Despite years of controversy …. All stakeholders (utilities, EPA, politicians, state regulators, environmental groups, and local communities) will have to decide on “dig it up” or “cover it up” as a middle-path solution. When that happens, the stakeholders will have to make choices as for the methods to deploy. In all these discussions of [...]
Are you tired of hearing about coal ash yet? Is it harmful, is it in groundwater or not, is it going to be excavated, are the states protecting its citizens, and how much is it really going to cost are all common coal ash discussion points. Who could blame you if you are tired [...]
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is revisiting its 2015 rule that regulated the disposal of toxic waste from coal-fired power plants. Among other actions, the EPA has ordered companies to stop placing ash in unlined ponds since keeping coal ash in unlined storage has long been the threat to drinking water. When the dust settles, [...]
It’s going to happen. All stakeholders, utilities, environmental groups, regulators, citizens, and governments will decide on some compromise over the closure of coal ash basins with ground water impacts. Taking the “middle path” between the two extreme stances; Cap-In-Place by the utilities and Excavate-Haul by the environmental groups results in on-site storage. This could [...]
M echanically stabilized earthen (MSE) berms are a practical technique for expanding capacity in existing landfills. Unfortunately, there are some common misconceptions about their use prohibiting the proliferation of MSE berms at landfills. One of the main misconceptions is that MSE berms “are not safe”. Over the past several years, encapsulated mechanically stabilized earth [...]
M echanically stabilized earthen (MSE) berms are a practical technique for expanding capacity in existing landfills. Unfortunately, there are some common misconceptions about their use prohibiting the proliferation of MSE berms at landfills. One of the main misconceptions is that MSE berms “cost too much to construct”. Over the past several years, encapsulated mechanically [...]
Today’s modern landfills are highly engineered systems that are subject to a tremendous number of regulations. First and foremost safety is paramount to a successful design. However, a balance is made between safety and practicality. It is the ugly truth; landfill design safety is sometimes curbed by space and economics. Here at EnCAP-IT we bring [...]
A simple analogy, coal ash storage is like trying to organize your closet in an endless battle to fit ever more stuff into little space. However, unlike your closet problem utility companies cannot get rid of those unneeded belongings (coal ash), or sign on the dotted line for storage-unit leases (landfills). It is all [...]
When utilities are determining how to eliminate environmental hazards posed by legacy coal ash, the paramount goal should be to beneficially reuse much or all of it, if possible, with disposal being the last resort. Beneficially reusing coal ash in productive ways yields many more benefits than simply disposing of this material. Coal ash [...]
We have a natural tendency to focus in on “shiny new things” versus the “dull things”. There is no exception to this trend when dealing with environmental stewardship. Our society wants to move on to renewable energy, carbon neutral, zero waste, the shiny new things, but we mustn’t forget about the looming landfill capacity [...]
