The use of coal fly ash to fill mines in Gambrills has led to a proposal banning it in Anne Arundel County. Officials believe the ash leached into local wells, contaminating them with high levels of heavy metals.
However, fly ash is a popular material also used in concrete and asphalt mixtures. It is approved by state and regulatory agencies.
As the fly ash debate begins to wage in Anne Arundel, Maryland Department of the Environment Assistant Secretary Stephen Pattison addresses the issue.
Is fly ash dangerous?
No. Like any other material, it?s safe when used in the proper manner. This is a by-product of burning coal. It?s ash. The risks or hazard level depends on the exposure level. There is not a near-term risk, but it could in the long term if it goes unabated. It is OK as long as it is properly controlled and protected.
Should the material be banned, as County Executive John R. Leopold is seeking to do?
That?s a policy decision that the county needs to make. What we feel is that it is a material that can be used in certain applications, but [it] must be monitored. There are a wide range of options, from labeling fly ash as a hazardous material to doing nothing at all. We have to find a happy middle ground.
In Maryland, 200 million tons a year of fly ash [are] produced. If it doesn?t find a beneficial use, then it becomes a question of where it goes.
Will MDE heed Leopold?s request to have fly ash deemed a hazardous material?
A 2000 [Environmental Protection Agency] report concluded the material did not warrant regulating as a hazardous material. But after what happened in Gambrills, what we need to do is relook at programs and see if some further regulations and permitting is needed.
