Coal Ash Landfill Safety Act

Bill: 114-hr-4827
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Johnson, Henry C. "Hank," Jr. [D-GA-4]
Introduced: 2016-03-22
Policy area: Environmental Protection
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures

Coal

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Environmental assessment, monitoring, research

Environmental health

Environmental regulatory procedures

Government information and archives

Hazardous wastes and toxic substances

Minority health

Solid waste and recycling

Water quality
Latest action: action_date: 2016-03-25
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Environment and the Economy.

Summaries:
action_date: 2016-03-22
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><b>Coal Ash Landfill Safety Act</b></p> <p>This bill directs the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)to review regulations related to the disposal of coal combustion residuals (coal ash) in municipal solid wastelandfills to determine if such regulations provide public health and environmental protection that is at least equivalent to the protection provided by the coal combustion residuals rule for certain other landfills and surface impoundments.The review must be completed within six months. </p> <p>To the extent the EPA determines that the regulations fails to provide at least equivalent protection, it must revise the regulations to provide equivalent or greater protection. </p>

tv_txt: I 114th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 4827 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES March 22, 2016 Mr. Johnson of Georgia (for himself, Mr. Conyers , Mrs. Watson Coleman , Ms. Norton , Mr. Grijalva , Mr. Gutiérrez , and Ms. Plaskett ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce A BILL To require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to review regulations for municipal solid waste landfills to determine if such regulations are, with the respect to the disposal of coal combustion residuals in such landfills, protective of health and the environment, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Coal Ash Landfill Safety Act . 2. Review of regulations for municipal solid waste landfills that receive coal combustion residuals (a) Review Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall complete a review of the regulations issued under the Solid Waste Disposal Act ( 42 U.S.C. 6901 et seq. ) applicable to municipal solid waste landfills with respect to the disposal of coal combustion residuals at such landfills. (b) Contents In conducting the review under subsection (a) the Administrator shall— (1) determine, with respect to the disposal of coal combustion residuals, if the regulations described in subsection (a) for municipal solid waste landfills are at least as protective of health and the environment as the regulations set forth in the coal combustion residuals rule are for landfills and surface impoundments that are subject to such coal combustion residuals rule; (2) examine, with respect to the disposal of coal combustion residuals, any differences in requirements, protections, and impacts between the regulations described in subsection (a) and the regulations set forth in the coal combustion residuals rule, including— (A) fugitive dust protections; (B) groundwater monitoring for coal combustion residuals specific parameters; (C) cleanup standards for coal combustion residuals contaminants; (D) weekly, monthly, and annual inspection requirements; (E) a prohibition against placing coal combustion residuals within 5 feet of groundwater; (F) public access to compliance data and information, including public posting of monitoring data, corrective action plans, and inspection reports on a publicly accessible Internet website; and (G) disproportionate impacts to health and environment of low-income and minority populations in accordance with Executive Order 12898, Federal Actions To Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations . (c) Revision of regulations If, pursuant to the review under subsection (a), the Administrator determines that, with respect to the disposal of coal combustion residuals, the regulations applicable to municipal solid waste landfills described in subsection (a) fail to provide at least equivalent protection for health and the environment as the regulations set forth in the coal combustion residuals rule for landfills and surface impoundments subject to such coal combustion residuals rule, not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall revise the regulations applicable to municipal solid waste landfills that receive coal combustion residuals to provide equivalent or greater protection. (d) Definitions In this Act: (1) Administrator The term Administrator means the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. (2) Coal combustion residuals The term coal combustion residuals means fly ash, bottom ash, boiler slag, and flue gas desulfurization materials generated from burning coal for the purpose of generating electricity by electric utilities and independent power producers. (3) Coal combustion residuals rule The term coal combustion residuals rule means the rule entitled Hazardous and Solid Waste Management System; Disposal of Coal Combustion Residuals From Electric Utilities published at 80 Fed. Reg. 21302 (April 17, 2015) (including any successor regulation).