"Indiana and Kentucky are the nation's top two states for coal ash ponds — and many of the holding basins for the toxic mess were built without the guidance of trained engineers, according to new information from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The accounting, which found nearly 600 ash ponds across the U.S. — 53 in Indiana and 44 in Kentucky — is based on a survey of the nation's electric utilities that the EPA conducted after a massive December coal ash spill in Tennessee.

While the survey does not identify any of the Kentucky or Southern Indiana ponds as having any significant deficiencies, it found that inspections by state regulatory agencies in Kentucky, Indiana and elsewhere have been spotty."

James Bruggers reports for the Louisville Courier-Journal August 31, 2009. [2]

See Also:

"EPA: Colorado home to high number of coal-ash disposal ponds" (Colorado Independent) [3]