Environmental and public health groups will file a lawsuit today in
the U.S. District Court, District of Columbia, to force the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to complete its rulemaking process
and finalize public health safeguards against toxic coal ash. Although
the EPA has not updated its waste disposal and control standards for
coal ash in more than thirty years, it continues to delay these needed
federal protections despite more evidence of leaking waste ponds,
poisoned groundwater supplies and threats to public health. The groups’
lawsuit comes as EPA data show that an additional 29 power plants in 16
states have contaminated groundwater near coal ash dump sites.
Earthjustice is suing the agency under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) on behalf of Appalachian Voices (NC), Environmental Integrity Project (EIP), Chesapeake Climate Action Network (MD), French Broad Riverkeeper (NC), Kentuckians For The Commonwealth (KY), Moapa Band of Paiutes (NV), Montana Environmental Information Center (MT), Physicians for Social Responsibility, Prairie Rivers Network (IL), Sierra Club and Southern Alliance for Clean Energy
(TN). RCRA requires the EPA to ensure that safeguards are regularly
updated to address threats posed by wastes, but the EPA has never
revised the safeguards to ensure that they address coal ash. Coal ash is
the byproduct of coal-fired power plants, and includes a toxic mix of
arsenic, lead, hexavalent chromium, mercury, selenium, cadmium and other
dangerous pollutants.
