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feature May 4, 2026

Coal Ash: Reports & Publications

Documenting the public health threat from coal ash, the hazardous waste that remains after coal is burned
document May 2, 2026

Fact Sheet: EPA Prepares to Gut Coal Ash Safeguards and Cleanup Requirements

Under the current Trump administration, the EPA has begun to systematically gut protections that would otherwise force the coal industry to clean up its toxic coal ash.
The now-closed Waukegan Generating Station, on the shore of Lake Michigan in Waukegan, Illinois. The coal fired power plant still has sizable coal ash ponds threatening the environment. (Jamie Kelter Davis for Earthjustice)
Press Release April 9, 2026

EPA Proposes to Gut Federal Coal Ash Cleanup Requirements and Health Protections

Earthjustice will sue to stop the EPA from rewriting the rules for coal power companies’ toxic sludge
Press Release: Victory March 11, 2026

Illinois EPA Denies NRG’s Inadequate “Preliminary” Closure Proposal and Monitoring Plan for Toxic Coal Ash at Lincoln Stone Quarry

Citizens Against Ruining the Environment (CARE), Earthjustice, Prairie River Network, and Sierra Club celebrate the decision to ensure better monitoring and clean-up of coal ash at the highly-polluted quarry
People rally outside of an EPA public hearing on coal ash in Chicago, Illinois in 2023 (Jamie Kelter Davis for Earthjustice)
Article March 5, 2026

People Are Furious About Coal Ash Deregulation

Folks nationwide feel the Trump administration's EPA is abandoning its responsibility to protect communities, and they are speaking out.
Coal ash is the waste that remains when coal is burned in power plants to generate electricity. (Nenad Zivkovic / Shutterstock)
Press Release February 6, 2026

Trump EPA Delays Cleanup of Hundreds of Coal Ash Dumps in Advance of Larger Rollback

The rule comes just days before a deadline for owners to report on previously unregulated coal ash dumping at power plant sites
document January 16, 2026

USWAG Letter on CCR Priorities

Letter from the Utility Solid Waste Activities Group to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin on coal combustion residuals.
document January 16, 2026

USWAG: Whitepaper on Closure-in-Place

Whitepaper from the Utility Solid Waste Activities Group on closing coal combustion residuals units by leaving coal ash in place.
In the News: Canary Media January 9, 2026

EPA plans to give 11 coal plants a free pass on toxic ash disposal

The now-closed Waukegan Generating Station, on the shore of Lake Michigan in Waukegan, Ill. The coal-fired power plant still has sizable coal ash ponds threatening the environment. (Jamie Kelter Davis for Earthjustice)
feature October 20, 2025

Toxic Coal Ash in Illinois: Addressing Coal Plants’ Hazardous Legacy

Massive quantities of coal ash are stored at 26 power plant sites in Illinois.
document October 13, 2025

USWAG Letter to EPA on “Beneficial Use”

Letter from the Utility Solid Waste Activities Group to the U.S. EPA on RCRA exemption for coal combustion residuals "beneficial use."
The Naughton Power Plant in Kemmerer, Wyoming, in 2010. (Nancy Nehring / Getty Images)
feature October 1, 2025

Toxic Coal Ash in Wyoming: Addressing Coal Plants’ Hazardous Legacy

Massive quantities of toxic coal ash are stored at six power plant sites in Wyoming.
The R.S. Nelson coal fired-power plant in 2004, in Westlake, La. (Jamie Gates / AP Photo / American Press)
feature September 4, 2025

Toxic Coal Ash in Louisiana: Addressing Coal Plants’ Hazardous Legacy

Massive quantities of toxic coal ash are stored at four coal-fired power plant sites in Louisiana.
The Big Stone Power Plant in Grant, South Dakota. (Imagery © 2025 Airbus / Maxar Technologies / USDA / FPAC /GEO / Map Data © 2025)
feature September 4, 2025

Toxic Coal Ash in South Dakota: Addressing Coal Plants’ Hazardous Legacy

Substantial quantities of toxic coal ash are stored at three power plant sites in South Dakota.
The North Fly Ash Pond at the Hugo Power Station in Choctaw, Okla., in 2011. (EPA)
feature September 4, 2025

Toxic Coal Ash in Oklahoma: Addressing Coal Plants’ Hazardous Legacy

Massive quantities of toxic coal ash are stored at six power plant sites in Oklahoma.
The Red Hills Generating Facility in Choctaw, Miss. (Imagery © 2025 Airbus / Maxar Technologies / Map Data © 2025)
feature September 4, 2025

Toxic Coal Ash in Mississippi: Addressing Coal Plants’ Hazardous Legacy

Massive quantities of toxic coal ash are stored at four power plant sites in Mississippi.