Ottawa County, Michigan – Leftovers from a power plant that has served Michigan for over 60 years may soon find their way into the state’s homes and buildings.
Decades of coal ash left behind at Consumers Energy’s J.H. Campbell Generating Complex on Lake Michigan’s shores will be repurposed into a cement replacement used in concrete manufacturing as part of a deal between the utility and an American offshoot of a Canadian company making its first foray stateside.
The agreement, announced on Monday, Jan. 6, provides the first hints as to what will happen next for the 2,000-acre power plant site north of Holland after Consumers shuts it down permanently in May.
Campbell’s closure will mark the end of the utility’s transition away from coal, which is considered the dirtiest way to generate power, and toward cleaner forms of energy with lower carbon emissions.
“We’re doing the right thing as we make a just transition away from coal as a fuel source for electricity, and that includes fulfilling our environmental responsibilities at the Campbell Generating Complex,” said Norm Kapala, Consumers vice president of generation operations, in a statement.
“While our focus today is on meeting power needs in a more environmentally sustainable way, we are also committed to removing 60 years of ash deposits that will be beneficially repurposed.”
Millions of tons of ash, a mixture of fine powder and rock-laden material left behind when coal is burned, will be processed on site in a new facility built by Ashcor USA Inc., a subsidiary of a Calgary-based company.
According to Ashcor President John Tiberi, it is scheduled to begin operations in 2026 and will produce manufactured ash that can be sold to concrete producers.
“It is going to be used in lieu of cement for production of concrete, and it’ll be used in homes, roads, bridges, sidewalks, driveways, curb and gutter, wherever you might envision concrete being used,” he told me.
Across the country, a century of coal burning has produced approximately 5 billion tons of coal ash, enough to fill a line of train cars stretching to the moon, according to estimates.
While industry figures show that more than 60% of ash produced today is reused, the majority of industrial waste is stored in landfills or holding ponds near coal-fired power plants.
There, it may endanger the environment and human health. Coal ash contains arsenic, lead, mercury, and other toxic heavy metals, which can cause cancer and leach into groundwater.
According to a Michigan Environmental Council report, this has occurred at power plants throughout the state, including Campbell.
The federal government only regulated the substance after a billion gallons of coal ash sludge breached a dike at a Tennessee coal plant in 2008, resulting in what some call the largest industrial spill in US history.
Consumers has closed storage ponds and is continuously monitoring groundwater at the Campbell plant in accordance with federal regulations enacted in 2015. According to the utility’s regular reports, approximately 6.1 million cubic yards of ash remain in the site’s lined landfill.
According to a news release, Ashcor plans to excavate and repurpose the impounded material and anticipates operating for approximately 20 years. Tiberi stated that it is currently applying for the necessary permits to operate in Michigan.
Using ash in concrete increases its durability and performance, he claims. “It’ll be encapsulated, so this material is no longer an environment liability,” he mentioned.
According to Ashcor, the arrangement will also provide other environmental benefits. The cement industry emits more carbon dioxide than many countries, accounting for approximately 8% of global emissions.
Swapping reclaimed coal ash for carbon-intensive Portland cement, a primary ingredient in concrete, is a “proven way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” according to Tiberi.
It’s a common practice in the industry today, he said. However, as more coal plants close, the supply of live ash will dwindle, creating an opportunity for companies like Ashcor to process existing caches of coal ash that include both powdery “fly ash” and granular “bottom ash.”
“That’s what makes our technology so exciting.” We’re deploying a solution that can be applied to many other deposits in Michigan and across the United States,” Tiberi said.
