Partizansk is a city in Primorski Krai in the Russian Far East. Since the late 19th century it was an active coal mining site but mining operations have ceased since the fall of the Soviet Union. In the early 1950's a large coal-fired electric plant began operations here. The coal ash was disposed in a circular dam part of which broke in May of 2004 and released 60,000 tons of ash into the Lozovy Creek and Partizanskaya River, which is the source of drinking water to Partizansk and other settlements downstream.

Coal is India’s most abundant resource, and it will continue to play a pivotal role in the country over the upcoming decades. There currently exist in India 82 coal-fired power plants, each of which uses around 1,000 tons of coal and produces about 13.34 tons of fly ash. Fly ash is, alone, a waste product and its responsible disposal poses a huge problem. From each power station, thousands of tons of fly ash are pumped into the ash ponds in the form of slurry (fly ash mixed with water) every day; these lagoons occupy millions of acres of agricultural land all over India.

When coal is burned in a plant, two types of ash are produced: fly ash and bottom ash. Fly ash, otherwise known as pulverized fuel ash, is the residue of coal combustion and is comprised of very fine, powerdy glass-like particles. Because it is so fine, it is highly susceptible to wind erosion; its light color – grayish white – reflects more light than dirt, raising surface temperature. Bottom ash refers to the non-combustible materials in coal, and is heavy and coarse. A mixture of both types of ash is called pond ash.

In the past, fly ash produced by thermal power plants, cement industries, railway track, etc. was simply taken up by flue gases and released into the atmosphere, creating significant environmental concerns. Studies have shown that fly ash dumping would continue to cause groundwater contamination, surface water contamination during flooding, and air pollution relative to dust emission via wind erosion if preventative measures were not taken.

Ever since 1840, when coal was discovered in Singrauli, the area's development has revolved around exploiting this natural resource. Singrauli has been nicknamed India’s “Energy Capital”. The five super thermal power plants in the Singrauli area, which supply 10% of India’s power, are responsible for 16% or 10 tons per annum of total mercury pollution through power generation. According to ToxicLinks.org, Singrauli presently accounts for 10% of total Indian and 0.3% of global carbon dioxide emission, a major reason for global warming.

A widely cited but unpublished study by Electricité de France reveals that Singrauli's thermal power plants release about 720 kilograms of mercury per year. The UN cited an Indian Central Pollution Control board estimate that "17 percent of power plant mercury emissions are from the Singrauli region." Fly ash, the byproduct of coal combustion, is also a significant problem. The coal-burning power plants release about six million tons of fly ash a year, making land unfit for cultivation. In parts of Singrauli, the fly ash lies in piles five feet thick.

Singrauli is one of the twenty-two critically polluted areas identified by the Central Pollution Control Board.