potential Damage Cases 

According to 65 FR 32224, “Potential damage cases were those with documented MCL 

exceedences that were measured in ground water beneath or close to the waste source. In these 

cases, the documented exceedences had not been demonstrated at a sufficient distance from the 

waste management unit to indicate that waste constituents had migrated to the extent that they 

could cause human health concerns. State regulations typically use a compliance procedure that 

relies on measurement at a receptor site or in ground water at a point beyond the waste boundary 

(e.g., 150 meters).” In addition, groundwater contamination would be considered as a potential 

damage case also where there are documented exceedances of secondary MCLs or other nonhealth based standards on-site or off-site. 

25. K.R. Rezendes South Main Street Ash Landfill, Freetown, Massachusetts81

History: This case was originally identified through contacts with State regulators. 

This site consists of an ash monofill located in a former sand and gravel quarry located in 

Freetown, Massachusetts. The landfill began operation in 1976 and has an area of approximately 

35 acres. It was originally approved as a 14-acre monofill by the Freetown Board of Health and 

by permit from the MADEP. The Board of Health granted approval for the remaining 21 acres 

in 1990, and approved a request for expansion to within 250 feet of Assonet Bay in 1993. The 

final permit for the site was issued by MADEP in 1994. 

 

The site accepted ash from PG&E’s Salem Harbor (approximately 250,000 tons/year) and 

Brayton Point Plants (approximately 140,000 tons/year). According to PG&E estimates, a total 

of 2,500,000 tons of ash have been disposed at the K.R. Rezendes South Main Street Ash 

Landfill. 

Ground water monitoring at the site has detected levels of selenium above the primary MCL. 

Elevated levels of sulfates, total dissolved solids, manganese, iron, and aluminum have also been 

detected at the site, although levels are below the relevant secondary MCLs. All of the 

monitoring wells at the site are located on-site. There are no down-gradient drinking water 

sources, because the landfill is adjacent to a down-gradient water body (Assonet Bay), which is 

not used as a drinking water source due to its brackish water. 

In early 2001, MADEP required modifications to the ground water monitoring program, 

including: 

• Increase in sampling from annual to semi-annual; 

• Semi-annual surface water sampling; 

• Evaluation of wells to ensure the wells yield representative samples; 

• Installation of additional monitoring wells; and 

 

81 Compendium of nineteen alleged coal combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007.

38
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

• Evaluation of ground water discharge to the adjacent Assonet Bay. 

Operations at the landfill ended in 2001 as the result of a bylaw passed by the Town of Freetown. 

The bylaw bans the disposal of coal combustion wastes within the town. It was appealed by the 

landfill operator and PG&E, but upheld by the State Attorney General. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: This case has been categorized as a 

potential damage case for the following reasons: (1) Scientific - Selenium exceeded its primary 

MCL in on-site monitoring wells; and (2) Administrative - The State required modification to the 

site’s ground water monitoring program. 

26. New England Power, Brayton Point, Massachusetts82

History: Associated with the largest coal- and oil- powered generating station in New England, 

this is one of nine sites managing oil combustion wastes that have ground water contamination 

identified for the 1999 Report to Congress. Seven of the nine, including this site, were 

documented in EPRI’s oil ash report; the two other sites were found in the 1993 Regulatory 

Determination and in RCRA Corrective Action records. Most of the nine sites evaluated were 

solid settling basins, while one site had a landfill and a second site had a solids disposal pond. At 

each of the nine sites, the waste management unit was found to negatively impact ground water 

in one of the following ways: (1) at least one constituent was found in down-gradient ground 

water monitoring wells above its MCL, but was not present in up-gradient wells above its MCL, 

or (2) a constituent exceeded its MCL both up-gradient and down-gradient, but the downgradient concentrations were noticeably higher than the up-gradient concentrations. These 

constituents most often include manganese and nickel. Other parameters (including arsenic, 

cadmium, chromium, selenium, silver, and zinc) exceeded their MCL in down-gradient wells at 

only one of the sites. Although vanadium does not have an MCL, the parameter was found in 

ground water down-gradient of waste management units. 

At several of the sites reviewed, EPA found that the waste management unit very likely 

contributes to the contamination of constituents, such as manganese, nickel, and vanadium, into 

ground water. Many of these sites are located next to the ocean or other large bodies of water 

where such releases can be diluted and no drinking water wells would be located between the 

management unit and the surface water. EPA did not find any cases of drinking water 

contamination or other environmental damages resulting from these releases. Additionally, most 

or all unlined units are operated under state permit allowing exceedances of ground water 

standards close to the management unit, but which must be met outside the zone of discharge. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: This case has been categorized as a 

potential damage case for the following reasons: exceedance of one or more MCL standards 

 

82 Technical Background Document for the Report to Congress on Remaining Wastes from Fossil Fuel 

Combustion: Potential Damage Cases, March 15, 1999 (http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/other/fossil/ffc2_397.pdf). 

Status of Alleged Damage Cases Submitted by HEC, et. al., to Dennis Ruddy, February, 2002. Brayton Point 

Administrative Consent Order (ACO-BO-00-2002, undated), Brayton Point Administrative Consent Order 

Timetable, August 22, 2006. 

39
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

down flow from the plant’s unlined wastewater treatment basinsthat does not impact drinking 

water wells offsite. 

27. AES Creative Resources Weber Ash Disposal Site, New York83

History: Monitoring data at this site from between 1991 and 1998 show levels of sulfate, total 

dissolved solids, manganese, iron, aluminum, and pH in down-gradient wells in excess of their 

secondary MCLs. There is no information available on the location of these wells relative to the 

waste management units. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The exceedances found at this site: sulfate, 

total dissolved solids, manganese, iron, aluminum, and pH, are of non-health-based standards. 

Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

28. Central Hudson Gas and Electric Corporation Danskammer Waste Management 

Facility, New York84 

History: There were exceedances of State non-health-based standards for sulfate, sulfide, total 

dissolved solids, turbidity, iron, magnesium, manganese, sodium, boron, and pH attributable to 

CCW at the site. It is unclear whether the exceedances of health-based standards were 

attributable to CCW. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The contamination at the site: sulfate, 

sulfide, total dissolved solids, turbidity, iron, magnesium, manganese, sodium, boron, and pH did 

not appear likely to threaten human health or the environment. Therefore, this case was 

determined to be a potential damage case. 

29. C. R. Huntley Flyash Landfill, New York85

History: There were exceedances of State health-based standards for arsenic and non-healthbased standards for iron, manganese, sulfate, and total dissolved solids at this site’s downgradient wells. While there also were exceedances in up-gradient wells, there was statistical 

evidence of significant increases over up-gradient concentrations for several of these 

constituents. In addition, the State regulatory agency and the site contractor identified some of 

these constituents as potential indicators of leachate. 

 

83 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

84 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Final Revised Report on Resolution of 18 Previously 

Indeterminate Candidate Damage Cases, March 5, 2003. 

85 Ibid. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: All of the exceedances were in wells 

located on-site, close to the waste management unit. Therefore, this case was determined to be a 

potential damage case. 

30. Elrama Plant, Pennsylvania86

History: EPA identified this site in its original 1988 Report to Congress on Wastes from the 

Combustion of Fossil Fuels by Electric Utility Power Plants. It is described in detail in that 

document. In the 1988 Report, EPA found concentrations of cadmium in down-gradient wells 

above the primary MCL; the highest concentrations were found in the well closest to the landfill. 

EPA concluded that coal combustion wastes have been a source of contamination at the site, but 

also concluded that exceedances for many contaminants were probably due to concurrent 

contamination from acid mine drainage. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: While levels of cadmium exceed the 

primary MCL, the contamination appears to be at least partially attributable to sources other than 

coal combustion wastes. Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

31. Tennessee Valley Authority - Bull Run Steam Plant, Oak Ridge, Tennessee87

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: This case was categorized as a potential 

damage case for the following reasons: (1) exceedances of the secondary MCLs for aluminum, 

calcium, iron, and sulfate were detected in on-site surface water; (2) a toxicity study indicates the 

potential for ecological impacts; and (3) these impacts appear to be directly attributable to CCW 

management.

32. Tennessee Valley Authority Widows Creek Fossil Fuel Plant, Alabama88 

History: Monitoring data at this site show lead in excess of the primary MCL Action Level. This 

exceedance, however, occurred in an on-site well that appears to be opposite the direction of 

ground water flow. Still, in a 1993 memorandum, the Alabama Department of Environmental 

Management (ADEM) expressed concern with this exceedance and elevated levels of cadmium 

and chromium (which did not exceed their primary MCLs) in this well and recommended that 

corrective action measures be established. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: While the ADEM has expressed concern 

with on-site contamination and recommended that corrective action measures be established, 

 

86 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. Compendium of nineteen alleged coal 

combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007. 

87 Compendium of nineteen alleged coal combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007.

88 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

41
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

there is no evidence available of off-site migration of contaminants. Therefore, this case is a 

potential damage case. 

33. Tennessee Valley Authority Colbert Fossil Fuel Plant, Alabama89 

History: Only limited information on this site was available from the commenters. The 

commenters’ summary of monitoring data shows no exceedances of primary MCLs in ground 

water at the site. The only primary MCL exceedances (for sulfate, chromium and selenium) 

reported by the commenters are found in a well installed within the saturated ash of the surface 

impoundment. A 1998 letter from the facility owner to the ADEM, however, does indicate some 

exceedances of primary MCLs in on-site wells that the owner proposes to eliminate from its 

sampling program. The only constituent identified in this letter is cadmium. The commenters 

report that ADEM believes ground water contamination has resulted from the disposal of coal 

combustion wastes at this facility. An ADEM geologist also reported to the commenters that the 

disposal area has been subject to collapse into a karst sinkhole. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: While some primary MCL exceedances (for 

sulfate, chromium and selenium) appear to have occurred in on-site wells, there is no evidence 

available of off-site migration of contaminants. Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

34. Duke Power Allen Steam Generating Plant, North Carolina90

History: The Allen Plant of Duke Power Company was included in a study of waste disposal at 

coal-fired power plants conducted by Arthur D. Little, Inc (ADL) in 1985. ADL conducted 

ground water sampling in 18 monitoring wells installed on-site, detecting exceedances of 

manganese and iron, both secondary water quality standards. 

Contact was made with North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources 

(DENR). According to those contacted, the State has only surface water discharge information 

for this facility. There is no record of ground water monitoring at the facility, and no indication 

that violations or enforcement actions occurred at the facility. A permit check determined that 

ground water monitoring at the site is not required by the facility permit. There is no indication 

that any ground water samples have been tested since the 1985 study. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: According to the 1985 data, there were 

documented exceedances of manganese and iron, non-health-based standards, in wells 

downstream from the waste management unit. Therefore, this site is categorized as a potential 

damage case. 

 

89 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. TVA Colbert ground water data, undated. 

90 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Final Revised Report on Resolution of 18 Previously 

Indeterminate Candidate Damage Cases, March 5, 2003. Compendium of nineteen alleged coal combustion wastes 

damage cases, May 3, 2007. 

42
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

35. Cinergy East Bend Scrubber Sludge Landfill, Kentucky91

History: Commenters identified this site in a table that alleged an estimated 300 tons of sulfate 

per year is leaking into the Ohio River from this site. This site was initially classified as 

indeterminate because the commenters did not identify the source of the information and no 

quantitative data or further information about this site was available. 

 

Subsequently, additional information was obtained through the Kentucky Department of 

Environmental Protection (DEP). According to the DEP, there were on-site exceedances of nonhealth-based standards for total dissolved solids, iron, and sulfate at this site. The State has taken 

regulatory action based on these exceedances. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: Based on the on-site exceedances of nonhealth-based standards for total dissolved solids, iron, and sulfate at this site, and subsequent 

State regulatory action based on these exceedances, this case is a potential damage case. 

36. Florida Power and Light Lansing Smith Plant, Florida92

History: EPA initially identified this site in the supplemental analysis conducted for its 1993 

Regulatory Determination93. As a result of this analysis, EPA rejected this site as a damage case 

because there was no evidence that coal combustion wastes were comanaged with low-volume 

wastes at this site. A subsequent evaluation of the information for this site indicates that there 

were documented exceedances of primary drinking water standards for cadmium, chromium and 

fluoride and secondary drinking water standards for sulfate, chloride, manganese and iron in onsite ground water attributable to CCW. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: This site has been reclassified as a 

potential damage case Based on documented exceedances of primary drinking water standards 

for cadmium, chromium and fluoride and secondary drinking water standards for sulfate, 

chloride, manganese and iron in on-site ground water attributable to CCW. 

 

91 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Final Revised Report on Resolution of 18 Previously 

Indeterminate Candidate Damage Cases, March 5, 2003. 

92 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. Status of Alleged Damage Cases 

Submitted by HEC, et. al., to Dennis Ruddy, February, 2002. Compendium of nineteen alleged coal combustion 

wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007. 

93 Supplemental Analysis of Potential Risks to Human Health and the Environment from Large-Volume Coal 

Combustion Waste. U.S. EPA. July 30, 1993. Available from the docket for the 1993 Regulatory Determination 

for Fossil Fuel Combustion (Part 1), EPA-HQ-RCRA-1993-0042-1642. 

43
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

37. Florida Power and Light Port Everglades Plant, Florida94

History: This is one of nine sites managing oil combustion wastes that have ground water 

contamination identified for the 1999 Report to Congress. Seven of the nine, including this site, 

were documented in EPRI’s oil ash report; the two other sites were found in the 1993 Regulatory 

Determination and in RCRA Corrective Action records. Most of the nine sites evaluated were 

solid settling basins, while one site had a landfill and a second site had a solids disposal pond. 

At each of the nine sites, the waste management unit was found to negatively impact ground 

water in one of the following ways: (1) at least one constituent was found in down-gradient 

ground water monitoring wells above its MCL, but was not present in up-gradient wells above its 

MCL, or (2) a constituent exceeded its MCL both up-gradient and down-gradient, but the downgradient concentrations were noticeably higher than the up-gradient concentrations. These 

constituents most often include manganese and nickel. Other parameters (including arsenic, 

cadmium, chromium, selenium, silver, and zinc) exceeded their MCL in down-gradient wells at 

only one of the sites. Although vanadium does not have an MCL, the parameter was found in 

ground water down-gradient of waste management units. 

At several of the sites reviewed, EPA found that the waste management unit very likely 

contributes to the contamination of constituents, such as manganese, nickel, and vanadium, into 

ground water. Many of these sites are located next to the ocean or other large bodies of water 

where such releases can be diluted and no drinking water wells would be located between the 

management unit and the surface water. EPA did not find any cases of drinking water 

contamination or other environmental damages resulting from these releases. Additionally, most 

or all unlined units are operated under state permit allowing exceedances of ground water 

standards close to the management unit, but which must be met outside the zone of discharge. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: This case has been categorized as a 

potential damage case for the following reasons: exceedance of one or more MCL standards 

down flow from the plant’s disposal facility that does not impact drinking water wells offsite. 

38. Florida Power and Light Riviera Plant95

See the preceding description for the Port Everglades Plant. 

39. Florida Power and Light P.L. Bartow Plant96

See the preceding description for the Port Everglades Plant. 

 

94 Technical Background Document for the Report to Congress on Remaining Wastes from Fossil Fuel 

Combustion: Potential Damage Cases, March 15, 1999 (http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/other/fossil/ffc2_397.pdf). 

95 Ibid. 

96 Ibid. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

40. Commonwealth Edison Powerton Plant - Mahoney Landfill, Pekin, Tazewell County, 

Illinois97

History: This case was originally identified during the review of candidate damage cases for the 

1988 Report to Congress on Wastes from the Combustion of Coal by Electric Utility Power 

Plants. Although it was rejected as a proven damage case in EPA’s 1993 Supplemental Analysis 

of Potential Risks to Human Health and the Environment from Large-Volume Coal Combustion 

Waste (EPA 1993), this case was re-examined in light of EPA’s subsequently developed criteria 

for categorizing cases as “potential” damage cases. 

There were exceedances of primary MCLs for cadmium, lead, and nitrate and secondary MCLs 

for iron, manganese, and sulfate in ground water and surface water at the site. The exceedances 

of secondary MCLs in ground water appear attributable to management of CCW. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: All the reported exceedances that are 

attributable to management of CCW are for constituents with non-health-based standards and are 

located in on-site wells. Therefore, this case was categorized as a potential damage case. 

41. Xcel Energy/Southern Minnesota Municipal Power Agency - Sherburne County 

(Sherco) Generating Plant Becker, Minnesota98

History: This case was originally identified during the review of candidate damage cases for the 

1988 Report to Congress on Wastes from the Combustion of Coal by Electric Utility Power 

Plants. Although it was rejected as a proven damage case in EPA’s 1993 Supplemental Analysis 

of Potential Risks to Human Health and the Environment from Large-Volume Coal Combustion 

Waste (EPA 1993), this case was re-examined in light of EPA’s subsequently developed criteria 

for categorizing cases as “potential” damage cases. 

There were exceedances of primary MCLs for arsenic, cadmium, chromium, fluoride, lead, and 

nitrate and secondary MCLs for chloride, copper, iron, manganese, sulfate, and zinc at the site, at 

least some of which appear attributable to management of CCW. While a scientific study 

indicated the potential for future increases in contamination, more recent data were not available. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The reported exceedances of both primary 

and secondary MCLs were located in on-site wells and the potential for off-site migration of 

contamination may be limited. Therefore, this case was categorized as a potential damage case. 

 

97 Compendium of nineteen alleged coal combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007. 

98 Ibid. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

42. Alliant Rock River Ash Disposal Facility, Wisconsin99 

History: Monitoring data at this site show down-gradient levels of arsenic and mercury that 

would exceed the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNRs) drinking water 

enforcement standard (ES) levels (equivalent to primary MCLs). The data also show downgradient levels of sulfate and iron that would exceed their ES levels (equivalent to secondary 

MCLs for these constituents). According to information provided by WDNR, however, the site 

has no down-gradient ES points of standards application due to its proximity to the Rock River 

(i.e., all wells are within the design management zone of the landfill). Thus, the State considers 

the preventive action limit (PAL) exceedances, not ES exceedances. The preventive action limit 

represents a lesser concentration of the substance than the enforcement standard100. In 1996, as a 

result of the PAL exceedances for sulfate and iron, WDNR required the company to begin 

submitting biennial ground water reports evaluating causes and trends relating to the continued 

PAL exceedances. Ongoing monitoring at the site includes indicator parameters and iron. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: Whereas the levels of arsenic and mercury 

in down-gradient wells exceed health-based enforcement standards, these exceedances are within 

the design management zone of the landfill and there is no evidence available of off-site 

migration of contaminants. Therefore, this case was determined to be a potential damage case. 

43. Michigan City Site, Michigan City, Indiana101

History: EPA identified this site in its original 1988 Report to Congress on Wastes from the 

Combustion of Fossil Fuels by Electric Utility Power Plants. It is described in detail in that 

document. In the 1988 Report, EPA concluded that ash ponds at the site are responsible for 

arsenic concentrations above the primary Maximum Contaminant Limit (MCL). EPA also 

concluded, however, that effects on ground water appeared to be limited to areas within the 

facility boundaries. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: While levels of arsenic found on-site 

exceed the primary MCL, there was no evidence available of off-site migration of contaminants. 

Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

 

99 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

100 The PAL is either 10%, 20%, or 50% of the enforcement standard as specified by statute based on the healthrelated characteristics of the particular substance. Ten percent is used for cancer-causing substances, 20% for 

substances with other health effects and 50% for substances having aesthetic or other public-welfare concerns. 

 

101 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. Compendium of nineteen alleged coal 

combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

44. Bailly Generating Station, Indiana102

History: EPA identified this site in its original 1988 Report to Congress on Wastes from the 

Combustion of Fossil Fuels by Electric Utility Power Plants. The site is identified as the “Bailly 

Site, Dune Acres, Indiana” and described in detail in that document. In the 1988 Report, EPA 

concluded that leachate from ash disposal ponds was the most probable contributor to 

concentrations of arsenic and lead that were found above the primary MCL and primary MCL 

Action Level, respectively, in on-site, down-gradient wells. EPA also observed, however, that 

cadmium was the only constituent whose down-gradient off-site concentration exceeded the 

primary MCL. Elevated cadmium concentrations also were found in samples taken from the 

background well, leading EPA to conclude that the elevated down-gradient concentrations of 

cadmium may not have been caused by leachate from the coal ash. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: While levels of arsenic and lead found onsite exceed health-based standards, the only off-site exceedances of health-based standards (for 

cadmium) are not shown to be attributable to coal combustion waste. Therefore, this case is a 

potential damage case. 

45. Alliant Edgewater 1-4 Ash Disposal Site, Wisconsin103 

History: Monitoring data at the site show down-gradient levels of boron that exceed WDNR’s 

health-based ES level104. Additional data shows that private water supply wells have shown ES 

exceedances for sulfate and iron (equivalent to secondary MCLs for these contaminants) and 

PAL exceedances for chloride. As a result of these exceedances, WDNR required a series of 

investigations from 1988 to 1997. The investigations found that cessation of ash sluicing and 

capping of the landfill had effectively controlled the contamination of ground water and no 

additional remedial actions were required. Ongoing monitoring at the site (including monitoring 

of the private wells) includes boron, sulfate, and arsenic. Previous monitoring included 

selenium, iron, fluoride, and chloride. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The level of boron found down-gradient 

exceeds a health-based standard. It is unclear, however, whether this exceedance is in an off-site 

monitoring location. The exceedances found in off-site private wells are for constituents without 

health-based standards. Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

 

102 Ibid. 

103 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

104 As of January 1, 2000, Wisconsin elevated boron to the status of a human health-related parameter. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

46. Wisconsin Power Supply Co. (WPSC) Pulliam Ash Disposal Site, Wisconsin105 

History: Monitoring data at this site showed down-gradient levels of sulfate and manganese that 

would exceed WDNR’s ES levels (equivalent to secondary MCLs for these constituents) and 

levels of iron that exceed WDNR’s PAL. According to information provided, however, the site 

had no down-gradient ES points of standards application (i.e., all wells are within the design 

management zone of the landfill). Thus, the State would consider the sulfate and manganese 

exceedances to be PAL, not ES, exceedances. Further review by WDNR found an inadequate 

monitoring network at the facility. Therefore, in 1994, WDNR required an investigation of the 

ground water contamination and an upgrade of the monitoring network. Ongoing monitoring at 

the site includes indicator parameters plus boron, selenium, manganese, and iron. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The exceedances found at this site, sulfate, 

manganese and iron, are within the design management zone of the landfill and are for 

constituents without health-based standards. Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

47. Central Illinois Light Co. Duck Creek Station, Illinois106 

History: Monitoring data at this site from April 1999 showed levels of sulfate, total dissolved 

solids, chloride, manganese, and iron in excess of their secondary MCLs. There is no clear 

indication of down-gradient wells or whether these wells are on-site or off-site. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The exceedances found at this site, sulfate, 

total dissolved solids, chloride, manganese and iron, are of non-health-based standards. 

Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

48. Illinois Power Co. Hennepin Power Station, Illinois107

History: Monitoring data at this site from between 1997 and 1999 showed levels of sulfate and 

total dissolved solids in down-gradient wells in excess of their secondary MCLs. There is no 

information available on the location of these wells relative to the waste management units. 

There is no monitoring data for metals at this site. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The exceedances found at this site, sulfate 

and total dissolved solids, are of non-health-based standards. Therefore, this case is a potential 

damage case. 

 

105 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

106 Ibid. 

107 Ibid. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

49. Illinois Power Co. Havanna Power Plant, Illinois108 

History: Monitoring data at this site between 1997 and 1999 showed levels of manganese downgradient of the south ash impoundment in excess of the secondary MCL. The data also show 

levels of sulfate down-gradient of the east ash impoundment greater than up-gradient levels, but 

within the secondary MCL. There is no information available on the location of the monitoring 

wells relative to the waste management units. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The exceedances found at this site, 

manganese and sulfate, are of non-health-based standards. Therefore, this case is a potential 

damage case. 

50. Dairyland Power Alma On-site Fly Ash Landfill, Wisconsin109 

History: EPA initially identified this site in the supplemental analysis conducted for its 1993 

Regulatory Determination110. This analysis, along with additional information submitted by 

commenters, shows down-gradient levels of sulfate and manganese that would exceed WDNR’s 

ES levels (equivalent to secondary MCLs for these constituents). According to information 

provided by WDNR, however, there are no ES points of standards application at the site (i.e., all 

wells are within the design management zone of the landfill). Thus, the State considers these 

exceedances PAL, not ES exceedances. In 1975, WDNR issued an administrative order as a 

result of an inspection that disclosed a number of operational and locational problems at the 

facility. Among other things, the order required submission of a closure plan and an in-field 

conditions report. The closure plan was approved in 1981 and included ground water 

monitoring. In 1986, the Department required the company to install additional monitoring wells 

and to monitor seven private water supply wells for two rounds of monitoring. Ongoing 

monitoring at the site includes indicator parameters plus manganese and boron. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: While the State has taken regulatory action 

at this site, the action appears to be based on operational and locational problems, not evidence 

of contamination. The exceedances found at the site, sulfate and manganese, are of non-healthbased standards. Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

 

108 Ibid. 

109 Ibid. 

110 Supplemental Analysis of Potential Risks to Human Health and the Environment from Large-Volume Coal 

Combustion Waste. U.S. EPA. July 30, 1993. Available from the docket for the 1993 Regulatory Determination 

for Fossil Fuel Combustion (Part 1), EPA-HQ-RCRA-1993-0042-1642. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

51. Dairyland Power Alma Off-site Fly Ash Landfill, Wisconsin111

History: EPA initially identified this site in the supplemental analysis conducted for its 1993 

Regulatory Determination112. This analysis, along with additional information submitted by 

commenters, shows down-gradient levels of sulfate and manganese that would be in excess of 

WDNR’s ES levels (equivalent to secondary MCLs for these constituents). The monitoring data 

also show levels of boron that exceed WDNR’s PAL. According to information provided by 

WDNR, however, the sulfate and manganese exceedances were not found at ES points of 

application; they were found in an on-site well within the design management zone of the 

landfill. Thus, the State considers the exceedances PAL, not ES, exceedances. None of the ES 

wells for the site have shown exceedances. Because of the PAL exceedances and a proposal by 

the owner to expand the ash disposal area, WDNR required an analysis of the performance of the 

existing landfill along with an upgraded liner system and other design improvements for the new 

facility on the site. Ongoing monitoring at the site includes indicator parameters plus iron and 

boron, although the company has monitored some wells for a list of metals as part of the siting 

for the expansion. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: While the State has taken regulatory action 

at the site, the exceedances found at this site, sulfate and manganese, are within the design 

management zone of the landfill and are for constituents without health-based standards. 

Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

52. Illinois Power Vermillion Power Station, Illinois113 

History: Monitoring data at this site showed levels of sulfate and total dissolved solids in downgradient wells in excess of their secondary MCLs. No monitoring data for metals, trace 

elements, or organics were available. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The exceedances found at this site, sulfate 

and total dissolved solids, are of non-health-based standards. Therefore, this case is a potential 

damage case. 

 

111 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

112 Supplemental Analysis of Potential Risks to Human Health and the Environment from Large-Volume Coal 

Combustion Waste. U.S. EPA. July 30, 1993. Available from the docket for the 1993 Regulatory Determination 

for Fossil Fuel Combustion (Part 1), EPA-HQ-RCRA-1993-0042-1642. 

113 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

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53. Central Illinois Public Service Company Hutsonville Power Station, Illinois114 

History: Monitoring data at this site showed levels of sulfate, total dissolved solids, and 

manganese in excess of their secondary MCLs. These exceedances were in wells that were 

presumed by the commenters to be down-gradient. There is no clear indication of down-gradient 

wells or whether these wells are on-site or off-site. No monitoring data for metals, trace 

elements, or organics were available. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The exceedances found at this site, sulfate, 

total dissolved solids and manganese, are of non-health-based standards. Therefore, this case is a 

potential damage case. 

54. Illinois Power Company Wood River Power Station, Illinois115 

History: Monitoring data at this site showed levels of sulfate, total dissolved solids, chloride, 

manganese, and iron in excess of their secondary MCLs. It is unclear from the information 

provided whether these exceedances were observed in wells close to the waste management unit 

boundaries or in more distant wells. All of the monitoring wells, however, appear to be within 

the property boundary. There is insufficient information to designate wells at this site as upgradient or down-gradient. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The exceedances found at this site, sulfate, 

total dissolved solids, chloride, manganese and iron, are of non-health-based standards. 

Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

55. R.M. Schahfer Generating Station, IN116 

History: EPA initially identified this site in the supplemental analysis conducted for its 1993 

Regulatory Determination117. This analysis, along with additional information submitted by 

commenters, showed down-gradient levels of sulfate in excess of its secondary MCL. EPA 

concluded in the supplemental analysis that other pollutant exceedances at the site appeared to be 

outliers or were for up-gradient wells only. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The sulfate exceedances found at this site 

are of non-health-based standards. Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

 

114 Ibid. 

115 Ibid. 

116 Ibid. 

117 Supplemental Analysis of Potential Risks to Human Health and the Environment from Large-Volume Coal 

Combustion Waste. U.S. EPA. July 30, 1993. Available from the docket for the 1993 Regulatory Determination 

for Fossil Fuel Combustion (Part 1), EPA-HQ-RCRA-1993-0042-1642. 

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56. Coffeen/White & Brewer Trucking Fly Ash Landfill, Illinois118 

History: Monitoring data at this site showed levels of sulfate, total dissolved solids, and 

manganese in down-gradient wells in excess of their secondary MCLs. Two of the three wells 

for which the commenters provided data appear to be located directly underneath the landfill 

area. A May 18, 1995 memorandum from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) 

documents areas of dead or distressed grass on-site, apparently due to ground water seepage. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The exceedances found at this site, sulfate, 

total dissolved solids and manganese, are of non-health-based standards. Therefore, this case is a 

potential damage case. 

57. Southern Indiana Gas and Electric Company (SIGECO) A.B Brown Generating 

Station, Indiana119

History: EPA initially identified this site in the supplemental analysis conducted for its 1993 

Regulatory Determination120. This analysis, along with additional information submitted by 

commenters, shows down-gradient levels of sulfate, total dissolved solids, chloride, and pH in 

excess of their secondary MCLs. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The exceedances found at this site, sulfate, 

total dissolved solids, chloride and pH, are of non-health-based standards. Therefore, this case is 

a potential damage case. 

58. Cincinnati Gas & Electric Co. Miamiview Landfill, Ohio121 

History: Monitoring data at this site from 1994 show levels of sulfate in excess of its secondary 

MCL. This exceedance was identified in a well near the boundary of the landfill. An 

investigation of the site estimates that the sulfate plume extends to an area approximately 400 

feet south of the site122. No data are available for other constituents for the site. 

 

118 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

119 Ibid. 

120 Supplemental Analysis of Potential Risks to Human Health and the Environment from Large-Volume Coal 

Combustion Waste. U.S. EPA. July 30, 1993. Available from the docket for the 1993 Regulatory Determination 

for Fossil Fuel Combustion (Part 1), EPA-HQ-RCRA-1993-0042-1642. 

121 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

122 Report: Sulfate Investigation, Miamiview Landfill, Hamilton County, Ohio. Prepared for the Cincinnati Gas & 

Electric Company by Dames & Moore. December 13, 1994. Available in the docket titled Availability of Report to 

Congress on Fossil Fuel Combustion; Request for Comments and Announcement of Public Hearing, EPA-HQRCRA-1999-0022-0632. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The sulfate exceedances found at this site 

are of non-health-based standards. Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

59. Indiana Power & Light Petersburg Generating Station, Indiana123 

History: Monitoring data at this site showed levels of sulfate and total dissolved solids in downgradient wells in excess of their secondary MCLs. There is no information available on the 

location of these wells relative to the waste management units. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The exceedances found at this site, sulfate 

and total dissolved solids, are of non-health-based standards. Therefore, this case is a potential 

damage case. 

60. Hoosier Energy Mermon Generating Station Coal Combustion Waste Landfill, 

Indiana124

History: The historical exceedances of health-based standards (primary MCLs for barium, 

chromium, cadmium, and lead and secondary MCLs for sulfate and chloride) at this site are 

correlated with up-gradient exceedances and occur in on-site wells. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The exceedances found at this site, primary 

MCLs for barium, chromium, cadmium, and lead and secondary MCLs for sulfate and chloride, 

are all confined to on-site wells. . Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

61. Cinergy W.C. Beckjord Station, Ohio125

History: There were exceedances of non-health-based standards (secondary MCL for sulfate) and 

a single exceedance of a health-based standard (primary MCL for selenium) at this site. There 

was no evidence available of off-site migration. A public water supply well within the property 

boundary was shut down and can no longer be used as a drinking water supply as a direct or 

indirect result of the contamination due to exceedance of sulfate. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: While a public water supply well within the 

property boundary was shut down, the contaminant of concern (sulfate) in the water supply well 

does not have a health-based standard. Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

 

123 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

124 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Final Revised Report on Resolution of 18 Previously 

Indeterminate Candidate Damage Cases, March 5, 2003. 

125 Ibid. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

62. Lemberger Landfill, Wisconsin126

History: The 21-acre Lemberger Landfill, Inc. site is located in Manitowoc County. The 

Township of Franklin used the site, an old gravel pit, as an open dump from 1940 to 1970. 

Lemberger Landfill, Inc. operated the site as a sanitary landfill under a license from the 

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) from 1969 to 1976. From 1976 to 1977, 

the Wettencamp and Brunner Excavating Company transported fly ash from Manitowoc Public 

Utilities to the Lemberger facility. An estimated 1,750 to 2,500 cubic yards of fly ash were 

disposed of monthly. Past WDNR inspections showed that Lemberger used fly ash and bottom 

ash as cover, instead of burying them along with the refuse. 

Damages at the site include the seepage of landfill leachate onto adjacent property. Ground 

water at the site is contaminated with volatile organic compound (VOC) and inorganic 

constituents including arsenic, barium, chromium, cadmium, and lead. VOCs were present in 

residential wells in the vicinity of the site, according to monitoring conducted by the State in 

1984 and 1985; and a river near the site also is impacted by VOCs, cadmium and lead. A group 

of potentially responsible parties (PRPs) entered into a consent decree (CD) with U.S. EPA in 

1992 to perform design and remedy implementation activities. Construction was completed in 

September 1996. The five-year review of September 2000 identified that the groundwater 

extraction system was not capturing the entire contaminant plume. In order to correct this 

problem, modifications to the groundwater extraction system were constructed in winter 2001. 

On June 15, 2006, U.S. EPA and WDNR approved the PRP's workplan for the monitored natural 

attenuation pilot study and gave approval to shut down the groundwater pump and treat system. 

The pump and treat system was shut down on August 1, 2006127. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: Because the available documentation does 

not clearly implicate, or rule out, coal combustion waste as a source of the contamination, this 

case is a potential damage case. 

63. Conesville Fixed FGD Sludge Landfill, Ohio128

History: EPA identified this site in its original 1988 Report to Congress on Wastes from the 

Combustion of Fossil Fuels by Electric Utility Power Plants. Ground water monitoring data are 

described in detail in the report. 

 

126 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Additional Information Regarding Fossil Fuel 

Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Review of 

Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste Damage Cases, November 29, 2000. 

127 http://www.epa.gov/R5Super/npl/wisconsin/WID980901243.htm

128 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. Compendium of nineteen alleged coal 

combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Thirty-four monitoring wells were installed (two up-gradient) to monitor the effectiveness of a 

Poz-O-Tec fixation process (fluidized gas desulfurization (FGD) sludge mixed with fly ash and 

lime) to stabilize and thus immobilize potential contaminants. The stabilized FGD sludge was 

deposited next to the fly ash pond. 

Two sets of samples were collected, one between February 27 and April 12, 1979 and the other 

between December 4, 1979 and July 10, 1980. Samples from the first set of data contained lead 

concentrations which exceeded the primary drinking water standard (PDWS) in two on-site wells 

and three off-site wells. Samples from on-site wells in the first set of data also showed increases 

above background levels in the secondary drinking water standards (SDWS) of calcium, 

magnesium, total dissolved solids (TDS), sulfate and iron. 

In the second set of data, samples from on-site wells showed increases in calcium, magnesium, 

TDS and sulfate relative to the first set of data. Exceedances of the PDWS for arsenic, cadmium, 

chromium and selenium were found in on-site wells and exceedances of the PDWS for 

chromium were found in off-site wells. Lead was not detected in any of the second set of 

samples. 

Elevated levels of selenium were detected in up-gradient wells in both the first and second sets of 

samples suggesting that selenium is originating from indigenous sediments rather than coal 

combustion wastes. The only constituents that appeared to be migrating off-site were lead in the 

first set of sampling and chromium in the second set of sampling. 

Based on data collected, there appeared to be a temporal change in ground water quality at this 

site, and potential adverse impacts from constituents migrating off-site appeared to be limited. 

While the data indicated that lead and chromium appeared to be migrating off-site, EPA rejected 

this site as a damage case due to apparent limited potential adverse impacts. Subsequent to the 

March 2000 Regulatory Determination, this site was reevaluated and rejected as a damage case 

because there was no evidence that coal combustion wastes were comanaged with low-volume 

wastes at this site so the site was not covered by that Regulatory Determination129. Since then, 

the Agency has learned that the site receives various types of coal combustion wastes, including 

fly ash, and is covered by the March 2000 Regulatory Determination. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: Based on the on-site ground water 

contamination of the cited secondary drinking water standards (calcium, magnesium, total 

dissolved solids, sulfate and iron), and of primary drinking water standards (arsenic, cadmium, 

chromium and selenium) and the limited potential for the off-site migration of contaminants, this 

site has been reclassified as a potential damage case. 

 

129 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

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64. Muscatine County Landfill, Iowa130

History: It is not clear, based on the available data, if the currently active facility was constructed 

on the same site as the older, closed landfill. However, the issue of whether or not the sites are 

the same does not affect the analysis here, because the available data for the active site do not 

cover the constituents of concern (sulfate and selenium) for the older site. Further research is 

unlikely to find any additional information about the old facility. Therefore, conclusions about 

this site are based on the limited historical data. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The exceedances of non-health-based 

standards (secondary MCL for sulfate) and possibly a single health-based standard (primary 

MCL for selenium) at this site are in wells located on-site, close to the waste management unit. 

Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

65. Dave Johnston Power Plant, Wyoming131

History: Exceedances of the primary MCL for cadmium and the secondary MCLs for manganese 

and sulfate were observed in ground water up-gradient and down-gradient of the site. 

Interpretations of sampling results were difficult to make because other potential sources of 

contamination exist, such as other waste disposal areas at the site; contaminants naturally 

occurring in the soil which is highly mineralized around the Johnston site; and uncertainties with 

regard to what degree leachate from the two landfills had reached the down-gradient wells. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: Whereas exceedances of the primary MCL 

(cadmium) and the secondary MCLs (manganese and sulfate) were observed in ground water 

down-gradient of the site, the natural occurrence of mineralization products in the local soils and 

possible and other potential sources of contamination Therefore, this case is a potential damage 

case. 

66. Montana-Dakota Utilities R.M. Heskett Station, North Dakota132

History: Monitoring data at this site from 1998 show levels of sulfate and boron immediately 

down-gradient of an old ash pile in excess of the secondary MCL. According to the NDDOH, 

the State required the company “... to install ground water monitoring wells and implement a 

closure plan. Since that time, the site has been effectively closed and is currently revegetated 

 

130 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Final Revised Report on Resolution of 18 Previously 

Indeterminate Candidate Damage Cases, March 5, 2003. 

131 Compendium of nineteen alleged coal combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007. 

132 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

56
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

with a good stand of growth. The ground water monitoring data indicate that impact to ground 

water has been reduced since closure of the site133.” 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: While the State has taken regulatory action 

at this site, the sulfate and boron exceedances found are of non-health-based standards. 

Therefore, this case is a potential damage case. 

67. Arizona Public Service Co. Cholla Steam Electric Generating Station, Arizona134

History: Monitoring data at this site show levels of sulfate, total dissolved solids, chloride, and 

fluoride in excess of their secondary MCLs. These exceedances are found in a well located 

directly at the foot of the fly ash pond. The affected aquifer has “naturally poor water quality,” 

but no background or up-gradient data are available. The commenters use a comparison to 

distant alluvial ground water to implicate pond leachate as a source of contamination. The 

commenters also allege that construction of the waste management units has caused naturally 

poor quality water from upper aquifers to contaminate the pristine lower aquifer, regardless of 

leachate contamination. 

Basis for Consideration as a Potential Damage Case: The exceedances found at this site, sulfate, 

total dissolved solids, chloride and fluoride, are of non-health-based standards and are in a well 

directly at the foot of a waste management unit. Therefore, this case is a potential damage case.

 

133 Attachment B to the letter from the Hoosier Environmental Council to Dennis Ruddy regarding damage case 

sites, November 11, 1999, Document ID # EPA-HQ-RCRA-1999-0022-1235 in the docket titled Comments In 

Response To The April 28, 1999 Federal Register: Availability Of Report To Congress On Fossil Fuel Combustion; 

Request For Comments And Announcement Of Public Hearing, Attachment B: Report On R.M. Heskett Station.

The Report On R.M. Heskett Station is accessible at: 

http://www.hecweb.org/ProgramsandInitatives/CCW/heskett.pdf

134 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

Rejected Coal Combustion Waste 

Damage Cases 

(Excluding Minefills) 

 
Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

IV. Rejected Damage Cases 

The following alleged damage cases were rejected due to either (1) lack of any evidence of 

damage or (2) lack of evidence that damages were uniquely associated with CCW. 

68. American Coal Corporation #5 Landfill135

No information available 

69. Cardinal PFBC Monofill136

According to Ohio EPA representatives, the Cardinal PFBC Monofill is used for the disposal of 

bed ash from the Ohio Power Cardinal Power Plant. The monofill was constructed on top of the 

closed Fly Ash Reservoir I Impoundment. The State has ground water monitoring data for the 

site, but the representatives could not confirm the presence of any suspected impacts. The data 

do not show any exceedences of primary or secondary MCLs. Furthermore, according to the 

State’s hydrogeologists, interpretation of the data is occluded by mining impacts in the area. 

There are no exceedences of primary or secondary MCLs at this site. Therefore, this site is 

categorized as a case without documented evidence of proven or potential damage to human 

health or the environment. 

70. Cardinal Fly Ash Reservoir II Impoundment137

According to Ohio EPA representatives, the Cardinal Fly Ash Reservoir II Impoundment is used 

for the disposal of fly ash from the Ohio Power Cardinal Power Plant. The State has ground 

water monitoring data for the site, but the representatives could not confirm the presence of any 

suspected impacts. The data do not show any exceedences of primary or secondary MCLs. 

Furthermore, according to the State’s hydrogeologists, interpretation of the data is occluded by 

mining impacts in the area. There are no exceedences of primary or secondary MCLs at this site. 

Therefore, this site is categorized as a case without documented evidence of proven or potential 

damage to human health or the environment. 

 

135 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Revised Identification of New Candidate Damage Cases, 

December 7, 2001. 

136 Ibid. 

137 Ibid. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

71. Clinch River, Virginia138

EPA identified this site in its original 1988 Report to Congress on Wastes from the Combustion 

of Fossil Fuels by Electric Utility Power Plants. It is described in detail in that document. EPA 

concluded that this site represented a proven damage case for purposes of the 1993 Regulatory 

Determination. In conducting its analysis for the 1999 Report to Congress, however, EPA 

concluded that there was no evidence of comanagement at this site. EPA therefore rejected this 

site as a damage case for purposes of the 1999 Report to Congress.139

72. Copicut Road140

Monitoring results do not document any exceedances of federal or state standards (Ruddy 2001), 

except for pH. The ground water pH was below (more acidic than) its minimum secondary MCL 

both prior to and during placement (PG&E undated). Because acidic ground water was present 

prior to ash placement, this exceedance cannot be attributed to ash placement. Monitoring data 

for the site reveal no exceedances of primary or secondary MCLs attributable to coal combustion 

waste placement at the site. Therefore, this case is categorized as a case without documented 

evidence of proven or potential damage to human health or the environment.141

73. Dixie Caverns County Landfill, Virginia142

Dixie Caverns Landfill was operated by Roanoke County, Virginia, as a disposal site for 

municipal refuse, solvents, and fly ash. When the landfill was closed in 1976, it was not capped 

and an intermittent stream on the site flowed through a large drum pile and the fly ash pile and 

emptied into the Roanoke River, approximately two miles southeast of the landfill. There was 

also a sludge disposal pit on site. The contaminants identified on site include lead, cadmium, 

zinc, silver, iron, benzene, substituted benzene, chlorinated ethane, and polynuclear aromatic 

hydrocarbons (PAHs). Based on review of the materials provided by the commenters, it is 

apparent that the fly ash disposed at the site is emission control dust from an electric arc furnace, 

 

138 Letter from the Hoosier Environmental Council to the RCRA Docket Information Center regarding the CCW 

RTC, June 11, 1999, Letter from the Hoosier Environmental Council and the Citizens Coal Council to the RCRA 

Docket Information Center regarding the CCW RTC, June 14, 1999 and Letter from the Hoosier Environmental 

Council, et. al., to Dennis Ruddy regarding the CCW RTC, September 24, 1999. 

139 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis 

Ruddy regarding Review of Causative Factors for Coal Combustion Waste Damage Cases, November 29, 2000. 

140 Letter from HEC, et. al., to Dennis Ruddy, February, 2002. 

141 Compendium of nineteen alleged coal combustion wastes damage cases, May 3, 2007. 

142 Letter from the Hoosier Environmental Council and the Citizens Coal Council to the RCRA Docket Information 

Center regarding the CCW RTC, June 14, 1999 and Letter from the Hoosier Environmental Council, et. al., to 

Dennis Ruddy regarding the CCW RTC, September 24, 1999. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

not fossil fuel combustion waste. This site did not receive fossil fuel combustion waste and 

therefore is not applicable.143

74. Gavin Impoundments144

According to Ohio EPA representatives, the Gavin Plant ash ponds are used for the disposal of 

ash from the Ohio Power Gavin Plant. The fly ash pond is no longer receiving ash, but has not 

yet been closed. The facility has not conducted ground water monitoring, but has submitted a 

ground water monitoring plan and will be required to monitor as part of their closure activities 

for the fly ash pond. The bottom ash pond is still receiving wastes. There is no ground water 

monitoring for the bottom ash pond. The representatives could not confirm the presence of any 

suspected impacts and the State has not undertaken any regulatory action at the site. There is no 

evidence of damage at this site. Therefore, this site is categorized as a case without documented 

evidence of proven or potential damage to human health or the environment. 

75. Kyger Creek Power Plant Impoundments145

According to Ohio EPA representatives, the Kyger Creek Plant surface impoundments are used 

for the disposal of ash from the Ohio Valley Electric Kyger Creek Power Plant. Bottom ash is 

disposed of in the bottom ash pond, although most of the facility’s bottom ash is used by Black 

Beauty, an on-site company which sells products containing bottom ash. While there is no 

ground water monitoring around the bottom ash pond, Ohio EPA staff are unaware of any issues 

related to this pond. 

76. Lake Erie, Ohio146 

Commenters provided a study of trace element concentrations in sediments, surface water, and 

biota in proximity to an ash disposal basin along the shore of Lake Erie. The study noted that 

sediment concentrations in the proximity of the basin had the potential for adverse effects on 

benthos (oligochatetes) and fish in early life stages. In addition, the study observed changes in 

fish behavior (e.g., possibly due to avoidance) near the basins. The study findings, however, do 

not conclusively implicate coal combustion waste as the source of the observed behavioral 

changes. There is insufficient evidence to confirm that fossil fuel combustion wastes are the 

source of contamination in this case.

 

143 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

144 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Revised Identification of New Candidate Damage Cases, 

December 7, 2001. 

145 Ibid. 

146 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

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77. Muskingum River Power Plant Impoundments147

According to Ohio EPA representatives, the Ohio Power Muskingum River Power Plant disposes 

of bottom ash in ponds located next to the plant. The representatives confirmed that there are no 

monitoring wells at the site. They indicated, however, that elevated levels of iron and 

manganese have been detected in facility production wells. These observations have led the 

State’s hydrogeologists to suspect that there might be some impacts from the bottom ash ponds. 

The representatives, however, stated that the levels of iron and manganese detected are below the 

relevant secondary MCLs. Because there are no exceedances of primary or secondary MCLs at 

this site, the evidence is not sufficient to categorize this case as a proven or potential damage 

case under EPA’s definitions. Therefore, this site is categorized as a case without documented 

evidence of proven or potential damage to human health or the environment. 

The fly ash pond originally consisted of two ponds in series. One of the ponds has recently been 

closed and capped, while the other continues to accept waste. At the time that the fly ash pond 

was closed, the facility installed ground water monitoring wells around the perimeter of the 

entire fly ash disposal area and five years of monitoring data now are available. According to the 

Ohio EPA representatives, monitoring has detected some statistically “out of range” values for 

iron, manganese, and TDS. These observations have led the State’s hydrogeologists to suspect 

that there might be some impacts from the fly ash ponds. The representatives, however, stated 

that the levels detected are below the relevant secondary MCLs. Because there are no 

exceedances of primary or secondary MCLs at this site, the evidence is not sufficient to 

categorize this case as a proven or potential damage case under EPA’s definitions. Therefore, 

this site is categorized as a case without documented evidence of proven or potential damage to 

human health or the environment. 

78. Muskogee Environmental Fly Ash Disposal Site, Oklahoma148

Commenters provided a printout from the Superfund Archive identifying this site as a Superfund 

site. The information provided, however, does not identify the constituents of concern, the 

reason for inclusion of this site in the Superfund database, or otherwise indicate that any 

contamination at this site is associated with fossil fuel combustion wastes. There is insufficient 

information available to identify the extent and nature of damages present and attribute them to 

fossil fuel combustion wastes.149

 

147 Ibid. 

148 Letter from the Hoosier Environmental Council, et. al., to Dennis Ruddy regarding the CCW RTC, September 

24, 1999. 

149 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Final Revised Report on Resolution of 18 Previously 

Indeterminate Candidate Damage Cases, March 5, 2003. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

79. Public Service Co Fly Ash Disposal Site, Oklahoma150 

Commenters provided a printout from the Superfund Archive identifying this site as a Superfund 

site. The information provided, however, does not identify the constituents of concern, the 

reason for inclusion of this site in the Superfund database, or otherwise indicate that any 

contamination at this site is associated with fossil fuel combustion wastes. There is insufficient 

information available to identify the extent and nature of damages present and attribute them to 

fossil fuel combustion wastes.151

80. Star Coal Company #6 Landfill152

No information available 

81. Star Coal Company #14 Landfill153

No information available 

82. Stuart Station Impoundments154

According to Ohio EPA representatives, the Stuart Station ash ponds are used for the disposal of 

ash from the Dayton Power & Light Stuart Station. The State has ground water monitoring data 

for wells near the ash ponds and older data from facility production wells. According to the 

State’s hydrogeologists, the facility relocated their production wellfield due to ground water 

quality impacts of “undetermined origin.” The monitoring data also show a statistical increase 

over background concentrations. The specific constituents showing increases were not 

identified, but there are no exceedances of primary or secondary MCLs at the site, according to 

the Ohio EPA representatives. The State’s hydrogeologists also indicated that the impacts 

observed may be either from the ash ponds or from coal piles located in the area. Because there 

are no exceedances of primary or secondary MCLs at this site, the evidence is not sufficient to 

categorize this case as a proven or potential damage case under EPA’s definitions. Therefore, 

this site is categorized as a case without documented evidence of proven or potential damage to 

human health or the environment. 

 

150 Letter from the Hoosier Environmental Council, et. al., to Dennis Ruddy regarding the CCW RTC, September 

24, 1999. 

151 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Final Revised Report on Resolution of 18 Previously 

Indeterminate Candidate Damage Cases, March 5, 2003. 

152 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Revised Identification of New Candidate Damage Cases, 

December 7, 2001. 

153 Ibid. 

154 Ibid. 

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83. Thompson Landfill, Michigan155

This site is an abandoned landfill. Commenters cited a MDEQ study that allegedly shows 

arsenic greater than Michigan “cleanup criteria” attributable to the landfill. This document and 

quantitative data supporting the alleged damages were not available. Recent information from 

the MDEQ, however, confirms that ground water contamination is present and that the site is 

being remediated. There is no information on whether wastes other than coal combustion wastes 

might be present that could contribute to the contamination. There is no information on whether 

the alleged contamination extends off-site. There is insufficient information available to identify 

the extent of ground water contamination, or to positively identify the source of the 

contamination.156

84. Turris Coal Company Elkhart Mine, Illinois157

This site is an underground mine that disposes of coal processing waste and coal combustion 

waste in a diked surface lagoon. Commenters provided monitoring data showing exceedances of 

the secondary MCLs for sulfate, chloride, and total dissolved solids in a single well at the site. 

The data for this well also show an increase in these concentrations since the placement of coal 

combustion waste began. The other wells at the site do not show similar exceedances or trends. 

There is no quantitative data on the presence of other constituents at the site. There is 

insufficient data on hydrogeology at the site, the location of coal combustion waste placement at 

the site, or on activities other than coal combustion waste placement at the site to conclude that 

the impacts identified are due to coal combustion waste placement. Although there is some 

quantitative evidence of contamination, the available data are limited to a small number of 

constituents. There also is insufficient information to identify the extent of the contamination or 

confirm the source of the contamination.158

85. Western Farmers Electrical Fly Ash Site, Oklahoma159 

Commenters provided a printout from the Superfund Archive identifying this site as a Superfund 

site. The information provided, however, does not identify the constituents of concern, the 

reason for inclusion of this site in the Superfund database, or otherwise indicate that any 

 

155 Letter from the Hoosier Environmental Council, et. al., to Dennis Ruddy regarding the CCW RTC, September 

24, 1999. 

156 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Final Revised Report on Resolution of 18 Previously 

Indeterminate Candidate Damage Cases, March 5, 2003. 

157 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Rationale and Conclusions Regarding CommenterIdentified Fossil Fuel Combustion Waste Damage Cases, April 20, 2000. 

158 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Final Revised Report on Resolution of 18 Previously 

Indeterminate Candidate Damage Cases, March 5, 2003. 

159 Letter from the Hoosier Environmental Council, et. al., to Dennis Ruddy regarding the CCW RTC, September 

24, 1999. 

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Coal Combustion Waste Damage Case Assessments July 9, 2007 

contamination at this site is associated with fossil fuel combustion wastes. There is insufficient 

information available to identify the extent and nature of damages present and attribute them to 

fossil fuel combustion wastes.160

 

160 Memorandum from SAIC to Dennis Ruddy regarding Final Revised Report on Resolution of 18 Previously 

Indeterminate Candidate Damage Cases, March 5, 2003. 

65