Ocean Disposal and Construction with Stabilized Coal Waste Blocks

Studies are being carried out on the feasibility of disposing of sludge and fly ash from coal-fired power plants by forming them into solid blocks which can be used to construct artificial fishing reefs in the sea. Results are presented from studies on the physical stability, chemical behaviour, and biological colonization of the waste blocks, and it is concluded that there have been no adverse environmental effects resulting from the placement of 15,000 blocks in the Atlantic ocean, and that there have been significant increases in the resident populations of various species of fish and lobsters. The work is still continuing.