"Brad Heavner" 02/11/2008 02:12 PM To Group Rcra-Docket@EPA cc bcc Subject EPA-HQ-RCRA-2006-0796 (Coal Combustion Waste) February 11, 2008 Notice of Data Availability on the Disposal of Coal Combustion Waste in Landfills and Surface Impoundments Environmental Protection Agency Mailcode: 5305T 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW Washington, DC 20460 Re: Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-RCRA-2006-0796 Dear Administrator Johnson: These comments are submitted by Environment Maryland Research & Policy Center and describe examples of serious environmental degradation caused by the disposal of coal combustion waste (CCW) in Maryalnd. EPA's failure to issue strong rules or strict guidance on CCW disposal has led to a weak regulatory program in Maryland, which in turn has endangered lives. Late in 2006, the Anne Arundel County Department of Health reported high levels of contaminants in homeowner drinking water wells along Summerfield Road in the Gambrills area of the county. Testing of residents' drinking water revealed the presence of arsenic, cadmium, thallium, beryllium, aluminum, manganese and sulfate at levels above safe drinking water standards. The initial group of affected homeowners are all located within about 1000 feet of the B.B.S.S., Inc. sand and gravel mine. B.B.S.S., Reliable Contracting Company and Baltimore Gas and Electric ("BGE") are filling in the excavated mine through the placement of coal ash and flyash throughout the site. The ash is the by-product of the coal combustion process at the BGE power plants. To date, there may be as much as three million tons of coal ash and flyash on the site. Old sand and gravel pits, when used for disposal purposes after mining ceases, have historically been the sites of some of the worst hazardous waste sites in the nation. This is due to the fact that sand and gravel mining typically stops when the water table is reached. "Reclamation" typically involves re-filling the pit. As fill material is placed into the bottom of the pit, it will either be in direct contact with the water table or very close to it. With no natural or man-made clay liner to separate the fill from the water table, any leachate generated within the fill can freely move downward into the underlying unprotected water table. This is of particular concern when the water table aquifer is used for drinking water supply as is the case at Gambrills. The well water contamination in Gambrills arises out of a process initiated more then ten years ago by BGE, B.B.S.S. and the Maryland Department of the Environment ("MDE"). In the mid-1990's, the sand and gravel mining operations were drawing to a close as the pits were dug deep enough to intersect the groundwater table. The original mining permit issued to B.B.S.S. required reclamation of the pits after operations ceased. B.B.S.S. satisfied this requirement by filling in the old gravel pits with coal ash and flyash from the BGE power plants. This provided an easily accessible source of fill for B.B.S.S. and a low cost combustion ash disposal solution for BGE. The BG&E documentation shows that a base layer of bottom ash was to be compacted in place and used as a "liner" of sorts to protect the water table aquifer. It is notable that the design documents call for the bottom ash to be placed 4 feet above the water table and to be compacted to a permeability of 10-5 cm/sec. Typical landfill liner material requires compaction to a permeability of 10-7 cm/sec (two orders of magnitude less permeable) with extensive documentation of compaction testing during placement/construction. Lack of adequate regulations MDE relied heavily on a favorable regulatory regime for the disposal of coal flyash. In 1993, the U.S. EPA determined that it was no longer necessary to regulate coal combustion waste, i.e., coal ash and flyash, as hazardous waste under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act ("RCRA"). In its determination, the EPA relied on the following assumptions: (i) the existing state waste management practices were adequate; (ii) human populations were not generally directly exposed to groundwater in the vicinity of a coal-fired utility's waste sites and public drinking water intakes were usually "at least several kilometers from the sites"; and (iii) hazardous waste management requirements for combustion waste, i.e., liners, leachate collection systems, flood protection and groundwater monitoring, imposed an excessive cost on the utility industry. With respect to the B.B.S.S. mine reclamation operation, the EPA's first two assumptions do not apply and the third assumption should not be determinative of the disposal approach. First, the State of Maryland and MDE relied on the generalities of the EPA determination and excluded the disposal of combustion waste from the state solid waste disposal regulations. Consequently, the disposal of combustion waste may be reviewed only generally by MDE in a reclamation plan, such as that for the B.B.S.S. mine, or by local planning agencies as part of structural fill, as allowed by Anne Arundel County code. The result of this loose regulatory regime is that MDE has allowed the disposal of combustion waste without rigorous environmental review-a review that typically should include siting studies and impact analyses. Such analyses are important to identify the potential to contaminate the environment, particularly groundwater which is used as a drinking water source by either small homeowners or public drinking water services or both. This was not done for the B.B.S.S. site. Contamination detected, but dumping expands After reviewing the B.B.S.S. reclamation plan to refill the gravel pits with coal ash and flyash, MDE issued the permits to begin filling the Waugh Chapel and Turner mine pits at the Gambrills site. Filling of the Turner Pit commenced in March 1995. Remarkably, as early as July 1998, BGE detected elevated sulfate concentrations, a prime indicator of coal ash leachate, in the groundwater beyond the perimeter of the pit. BGE conducted studies which predicted that even though sulfate concentrations were now found outside of the gravel pits, the concentrations would never exceed the permitted limit of 500 milligrams per litre ("mg/l"). BGE specifically claimed that sulfate concentrations would only reach 245 mg/l after 32 years, to about the year 2027. As a result, in October 1998, MDE approved expansion of the ash filling operations at the Turner pit. The following year, in June 1999, sulfate concentrations were found to be greater than 500 mg/l and reached 2000 mg/l by December 2000. During this same time period, MDE authorized BGE to continue to expand its combustion waste disposal activities in the Turner pit. MDE also authorized BGE to initiate filling activities in the Waugh Chapel pit, which BGE commenced in September 2000. As a result of the expanding groundwater contamination, BGE and MDE agreed on the need for a groundwater recovery system to remediate the contamination. During a November 2002 pumping test conducted as part of the design efforts for the groundwater recovery system, other metals began to be detected in the groundwater. Of particular note is the presence of thallium at concentrations as high as 4 times the MCL (drinking water standard). The MCL for thallium is 2 ug/l, and it was detected at 7 to 8 ug/l. Other metals, such as arsenic and cadmium, were beginning to show increased concentrations as well (compared to the 1995 background levels) although not above the MCLs. Despite this, in January 2003, MDE issued a new permit which allowed BGE to expand ash filling over an even greater area of the Waugh Chapel pit. In May 2004, in an attempt to remove the contaminants from the groundwater, BGE and Reliable installed the groundwater remediation system. From 2004 until 2006 the groundwater remediation efforts resulted in decreasing sulfate concentrations in the areas close to the pits, but could not reduce the contamination that extended beyond the pits to at least Summerville Road. In fact, the sulfate concentrations were increasing at the more distant locations, in proximity to the homeowner wells. In October 2006, BGE notified MDE that the contaminated groundwater had reached the homeowners' wells. At that point, the Anne Arundel County Health Department notified the nearby homeowners of the contaminants in their drinking water. BGE continues to fill in remaining areas of the pits with coal ash and flyash. Only recently, MDE has proposed that BGE install a properly engineered landfill liner and leachate collection system in the future to prevent the escape of any more contamination from the last ash fill area. But the horse is already out of the barn in the previously filled areas, where the ash is in direct contact with the groundwater and contamination continues to migrate toward the homeowners' wells and beyond. The Anne Arundel County Health Department has recently expanded the area of concern to cover a much larger area that extends well to the south of Summerfield Road. MDE should have required a site liner and leachate collection system prior to the commencement of the ash fill operation. This would have been the requirement if such operations were strictly regulated under the state's waste disposal regime. Instead, the disposal of the "non-hazardous" combustion waste has resulted in the contamination of drinking water with a significant potential to adversely affect human health and the environment, including surface waters leading to the Chesapeake Bay. Fugitive dust emissions are also a problem at this site. Environment Maryland Research & Policy Center conducted a dust sampling study in November 2007. Eastmount Environmental Services, a Massachusetts-based air quality consulting firm, coordinated the collection and analysis in conjunction with EMLab P&K. They analyzed twelve dust samples taken from three clusters of homes around the dump. Fly ash was detected in all twelve samples. Concentrations of the soot particles containing fly ash ranged from less than one percent to five percent of the dust. MDE has begun the process of writing stricter regulations for the disposal of fly ash. However, preliminary drafts have significant shortcomings. I can provide you with our comments on the draft rules if that would be relevant to your proceedings. More importantly, however, it would be far preferable to have consistent national standards that are fully protective of human health and the environment. Sincerely, Brad Heavner, State Director Environment Maryland 3121 St. Paul St. #26, Baltimore, MD 21218 410-467-0439 (tel); 410-366-2051 (fax) bsh@EnvironmentMaryland.org