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India has reported 76 major coal ash pond accidents in the last decade, a study by the Health Energy Initiative India and the Community Environmental Monitoring said.
The study, which focused on coal ash management, stated that the accidents led to pollution of water resources located near ash ponds and affected the air and soil as well.
“Since a large number of power plants are located close to water bodies like rivers or the coast, the common ash discharge flows directly into them bypassing holding ponds,” the report said.
The study reported that Jharsusguda in Odisha has reported as many as six major coal fly ash incidents from power plants in the past decade. Other places in Odisha including Sambalpur (four), Talcher (three), Rourkela, Angul, Dhenkanal, Khaliapali (one each) also reported accidents.
The Korba coal and power plant in Chhattisgarh reported nine major accidents while Raigarh reported three.
Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab were among the states where such accidents were reported in these years.
The study noted that incidents of accidents at coal ash ponds did not get as much attention as mining and coal burning incidents.
Shweta Narayan, Coordinator of Healthy Energy Initiative India said, “While mining and coal burning have received their fair share of attention, the dangers of coal ash and the impacts of its disposal are still under the radar. The public outrage associated with coal ash pollution remains limited to big disasters. The slow poisoning of communities living around ash containment ponds goes unnoticed. This report provides an overview of the management of coal ash in India and the threat it poses to health and environment due its mismanagement”.
In 2000, the central government declassified fly ash from the category of ‘hazardous industrial waste’ and categorised it as ‘waste material’. But according to the study by the Health Energy Initiative, the Environment Ministry did not provide data or scientific research to back up the change in categorisation.
In May this year, the Environment Ministry also made coal washing optional through amendments made based on suggestions by Niti Aayog and the Power and Coal Ministry.
This amendment changed the rules issued through a gazetted notification in 2014, which made coal washing mandatory for supply to thermal units located more than 500 km from a coal mine.
“Coal ash is known to contain toxic chemicals like arsenic, aluminum, antimony, barium, cadmium, selenium, nickel, lead and molybdenum among other carcinogens. Along with the increased risk of cancers from toxic heavy metal exposure, coal ash can affect human development, create lung and heart problems, cause stomach ailments, and contribute to premature mortality,” read the report.
Health studies showed that communities living close to coal mines and coal ash ponds in Chhattisgarh were vulnerable to chronic health conditions including hair loss and brittle hair; joint pain, body ache and backache; dry, itchy and/or discoloured skin and cracked sole, and dry cough. Higher cases of kidney and gastrointestinal complaints have also been reported, the study said.