WASHINGTON — The same sort of thick black sludge that covered Inez, Ky., a year ago could wreak havoc on other communities if the government doesn't take steps to prevent coal waste storage systems from failing, according to a report released Friday.

        The federal government must have more oversight authority of the roughly 600 coal waste impoundments in the country, according to the National Research Council report.

TIMELINE

Oct. 11, 2000: Martin County Coal impoundment pond spills 250 million gallons of black water coal waste and sludge into tributaries of the Big Sandy River, fouling 60 miles of waterways and surrounding lands.   Oct. 21: U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers calls for federal investigation into other ways of storing coal waste.   Oct. 28: Company cleanup moving too slowly, private environmental contractor mandated by government agencies.   Nov. 16: Cleanup costs estimated at $16.5 million.   Dec. 11: State rejects company's proposal to slow or cease cleanup due to winter cold.   Dec. 17: Congress approves coal waste alternatives study by National Academy of Sciences. Study released Friday. Feb. 1: Martin County Coal files request asking state permission to resume using the sludge pond that spilled. The request is denied.   April 10: Martin County Coal president Martin Hatfield resigns.   April 20: U.S. Labor Secretary Elain Chao urges MSHA to finish its investigation into the causes of the spill.   Thursday: Anniversary of coal spill. Mine Safety and Health Administration report still pending.

        After coal is washed, a mixture of coal dust, clay and dirt often is pumped into an impoundment and allowed to settle. In Appalachia, coal companies typically use an area's natural topography to form the storage basin for the waste.

        The report said the failure of the basin area is a leading cause of impoundment accidents, but federal oversight of basins “has been less than rigorous.” The researchers said federal agencies need to be given “clear authority to review basin design.”

        In Inez last year, Martin County Coal Corp. collected dirt and particles washed from freshly mined coal in a mountaintop sludge pond, but the waste escaped through a crack in the bottom of that impoundment. The 250 million gallons of sludge then flowed into an underground mine and rushed off the mountainside, covering residential property and killing fish in creeks.

        The report said the gov ernment should set standards for mine surveying and mapping to ensure other impoundments are not estab lished next to old mines, which can lead to structural problems at impoundments.

        The researchers said in many instances old maps are inaccurate or missing. For example, a fire destroyed at least 30,000 mine maps at a state government building in Kentucky in 1948.

        But Tom FitzGerald, executive director of the Kentucky Resources Council, said it is not enough to recommend that the government create new mapping standards. He said the council also should have recommended that coal companies be required to drill into the ground in areas where they want to construct impoundments to make sure there are no mines there.

        “In all cases, you must suspect there may be problems with the accuracy of a map unless you can validate it,” Mr. FitzGerald said.

        Bruce Watzman, vice president for safety and health at the National Mining Association, said companies frequently use radar and seismic monitoring to check for underground mines.

        “It's not as if the industry is fixed in time and not using any of these technologies,” he said.

        The report also recommended that the government come up with a coordinated plan for assessing the risk of impoundment failures, and it said more research into alternative waste disposal technologies is needed.

        Mr. FitzGerald said he was disappointed that the researchers did not spend more time considering alternatives. “They should have undertaken that assessment themselves rather than calling for more study,” he said. Alternatives to impoundments exist but coal companies steer away from them because they are more costly, he said.

        Mr. Watzman disagreed, adding that there are techno logical and geological reasons coal companies often turn to impoundments.

        “You can't say that there should be no more impoundments because that it isn't always viable,” Mr. Watzman said.

        But doing away with impoundments would make many coal country residents feel safer, said Nina McCoy, a biology teacher who lives a few miles downstream from the Inez impoundment.

        “I do think they are time bombs,” Ms. McCoy said. The waste “doesn't need to be kept in a water dam that is above people's houses.”

        Ms. McCoy said she was disappointed the research council didn't look into water quality issues related to slurry spills. The report did recommend that researchers conduct an analysis of the chemical makeup of slurry, so authorities know what kind of contaminants may be in the water supply.

        States with impoundments include Kentucky, West Virginia, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Ohio, Alabama and Mississippi, according to the Mine Safety and Health Administration.

        The most notorious coal waste impoundment collapse occurred in Buffalo Creek, W.Va., in 1972. That accident killed 125 people and injured more than 1,000, the council's report said.

        Reps. Hal Rogers, R-Ky., and Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., pushed for the National Research Council study. Both said they would follow up to ensure the report's recommendations are implemented.

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