Coal Combustion Residuals: Am I Regulated?
A landfill or surface impoundment used for disposing of or managing coal combustion residuals (CCR) may require registration. CCR is a nonhazardous industrial solid waste generated from the combustion of coal by electric utilities and independent power producers. Some CCR activities are exempt from registration and notification requirements.
Notice:
To ensure uninterrupted and effective work we ask that all submittals to the Waste Permits Division be posted online to allow for immediate access to project managers. Please include a link to the location of the document in the cover letter.
If you have any questions or need help sending electronic documents that are larger than 25 megabytes (MB), please email IHWPER@tceq.texas.gov and we will get back to you as soon possible. Thank you for your patience and cooperation during this unprecedented time.
On this page:
Who Must Obtain a Registration?
All of the following must register under Title 30, Texas Administrative Code (30 TAC), Chapter 352 :
- Owners and operators of new and existing coal combustion residuals (CCR) landfills and surface impoundments that dispose of or manage CCR generated from the combustion of coal at electric utilities and independent power producers
- Owners and operators of CCR disposal units located off-site of electric utility or independent power producer facilities
- Owners and operators of inactive CCR surface impoundments located at active electric utilities and independent power producers regardless of the fuel currently used to produce electricity at the facility
- A lateral expansion of a CCR landfill or surface impoundment
- Any CCR management practice that does not meet the definition of beneficial use of CCR Title 40, Code of Federal Regulations (40 CFR), Section 257.53 ) as amended through the April 17, 2015, issue of the Federal Register (80 FR 21301)]
Back to topWho is Exempt from Registration?
All of the following are exempt:
- Owners and operators of CCR landfills that ceased receiving CCR before October 19, 2015
- Owners and operators of electric utilities and independent power producers that ceased producing electricity before October 19, 2015
- Owners and operators of surface impoundments that stopped receiving CCR and were closed, dewatered, and could no longer impound liquid, before October 19, 2015
- Wastes, including fly ash, bottom ash, boiler slag, and flue gas desulfurization materials generated at facilities that are not part of an electric utility or independent power producer, such as manufacturing facilities, universities, and hospitals
- Fly ash, bottom ash, boiler slag, or flue gas desulfurization materials generated primarily from the combustion of fuels (including other fossil fuels) other than coal, for the purpose of generating electricity unless the fuel burned consists of more than 50% coal on a total heat input or mass input basis, whichever results in the greater mass feed rate of coal
- Beneficial use of CCR as defined in 40 CFR 257.53 as amended through the April 17, 2015, issue of the Federal Register (80 FR 21301)
- CCR placement at active or abandoned underground or surface coal mines
- Owners and operators of municipal solid waste landfills that receive CCR
- Owners and operators of commercial industrial nonhazardous waste landfill facilities that receive CCR, and are authorized by a permit issued under 30 TAC Chapter 335, Subchapter T
Application for a Registration
NEWElectronic Versions of the Application:
TCEQ will publish electronic copies of the application and associated documents online. Applicants must provide copy of the initial and technically complete application. The electronic copy provided would be the current, complete version with revisions and replacements made throughout the document and without redline/strikeout text. TCEQ will also publish electronic versions of Notice of Deficiency (NOD) responses online.
A facility owner should submit an application for a registration, unless the facility is owned by one person and operated by another, in which case it is the duty of the facility operator to submit the application.
TCEQ-20870 – Coal Combustion Residual Registration Application 
TCEQ-20870 INSTR - Coal Combustion Residual Application Instructions
Please submit a
correspondence cover sheet (Form TCEQ-20714) with all CCR registration applications.
Application Amendments
A change in a term, condition, or provision of a registration requires an amendment under 30 TAC 352.131 .
- Major amendments initiated are subject to public participation requirements.
- Minor amendments include any other change to a registration that will not cause or relax a standard or criterion that prevents potential deterioration of water quality in the state.
Issuance and Transfer
The executive director may issue a registration to a specific person, and a registration may not be transferred from one person to another without complying with 30 TAC 305.64 .
Application Fees
The application fee for registration, amendment, or transfer of a CCR unit is $150.
This includes the cost of TCEQ providing the required notice to government authorities and adjacent landowners. The applicant must bear the cost of publishing a notice of the application in a newspaper(s).
Pay by check or by using TCEQ’s Online ePay portal.
Mail checks to:
Financial Administration Division, MC-214
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
P.O. Box 13088
Austin, Texas 78711-3088
The TCEQ does not issue or amend registrations to an entity or person with delinquent or unpaid penalties or fees.
Financial Assurance
CCR units that close with CCR waste left in place require financial assurance that maintenance costs during the post-closure period will be covered. Include a cost estimate for a 30-year post-closure care period with the application. The estimate must be based on the costs of hiring a third-party to conduct post-closure care maintenance.
Submit acceptable financial assurance mechanisms to TCEQ within 90-days of application approval. You can find acceptable types of financial assurance mechanisms in 30 TAC Chapter 37, Subchapter C .
Rules on Financial Assurance: 30 TAC 352; Subchapter I
Financial Assurance Adjustments
Increases in the current cost estimate requires an increase in the financial assurance amount (30 TAC 37.141 ).
If there is a reduction in the current cost estimate, you may request approval to reduce the financial assurance amount (30 TAC 37.151 ).
Annual Inflation Adjustments
Adjust financial assurance amounts during the post-closure care period to account for inflation (30 TAC 37.131 ).
Exceptions to Financial Assurance
There are exceptions related to financial assurance requirements of 30 TAC Chapter 37 as under 30 TAC 352.1111 .
Use the wording for financial mechanisms as found in 30 TAC Chapter 37, Subchapter D . TCEQ discourages financial institutions from adding or deleting words.
Questions?
Contact the Financial Administration Division
Public Notice and Participation
30 TAC Chapter 352 establishes a public notice period and provides opportunities for public participation on new registrations and major amendments of registrations.
Upon initial determination that an application meets the regulatory requirements TCEQ produces a draft registration for public review and comment.
TCEQ mails notice to the state senator and representative of the area in which the facility is located; the mayor; adjacent landowners; and government agencies and authorities.
Applicants must submit notice to be published in one or more newspapers as per the solid waste requirements of 30 TAC 39.405 and 30 TAC 39.418 . If you make substantive revisions or changes to the application during the process you are required to reissue the public notice in the newspaper(s).
There will be a minimum 30-day public comment period. TCEQ considers all timely comments and will respond to all commenters and relevant parties as part of the final notice of TCEQ’s action on the application.
Public Meeting
If there is significant public interest in the registration application, the applicant and TCEQ may hold a public meeting in the county in which the facility is located.
Applicants who submit an initial application or an amendment application that includes corrective action requirements, must hold a public meeting with interested and affected parties at least 30-days before selection of a remedy.
Find rules on participation procedures for public meetings and notices in 30 TAC 352.451
and 30 TAC 39.413
.
Technical Guidelines
Guidance on managing CCR units and meeting regulatory requirements:
- DRAFT Technical Guidelines - No. 30 – CCR Landfills – Requirements for landfill siting, design and operating criteria, monitoring, and recordkeeping
- DRAFT Technical Guidelines - No. 31 - Surface Impoundments - Requirements for surface impoundment siting, design and operating criteria, monitoring and recordkeeping
- DRAFT Technical Guidelines - No. 32 - Groundwater Monitoring and Corrective Action - Requirements for groundwater monitoring and corrective action for CCR landfill and surface impoundments
Coal Combustion Residuals Rules
Title 30, Texas Administrative Code (30 TAC), Chapter 352
Contact Us
For questions about CCR or the registration process, please contact the Industrial Hazardous Waste Permit Section - CCR Program:
Phone: 512-239-2335
Fax: 512-239-2007
E-mail: ihwper@tceq.texas.gov
Postal address:
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
Industrial and Hazardous Waste Permits Section MC-130
PO Box 13087
Austin, Texas 78711-3087