"The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) raised concerns in a letter to its Georgia counterpart about the state utility’s storage of coal ash.
In the letter last week, shared with The Hill, EPA officials expressed concerns with Georgia Power’s plan for disposal of coal ash from retired Plant Hammond, near the town of Rome. Coal-fired power plants prevent the release of waste into the atmosphere through the use of ash ponds, or pits containing ash and water. However, environmentalists have warned such ponds pose a major threat to groundwater.
Last year, Georgia’s state environmental agency, the Environmental Protection Division, issued Georgia Power a closure permit for Plant Hammond. In the Feb. 16 letter, EPA Region 4 acting Administrator Jeaneanne Gettle said the federal agency has concerns about the plan, writing that about a 10th of the ash from the pond was in proximity to groundwater at the time of closure."
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