Formatted Title:

Beneficial Reuse of Coal Ash Rather than Disposal as Waste

Background/Objectives:

Coal ash, also referred to as coal combustion residuals (CCRs), is produced primarily from the burning of coal in coal-fired power plants. Coal ash is one of the largest types of industrial waste generated in the United States. With catastrophic release events from surface ash impoundments such as occurred in Kingston, Tennessee, regulatory scrutiny has increased. However, ash is not necessarily a waste. Ash can also be viewed as an opportunity for beneficial reuse. Beneficial reuse of ash has environmental, economic, and societal benefits that support the view of GREEN technologies referring to a Good Ranking for the Environment, Economy, and Nation (the people).

Approach/Activities:

A triple bottom line approach for assessing ash as a “GREEN” technology was applied at the Savannah River Site (SRS) with the evaluation of seven ash basins/piles/depositional areas at the SRS from the decades of coal powerhouse operations from the 1950s to the early 2000s that provided electricity to the Department of Energy’s 310 mi² SRS in South Carolina.

The GREEN evaluation was applied to develop a comprehensive strategy for the remaining Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) ash waste units at the SRS. Supporting valuations included development of detailed cost estimates for various alternatives such as soil covers, Class III Landfill geosynthetic cover systems, excavation and backfill, and land use controls along with beneficial reuse. The assessment is based on previous remedial/removal actions implemented at other SRS ash basins and overflow areas and included volume estimates of ash based on historic topography and recent LiDAR interpretations; it also included an opportunity for a future Carolina bay restoration. It is anticipated that the approach applied at SRS could also be used to evaluate similar alternatives for various ash sites across the nation for a GREEN approach to beneficial reuse of ash.

Results/Lessons Learned:

Previous ash units at SRS were viewed as waste units; ecological data were lacking in determining impacts to ecological receptors. With the addition of ecological community surveys, it was shown that historic ash depositional areas do not pose an unacceptable risk to ecological receptors, therefore, land use controls are sufficient until the material is needed for beneficial reuse. Two depositional ash units that extended into a floodplain area and a Carolina bay remain for long-term LUCs for these sensitive environments.

Susan Blas

Affiliation

Biography

Refine Results

(Group 1, Poster Board #69) Beneficial Reuse of Coal Ash Rather than Disposal as Waste