Analysis - The Institute for Southern Studies

This RIA did not discover similar data for coal waste landfills in active and inactive/abandoned status. For purpose of a rough estimate in this
RIA, multiplying the 0.42 inactive/abandoned:to:active ratio by the 311 electric utility plants which use landfills, indicates there may be at least
131 inactive or abandoned CCR landfills at or near electric utility plants (i.e., (311 landfill using electric utility plants) x (0.42 ratio) = 131).
As of 2004, the Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA) oversees 646 active coal mining slurry impoundments in the US, which implies
954 remainder active coal slurry impoundments (i.e., 1,600 – 646 = 954). 23 Of these, this RIA estimates at least 158 active impoundments at
158 electric utility plants, which implies that a fraction of 796 other active coal waste impoundments (i.e., 954 – 158 = 796) may be located at
electric power plants in non-utility industries (see the next sub-section below “Other Industries Excluded from Scope”).
Other Industries Excluded from Scope
The scope of the proposed rule only includes NAICS code 22 coal-fired electric utility plants (495 plants). However, there is a range of 139 to
759 non-utility facilities which currently, or have the capacity to, burn coal and thus generate CCR. Adding these facilities to the scope of the
proposed rule could increase the cost estimates by 2% to 28%. This range is based on the following two data sources:
Source #1:
As displayed below in Exhibit 2A based on 2005 data from the DOE-EIA, there are 139 non-utility coal-fired electricity plants
owned and operated by 8 other industrial sub-sectors involving 27 industries. Appendix B of this RIA contains a list of these
other industry plants according to NAICS industry codes. If these other non-utility industries were to be added to the scope of
the CCR proposed rule, a rough estimate of potential additional cost and benefit impacts would be between 2% and 28% relative
to the impacts estimated in this RIA:
>2%: