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Hearings are Virtually Meaningless—But Speak Up For Communities!
Right now, Americans are dealing with the day to day realities of a global pandemic. This is not the time to be burdened by worries about increased pollution that could further threaten human health and the environment, but the Trump administration isn’t taking that into consideration. While the EPA eases pollution controls on industry, Americans are expected to show up for virtual public hearings to speak out, a process that is ineffective, ill-timed and excludes many. Last week, the EPA held virtual hearings…
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Stopping Rate Hikes for Duke Energy’s Dirty Energy & Climate-Busting Plans!
The fight for full excavation of Duke Energy’s toxic coal ash pits finally came to a close when the company signed a settlement agreement with DEQ and community groups to remove over 80 million tons of coal ash from unlined pits across the state. While this marks a major victory for impacted community members living near these sites, Duke is trying to slap them with the bill to pay for massive cleanup. Rate cases for both Duke Energy Carolinas (DEC) and Duke Energy Progress (DEP) are currently underway, with Duke seeking to recover costs associated with coal ash cleanup, upgrades…
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Consumers shouldn’t pay cleanup costs for coal ash dumping
Op-Ed by Rachel Velez, Clean Water for North Carolina Published in the Burlington Times-News January 26, 2020 Impacted community members and environmental justice activists won a huge victory earlier this month when the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality, community groups and Duke Energy signed a settlement agreement requiring the utility giant to fully excavate 80 million tons of coal ash from leaking, unlined pits in six sites across the state. This isn’t a complete victory, however, if Duke Energy is allowed to shove the cost of its coal ash cleanup onto customers — and that’s exactly what it’s asking the N.C. Utilities Commission…
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NEW REPORT: Working Towards Water Justice in North Carolina Mobile Home Parks
This summer, we worked with our Duke University Stanback intern, Elizabeth Allen, to conduct a “listening canvas,” reaching over 100 mobile home park communities in 9 counties to learn whether and where advocacy was needed to protect residents’ right to drinking water. Our outreach uncovered concerning patterns regarding landord disputes and drinking water access and quality. Read the full report here! Our outreach helped us understand residents’…
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Presentations from 35th Annual Meeting Celebration!
Thanks to all those who attended our 35th Anniversary Celebration working with NC communities to promote environmental justice! Check out the presentations from our wonderful speakers by clicking on the links below: Fighting the Harms of Coal Ash – Complete Excavation, Increased Threats To Communities Deborah Graham, SalisburyBobby Jones, GoldsboroXavier Boatright, Clean Water for NC
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Celebrating 35 Years of Working with NC Communities!
Join us in celebration of 35 years of working together! Sept. 21, 1:30 – 5:00 PM The Grey Eagle, 185 Clingman Avenue, Asheville Register on our Eventbrite Page! Clean Water for NC and our many community allies have been hard at work standing up against threats to drinking water, public health, and environmental justice. Join us for stories and updates from the frontlines of drinking water and community environmental justice action, Saturday, September 21st in Asheville! Program Highlights Include: Fighting the Harms of Coal Ash—Stories from Impacted Communities The Climate…
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Standing Together Against Coal Ash Injustice
The news was announced on April Fools Day, but it was no joke! DEQ (TheNC Dept. of Environmental Quality), backed by strong science, stood with coal ash communities in their decision to order Duke Energy to excavate coal ash from every remaining site in the state and move it into lined landfills. Duke Energy wasted no time in rebuking DEQ, speaking scathingly about the ordered clean-up, and leveraging its power to safeguard its own interests, but NC residents, businesses, and organizations, will not be standing down. On April 2, Senate…
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Victory for Coal Ash Communities Across NC!
You did it! You spoke out against injustice, and won! On April 1st, DEQ announced that communities across North Carolina will have toxic coal ash removed from unlined, leaking pits and placed in lined landfills. Since the Dan River spill 5 years ago, impacted coal ash community members and advocates have been coming together to demand cleanup of the coal ash that Duke Energy dumped in their communities. There have been countless letters written, phone…
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