Alabama: Denial of State Coal Combustion Residuals Permit Program

<RULE> ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY <CFR>40 CFR Part 257</CFR> <DEPDOC>[EPA-HQ-OLEM-2022-0903; FRL 11262-02-OLEM]</DEPDOC> <SUBJECT>Alabama: Denial of State Coal Combustion Residuals Permit Program</SUBJECT> <HD SOURCE="HED">AGENCY:</HD> Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). <HD SOURCE="HED">ACTION:</HD> Availability of final decision. <SUM> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUMMARY:</HD> Pursuant to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or the Agency) is denying the Alabama Department of Environmental Management's (ADEM) Application for approval of the Alabama coal combustion residuals (CCR) permit program (Application). After reviewing the State CCR permit program Application submitted by ADEM on December 29, 2021, additional relevant materials, including permits issued by ADEM, and comments submitted on the Proposed Denial, EPA has determined that Alabama's CCR permit program does not meet the standard for approval under RCRA. </SUM> <EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">DATES:</HD> This action is effective on July 8, 2024. </EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">ADDRESSES:</HD> EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OLEM-2022-0903. All documents in the docket are listed on the <E T="03">https://www.regulations.gov</E> website. Although listed in the index, some information is not publicly available, <E T="03">e.g.,</E> Confidential Business Information or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as copyrighted material, is not placed on the internet and will be publicly available only in hard copy form. <FURINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:</HD> Michelle Lloyd, Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery, Materials Recovery and Waste Management Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, MC: 5304T, Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 566-0560; email address: <E T="03">lloyd.michelle@epa.gov.</E> For more information on this notification please visit <E T="03">https://www.epa.gov/coalash.</E> </FURINF> <SUPLINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD1">Table of Contents</HD> <EXTRACT> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">I. General Information</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">A. Summary of Final Action</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">B. Background</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">C. Statutory Authority</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">D. Summary of Proposed Denial of Alabama's CCR Permit Program Application</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">II. Final Action on Alabama CCR Permit Program Application</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">A. Legal Authority To Evaluate State CCR Permit Program Applications</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">B. EPA Review of Alabama Regulations for CCR Units</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">C. EPA Review of Alabama's Permits Issued Under the State CCR Regulations</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">III. Summary of Comments and Responses</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">A. Legal and Policy Comments on EPA's Review of Alabama's CCR Permit Program</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">B. Comments on EPA's Technical Evaluation of Alabama CCR Permits</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">C. Miscellaneous Comments</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">D. Out of Scope Comments</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">IV. Final Action</FP> </EXTRACT> <HD SOURCE="HD1">List of Acronyms</HD> <EXTRACT> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">ACM Assessment of Corrective Measures</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">ADEM Alabama Department of Environmental Management</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">CCP coal combustion product</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">CCR coal combustion residuals</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">CFR Code of Federal Regulations</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">EPA Environmental Protection Agency</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">EPRI Electric Power Research Institute</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">FR Federal Register</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">GWMP Groundwater Monitoring Plan</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">GWPS groundwater protection standard</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">MCL maximum contaminant level</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">MNA Monitored Natural Attenuation</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">MSL mean sea level</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">NOPV Notice of Potential Violation</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">NPDES National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">RCRA Resource Conservation and Recovery Act</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">RTC Response to Comments</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">TSD Technical Support Document</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">TVA Tennessee Valley Authority</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">USGS U.S. Geological Survey</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">WBWT waste below the water table</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">WIIN Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation</FP> </EXTRACT> <HD SOURCE="HD1">I. General Information</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD2">A. Summary of Final Action</HD> EPA is taking final action to deny approval of Alabama's CCR permit program because the Agency finds that the State's program does not require each CCR unit in the State to achieve compliance with either the minimum requirements in the Federal CCR regulations or with alternative requirements that EPA has determined to be at least as protective as the requirements of the Federal CCR regulations in 40 CFR part 257, subpart D, for the reasons set forth in the Proposed Denial and this final action. See, 42 U.S.C. 6945(d)(1)(B). <HD SOURCE="HD2">B. Background</HD> CCR are generated from the combustion of coal, including solid fuels classified as anthracite, bituminous coal, subbituminous coal, and lignite, for the purpose of generating steam to power a generator to produce electricity or electricity and other thermal energy by electric utilities and independent power producers. CCR include fly ash, bottom ash, boiler slag, and flue gas desulfurization materials. CCR contain many contaminants that may pose a hazard to human health and the environment. On April 17, 2015, EPA published a final rule, creating 40 CFR part 257, subpart D, <SU>1</SU> <FTREF/> that established a comprehensive set of minimum Federal requirements for the disposal of CCR in landfills and surface impoundments (80 FR 21302, April 17, 2015) (“Federal CCR regulations”). Section 2301 of the 2016 Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) Act amended section 4005 of RCRA, creating a new subsection (d) that establishes a Federal CCR permit program that is similar to the permit programs under RCRA subtitle C and other environmental statutes. See, 42 U.S.C. 6945(d). <FTNT> <SU>1</SU>  Unless otherwise specified, all references to parts 257 and 239 in this notification are to title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). </FTNT> The Federal CCR regulations are self-implementing, which means that CCR landfills and surface impoundments must comply with the terms of the rule even prior to establishment of a Federal CCR permit program, and noncompliance with any requirement of the Federal CCR regulations can be directly enforced against the facility. Once a final CCR permit is issued, the terms of the permit apply in lieu of the terms of the Federal CCR regulations, and RCRA section 4005(d)(3) provides a permit shield against direct enforcement of the applicable Federal CCR regulations (meaning the permit's terms become the enforceable requirements for the permittee). RCRA section 4005(d) also allows States to seek approval for a State CCR permit program that will operate in lieu of a Federal CCR permit program in the State. The statute provides that after a State submits an application to the Administrator for approval, EPA shall approve the State permit program within 180 days after the Administrator determines that the State program requires each CCR unit located in the State to achieve compliance with either the Federal requirements or other State requirements that EPA determines, after consultation with the State, are at least as protective as those included in the Federal CCR regulations. See, 42 U.S.C. 6945(d)(1)(B). After EPA issued the Federal CCR regulations in 2015, Alabama established ADEM Administrative Code Chapter 335-13-15, for the portions of those regulations for which the State is seeking approval, and language in the State's regulations is almost identical to EPA regulations. Alabama's regulations became effective in 2018, and soon after the State began implementing its State CCR permit program and issuing permits. At the time of submission of ADEM's December 29, 2021, Application to EPA, ADEM had issued permits for the following CCR facilities: (1) the James H. Miller Electric Generating Plant (Permit #37-51; issued December 18, 2020); (2) Greene County Electric Generating Plant (Permit #32-03: issued December 18, 2020); (3) Gadsden Steam Plant (Permit #28-09, issued December 18, 2020); (4) James M. Barry Electric Generating Plant (Permit #49-35, issued July 1, 2021); (5) E.C. Gaston Electric Generating Plant (Permit #59-16, issued May 25, 2021); and (6) Charles R. Lowman Power Plant (Permit #65-06, issued August 30, 2021). After its Application was submitted to EPA, ADEM proceeded to issue permits for the William C. Gorgas Electric Generating Plant (Permit #64-12 issued February 28, 2022) and for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Plant Colbert (Permit #17-11, issued October 25, 2022). Starting in January 2018, EPA began working with ADEM as the State developed its Application for the State's CCR permit program, and, over the course of several years, EPA had many interactions with ADEM about the development of a state CCR permit program. See Unit III.E. of the Proposed Denial and Technical Support Document (TSD) Volume II (summarizing and listing, respectively, the communications between EPA and ADEM concerning the State's CCR permit program and implementation of the CCR regulations). As with other States, EPA discussed with ADEM the process for EPA to review and approve the State's CCR permit program, including ADEM's plans for formally adopting CCR regulations, ADEM's anticipated timeline f ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Preview showing 10k of 355k characters. Full document text is stored and available for version comparison. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━