Duke Energy is volunteering to drain and remove coal ash stored in ponds at three more sites in North Carolina and has asked a judge to order it to do so. The Southern Environmental Law Center, having pushed for this solution for years, has eagerly endorsed the utility’s request. But the state agency charged with protecting the environment wants to block the order.
Huh?
The N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources is objecting to the proposed order for Duke to remove ash from sites in Moncure (near Jordan Lake), Goldsboro and near Lumberton.
DENR says the law ordering Duke to clean up its coal-ash ponds by 2029 on all 14 sites it owns also requires the agency to determine the proper course of action for each one.
The state already had ordered the draining (dewatering) and excavation of coal-ash ponds at the retired Sutton Steam Plant in Wilmington, Asheville, Riverbend in Mount Holly and Dan River in Eden.
Duke can’t take additional action on any of the remaining 10 sites until the state says so, DENR officials claim.
At this point, DENR is holding up the works, but why?
On one level, it is understandable. The law requires the agency to ensure the method chosen is what’s best at each particular site. Failure to take that step could result in accusations the agency is shirking its responsibility or letting Duke off easy — charges that were leveled following the massive spill at Dan River in 2014. State officials say they want to make sure the decision is based on scientific evidence that it’s the best solution.
But Frank Holleman, an attorney with the environmental law center, says the state has had plenty of time to work on a plan and has been dragging its feet for years. DENR officials should insist on inspecting the site and ensuring the cleanup is done correctly. However, the method already has been approved for four other sites.
The law does not require removal at every site. In some cases, Duke Energy could leave the old ponds in place, capping them where they are. But all the ponds are on rivers or tributaries. That is why the Southern Environmental Law Center insists that the best solution is to dig out the ponds and move the ash to a more secure, lined landfill.
In this case, the agreement makes sense.
It is doubtful the cleanup of those newly added sites will begin anytime soon — the utility is in various stages of ensuring that cleanup of the first four sites is completed by Aug. 1, 2019.
That will happen at the Sutton plant, regardless of the dispute between the state and Duke. The state is close to approving final modifications to the discharge permit the company already has that allows them to pour wastewater into the river and Sutton Lake. The changes are related to the impending cleanup as well as the natural-gas-fired plant that replaced the former coal-burning Sutton plant.
Comments during a recent public hearing suggest the permit still needs work. For one thing, it sets a daily limit on discharge of diluted toxic substances and heavy metals into the Cape Fear River and Sutton Lake, but does not require daily testing in all cases.
Environmentalists were right to question that provision. If daily monitoring is not required, how will DENR know whether Duke Energy violated the discharge limits?
A Colorado gold-mine spill serves as a reminder that cleaning up toxic waste can be risky, and underscores the need to ensure it is done right. The accident during an EPA-ordered cleanup spilled an estimated 3 million gallons of mine wastewater into a tributary of the Animas River, turning the water bright orange between Silverton and Durango.
Holleman and Duke Energy officials say the factors that led to that spill are not in play here. It is riskier to leave in place the ponds, many of which already are leaking or may be easily breached, Holleman said. Nevertheless, anytime the toxic waste is removed to another site, there is a potential for something to go wrong.
As the Sutton cleanup begins, we must hold both Duke Energy and the state accountable for ensuring it is done right, and monitoring the site to prevent fouling our river, groundwater and soil.
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