Time to Act: Turning CCRMU Deadline Extensions into Strategic Advantages

Hazardous and Solid Waste Management System: Disposal of Coal Combustion Residuals from Electric Utilities — CCR Management Unit Deadline Extension Rule

The EPA has finalized the Hazardous and Solid Waste Management System: Disposal of Coal Combustion Residuals from Electric Utilities; CCR Management Unit Deadline Extension Rule (CCRMU Deadline Extension Rule) that revises several key compliance timelines for coal combustion residual management units (CCRMUs)—areas at active or former coal-fired power plants where noncontainerized accumulations of coal ash have been received, placed, or managed outside of regulated CCR landfills or surface impoundments. This action adjusts deadlines established in prior rulemakings to account for practical challenges identified by the owner and operators of active and former coal-fired power plants that have been encountered during implementation of the 2024 Legacy Impoundments and CCRMU Rule. It provides additional time for owners and operators of regulated facilities to fulfill the required evaluation and monitoring across a large network of facilities that previously placed resource demands on the regulated community (compressed schedule, limited pool of environmental professionals, laboratories, drilling contractors, etc.).

A Brief History of CCR Regulations

CCR, commonly known as coal ash, are Federally regulated byproducts of burning coal for electricity generation. The initial CCR Rule codified under the Hazardous and Solid Waste Management System pursuant to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) became effective in October 2015, establishing minimum requirements for active coal ash landfills and surface impoundments (ponds). The CCR Rule regulates how electric utilities must manage coal ash to protect human health and the environment — particularly concerning groundwater and surface water contamination.

• In October 2015, the initial CCR Rule established comprehensive federal standards for CCR disposal, covering structural requirements for landfills and surface impoundments, groundwater monitoring, corrective action, closure/post-closure care and public reporting obligations.
• Subsequent litigation and regulatory developments, including the 2018 Utility Solid Waste Activities Group v. EPA decision, prompted revisions and extensions to address inactive units and legacy sites as described in the 2020 Part A Deadline to Initiate Closure. The 2020 Part B Alternative Liner Demonstrations were intended to allow for CCR Units that have no reasonable probability of adverse effects to human health or the environment to remain active.
• Throughout the 2022 to 2024 timeframe, differing interpretations between the regulated community and EPA were highlighted through EPA’s Part A and Part B decisions and multiple EPA enforcement efforts.
• In November 2024, the Legacy Impoundments and CCRMU Rule became effective, significantly expanding the regulated CCR universe by introducing new compliance obligations for inactive surface impoundments and CCRMUs on an expeditious timeframe.
• In January 2026, EPA provided a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) that signals the likelihood of additional CCR Rule changes prior to October 2026 which may significantly change the CCR Rule compliance landscape (beyond the February 9, 2026 rule described below).
• On February 9, 2026, the CCRMU Deadline Extension Rule became effective, addressing identified implementation challenges by providing additional time to adequately meet facility evaluation requirements for identifying CCRMUs and executing groundwater monitoring provisions. 

What are CCRMUs?

A CCRMU is any area of land on which any noncontainerized accumulation of CCR has been received, placed, or otherwise managed that is not a regulated CCR unit per the initial 2015 CCR Rule. Activities such as CCR placement outside of regulated CCR units can create potential source areas and pathways for migration of CCR constituents. Under the Legacy Impoundments and CCRMU Rule, CCRMUs must be evaluated, monitored, remediated as necessary, and closed through either closure-in-place (CIP) or excavation and “clean” closure.

What you Need to Know About the CCRMU Deadline Extension Rule

Key extensions include:

• Facility Evaluation Report (FER) Part 1 and Part 2: These reports are now due by February 9, 2027 and February 8, 2028, respectively, requiring regulated facilities to identify CCRMUs, conduct field investigations to delineate the horizontal and vertical extent of CCR within the CCRMUs and characterize the volume of CCR present.
• Groundwater Monitoring Requirements: These requirements are now due by February 10, 2031, allowing facilities 36 months post-FER Part 2 to perform hydrogeological site characterization investigations, develop and refine conceptual site models (CSMs), design and install groundwater monitoring systems, implement detection and assessment groundwater monitoring programs, and begin statistically evaluating groundwater monitoring data against background levels and groundwater protection standards.

Extensions Reduce Regulatory Burden

EPA recognized that facilities were encountering practical challenges in meeting the original deadlines in the 2024 Legacy Impoundments and CCRMU Rule, including shortage of qualified contractors and laboratory capacity impacting site evaluations and groundwater monitoring well installation; delays in accessing historical documentation needed for FER preparation; and seasonal and regional permitting delays affecting field work. By extending deadlines, EPA aims to support safe and effective compliance, reduce regulatory burden and enhance transparency through public reporting. By adjusting key deadlines for facility evaluations, groundwater monitoring, and ancillary obligations, the rule aims to ensure compliance while maintaining environmental protection objectives.

How to Optimize Compliance

The CCRMU Deadline Extension Rule provides additional time to complete compliance obligations, which brings an opportunity to regroup and refine the pathway to achieving compliance with the Legacy Impoundments and CCRMU Rule and ultimately leads to the design and installation of a properly designed and installed groundwater monitoring system. Some considerations to optimize your compliance strategy and further support defensible development of the groundwater monitoring systems for the CCRMUs include:

• Reevaluate the document review completeness task to ensure that the FER Part 1 meets the intent of EPA’s reasoning for the deadline extension. As stated in the CCRMU Deadline Extension Rule preamble, the industry stressed that there was insufficient time to review documents. A thorough document review is necessary to prepare the FER Part 2 and the CCRMU groundwater monitoring system design and installation.
• Develop comprehensive workplans for the FER Part 2 physical inspection and field investigations to thoroughly evaluate FER 1 data gaps, shore up lateral and vertical CCRMU boundaries and volume determinations and determine if that data is sufficient to satisfy Asset Retirement Obligations (AROs). Identify synergies between implementing these workplans with completing next steps of site characterization needed to design and install CCRMU groundwater monitoring systems and optimize time needed for planning and permitting, procuring qualified contractors and specialized engineering support and managing and evaluating the acquired data.
• Refine CSMs using data collected during the FER Part 1 and FER Part 2 process. Thoughtful and thorough CSMs are essential to the cost-effective design and implementation of the groundwater monitoring systems. Development of a thorough CSM is often an iterative and time-intensive process that may require multiple rounds of field investigation and well installations to refine your CSM.

Additional time has been allotted to complete a series of inter-related and often iterative compliance tasks that ultimately inform the determination and justification for the design and installation of CCRMU groundwater monitoring systems under the Legacy Impoundments and CCRMU Rule. Take advantage of the additional time provided by EPA to allow adequate time to design, confirm and validate and refine your groundwater monitoring system. Continued engagement and adaptive management during the implementation of the CCR Rules are essential, particularly as EPA evaluates additional regulatory amendments or future revisions to CCR provisions as contemplated in the January 2026 NOPR.