Surface Impoundments and the Coal Ash Rule: Past, Present, and Future

In 2015, USEPA promulgated an extensive set of rules designed to regulate the storage and disposal of coal combustion residuals (CCR or Coal Ash). Since then, the Coal Ash Rule has been the subject of intense public scrutiny, multiple court battles, and repeated supplemental rulemaking by USEPA.

This course presented by Tony Hopp of Steptoe & Johnson LLP will focus on the impact of the Coal Ash Rule of surface impoundments storing CCR at active and closed sites. It will provide an overview of the Coal Ash Rule as it impacts the surface impoundments describe how the Coal Ash Rule has changed as a result of citizen suits and subsequent EPA rulemaking, and provide some insights into the future of the Coal Ash Rule.

Learning Objectives:

1. Review the origin and content of the Coal Ash Rule
2. Discuss how RCRA citizen suits and supplemental rulemaking impact the rule and its implementation
3. Identify potential defenses to citizen suits and the newly proposed "permit shield" defense