[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 160 (Monday, October 24, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1918]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                COAL RESIDUALS REUSE AND MANAGEMENT ACT

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                               speech of

                            HON. STEVE COHEN

                              of tennessee

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 14, 2011

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2273) to 
     amend subtitle D of the Solid Waste Disposal Act to 
     facilitate recovery and beneficial use, and provide for the 
     proper management and disposal, of materials generated by the 
     combustion of coal and other fossil fuels.

  Mr. COHEN. Madam Chair, I rise today to state my opposition to H.R. 
2273, the Coal Residuals Reuse and Management Act. On October 14, 2011, 
I inadvertently cast a vote in support of final passage of this 
measure. However, I am adamantly opposed to this legislation and want 
the Congressional Record to reflect my true sentiments.
  The EPA's proposed coal ash rule is a much needed response to an 
incident that occurred in 2008 in my home state of Tennessee. On 
December 22, 2008, a coal ash pond at the Tennessee Valley Authority's 
(TVA) Kingston power plant breached, spilling 1.2 billion gallons of 
coal ash and its contaminants--including arsenic, selenium, and 
mercury--into two rivers. The disaster moved homes off of their 
foundations, and the ongoing cleanup, which has only removed half of 
the coal ash that was spilled to date--is expected to cost about $1.2 
billion.
  The EPA coal ash rule would set standards in place to ensure that a 
horrific tragedy such as the Kingston spill never occurs again. 
However, H.R. 2273 would undercut the coal ash rule and create a 
dangerous plan consisting of nothing but ``guidelines'' for regulating 
coal ash--guidelines that do nothing to protect citizens throughout 
America from another Kingston spill. Despite the Kingston disaster and 
EPA's acknowledgement that wet ponds can pose as high as a 1-in-50 risk 
of cancer to nearby residents, this bill fails to take the obvious and 
necessary step of phasing out surface impoundments. Meaning if this 
legislation were adopted, it would do nothing to avert tragedies such 
as Kingston from occurring in the future.
  Another reason I oppose the Coal Residuals Reuse and Management Act 
is because it interrupts an EPA rulemaking process that has been 
ongoing for nearly three years and silences the concerns of the 
American people. Over the last three years, the EPA has held eight 
public hearings and received more than 455,000 public comments on its 
proposed coal ash rule--a precedential response to an EPA rulemaking. 
Congress should not be interfering and obstructing this critical public 
process.
  In an effort to prevent the passage of H.R. 2273, I circulated a Dear 
Colleague letter that informed my colleagues of the legislation's 
immense shortcomings and failures to protect the American people. I 
also offered an amendment, which unfortunately was not made in order, 
but would have required the EPA Administrator to revise the disposal 
criteria upon which the bill relies to ensure that human health and the 
environment are protected from the risks posed by coal combustion 
residuals.
  In some parts of the country people justify the status quo because 
they have not seen the full dangers of unregulated coal ash. In 
Tennessee we cannot ignore these consequences and cannot tolerate 
legislation that would usurp a beneficial rulemaking and replace it 
with legislation that fails to protect the American people. For these 
reasons, I oppose H.R. 2273 and would like the record to reflect my 
strong opposition.

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