FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: ECOS Executive Director Ben Grumbles, (202) 266-4929 or bgrumbles@ecos.org or
Lia Parisien, (202) 266-4931 or lparisien@ecos.org
Environmental Council of the States (ECOS)
Statement on Senate Passage of the Coal Combustion Regulatory Improvement Act
Washington, DC – The Environmental Council of the States commends the Senate on its passage yesterday of the Coal Combustion Regulatory Improvement Act (Act), authorizing states to develop and carry out programs to control coal combustion residual (CCR) units. Included as Section 8001 in S. 2848 of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) 2016, the Act amends the Resource Recovery and Conservation Act to allow states to directly oversee and enforce CCR unit compliance, in a manner consistent with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s April 2015 final CCR rule (80 Fed. Reg. 21,302). ECOS long has supported states having such authority, and ECOS representatives have testified in both the Senate and House several times over the years on the importance of legislative action on the CCR issue.
ECOS extends its deep appreciation to the Senators who led the effort to advance the Act. ECOS also thanks the state experts who offered their expertise and experience with CCR facilities to inform the process, and in particular our colleagues at the Association of State and Territorial Solid Waste Management Officials who were steadfastly dedicated to the issue.
ECOS is optimistic that Members of Congress will find a procedural mechanism to reconcile the Act with H.R. 1734, the Improving Coal Combustion Residuals Regulation Act of 2015, which passed the House of Representatives in July 2015.
ECOS is the national nonprofit, nonpartisan association of state environmental agency leaders. For more information, visit www.ecos.org.
