{"id":2233,"date":"2011-08-01T15:32:58","date_gmt":"2011-08-01T21:32:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/valleywatch.net\/?p=2233"},"modified":"2011-08-01T15:36:46","modified_gmt":"2011-08-01T21:36:46","slug":"epa-refuses-to-even-study-the-risk-of-using-coal-ash-in-many-uses-including-drywall-in-homes-scientists-told-agency-does-not-want-safety-concerns-raised-about-coal-ash","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/valleywatch.net\/?p=2233","title":{"rendered":"EPA refuses to even study the risk of using coal ash in many uses including drywall in homes-Scientists Told Agency Does Not Want Safety Concerns Raised about Coal Ash"},"content":{"rendered":"

August 1, 2011-by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility<\/a><\/p>\n

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A literal mountain of coal ash makes its permanent home near Sebree, KY. Photo \u00a9 2011 John Blair<\/p><\/div>\n

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency prevents its scientists from examining health risks of coal combustion wastes being added to consumer, agricultural and commercial\u00a0products even though the agency promotes these practices as safe, according to documents released today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).\u00a0 Despite a scathing Office of Inspector General (IG) report earlier this year taking the agency to task for failing to complete a single safety review on the 60 million tons of coal ash and other combustion wastes entering the U.S. marketplace each year, EPA\u00a0 indicates that it has no intention of doing any risk assessments in the near future.
\nIn a June 16, 2011 reply to the IG, EPA Assistant Administrator Mathy Stanislaus stated that while \u201cprotection of human health and the environment is a critical prerequisite to promoting the beneficial use of coal combustion residuals\u2026we do not yet have a timeline for developing the evaluation process regarding the beneficial use\u201d of coal wastes.\u00a0 He indicated EPA will wait until it finalizes regulations governing coal ash (2013, at the earliest) before considering dangers of how coal ash is actually used.<\/p>\n

\u201cEPA just gave its IG the middle finger,\u201d said PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch, noting that most all of the safety information on coal ash in products comes from the industry.\u00a0 \u201cThanks to EPA, Congress and the public have no idea which, if any, applications of coal ash are safe or environmentally benign.\u201d<\/p>\n

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A recent study found that residents (center bottom) near the Louisville Gas and Electric's Cane Run plant had dangerous levels of toxins on their property that blew there from the coal ash pile that was across the street from where they live. Photo\u00a9 2010 John Blair<\/p><\/div>\n

Compounding this data gap, IG investigative materials PEER obtained under the Freedom of Information Act show EPA scientists\u2019 safety concerns about coal ash are routinely \u201csteamrolled\u201d and ignored.\u00a0 Scientists could not even get the answer to the basic question of \u201cWhat\u2019s in this stuff?\u201d\u00a0 For example \u2013<\/p>\n