Waste coal piles; Department of Energy to identify volume and number, use of coal ash.

Department of Energy; waste coal piles; report. Directs the Department of Energy, in cooperation with public institutions of higher education serving the coalfield region of the Commonwealth, to identify the approximate volume and number of waste coal piles present in the area and options for cleaning up such waste coal piles, including potential use in electricity generation. The Department of Energy shall report its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly by December 1, 2022. The bill also directs the Department of Energy, the Department of Environmental Quality, and the Department of Transportation's Research Council, in cooperation with engineering schools of public institutions of higher education in the Commonwealth, to convene a working group to evaluate opportunities for using coal ash for construction purposes for public infrastructure projects. The working group shall report its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly by December 1, 2022.