But the coal industry and its defenders have never been accused of lacking gall. It takes a lot of gall to characterize coal ash as an eco-friendly alternative to anything. The authors even have the audacity to pitch one form of coal ash as “an eco-friendly alternative to salt” for cities that have to deal with snow-covered roads. The page then goes on to tout what the TVA would like people to think of as the protean benefits of recovered coal ash, which can be used as an additive in the manufacture of concrete and wallboard. The TVA website makes sure to put that classification near the very top of its insubstantial page dedicated to coal ash. And they got it-in exchange for allowing the federal government to place coal ash within its (very limited) purview for the first time.īut one of the more sordid aspects of the Kingston workers’ case has been the degree to which the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), the state agency responsible for the spill, has repeatedly referred to coal ash’s EPA classification as it tries to defend itself from criticism that it knowingly put workers at risk. During the dealmaking process that led up to the rule, coal companies lobbied for the solid-waste designation, which they knew would ultimately give states and utilities the lion’s share of responsibility for enforcement. government didn’t exercise any authority over the handling of coal ash until 2015, when President Obama’s EPA issued the first-ever federal rule pertaining to its disposal-in direct response to the Tennessee spill. As solid waste, coal ash is subject to different and far less stringent federal regulations regarding how it is handled than something officially deemed “hazardous” would be. Instead, the agency continues to regard coal ash as solid waste-the same designation, believe it or not, given to household garbage. Environmental Protection Agency has for years refused to classify coal ash as hazardous waste. A Tennessee jury last November found that the contractor had indeed jeopardized the health of its workers through its actions, but the case is ongoing, and no monetary damages have yet been paid.ĭespite the protests of many whose lives have been affected by this demonstrably toxic substance, the U.S. When those same workers began to get sick and even die under conditions that strongly suggested coal ash poisoning, 200 of them sued the contractor that had employed them, alleging that they had been greatly misled about the dangers of their exposure. ![]() More than 900 workers were quickly dispatched to clean up the mess, a massive effort that took five years. The incident remains, to this day, the largest industrial spill in American history. ![]() Most of it gets mixed with water and stored in sludgy basins commonly known as coal ash ponds, which have an unfortunate tendency to leak or flood or spill, sometimes in catastrophic amounts.Ī few days before Christmas in 2008, more than a billion gallons of coal ash slurry poured out of a Kingston, Tennessee, power plant, spilling into local waterways and swamping 15 homes after the six-story earthen dam that had been containing it collapsed. Every year hundreds of American coal plants generate about 110 million tons of the stuff. Long-term exposure can lead to liver damage, kidney damage, cardiac arrhythmia, and a variety of cancers. Short-term exposure can bring irritation of the nose and throat, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and shortness of breath. The grill should also come with either wire or cast iron grates that serve as the cooking surface.Coal ash, a catchall term for several kinds of waste left over at power plants that burn coal, typically contains a number of substances harmful to human health-arsenic, chromium, lead, and mercury among them.If you don’t regularly empty the ash, it will absorb heat and reduce the grill’s performance. When shopping for a good cast iron charcoal grill, you may need to ensure that it has an ash removal system.The cooking temperature drops when you lower the charcoal. The grill is also adjustable, which helps to control temperature simply by raising or lowering the charcoal.Cast iron charcoal grills are made of cast iron but there are similar models made of metal and ceramic.They also feature igniters so you don’t have to use lighter fluid. Some models also include dampers or air vents that help to control cooking temperature.They come with additional useful features such as shelf space, temperature gauge, lid rests, wheels for easy relocation, and tool hooks. ![]() They come in varying sizes, from small models to large ones that have both the grill and a smoker.This means you should have access to charcoal or wood before you can use the charcoal grill. The grill uses charcoal briquettes or wood to give out that intense smoke meat flavor.Here are a few things you need to know before you invest in a cast iron charcoal grill:
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