By Jan. 1, 2012, dry coal ash will be blown 2,000 ft from the coal-fired generating units to silos that can hold three days' worth of ash. The coal ash will then be carted to one of the seven or eight new, engineered, lined and permitted landfills that TVA will build in the next 10 years.

Kammeyer says TVA believes it will be prepared for whatever rules come out of EPA or Congress.

“We've made our assumptions, and we're moving forward,” he says. “I think we're in a better position than most utilities. We don't think were different than anyone else, but we had Kinston, so we're doing a little bit more. We don't want this to ever happen again, so we are taking all precautions.”