coal waste, also called culm, can now be burned to generate power. but there are some downsides. not only is coal waste less efficient than regular coal, it also has higher concentrations of heavy metals. >> matter doesn't disappear. metals don't just disappear. they can't. and so when you burn waste coal, those metals, like lead and arsenic and cadmium, are left more concentrated than ever in the waste coal ash. 9- to 10 million tons of coal ash are dumped every year in pennsylvania. and a lot of it is happening right here in schuylkill county and surrounding counties. >> john kolbush, a local resident and survivor of leukemia, has coal ash being dumped just minutes from his house. here at the northeastern power company in mcadoo, coal ash is trucked from the plant straight through the heart of town to an old mine site for dumping, bringing toxic coal ash ever closer to people. >> when--when the trucks are leaving and when they're fully loaded, the ashes is blowing out of the vehicles. and when they come through town here, empty, they don't have the tarps on, the ash just blows.