Press Mention greenvilleonline.com February 24, 2014
SACE Quoted
NC cleanup raises concerns for S.C. Saluda River
In this mention
An article examining coal ash storage concerns at Duke Energy's W.S. Lee coal plant in South Carolina, prompted by a major coal ash spill at Duke's Dan River facility in North Carolina. Ulla Reeves of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy criticizes the inadequate regulation of coal ash ponds and calls for Duke to remove ash and dispose of it safely in dry landfills.
They're essentially hazardous waste dumps. They're regulated less stringently than household garbage disposal. Dan River really should be the last straw. Duke Energy really needs to step up.
Ulla Reeves
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NC cleanup raises concerns for S.C. Saluda River
Written by Eric Connor Staff writer
Feb. 25, 2014 | greenvilleonline.com
The storage of decades of toxic byproducts in ponds at an aging Upstate coal plant has environmentalists concerned that failure of dams holding back coal ash could lead to disastrous pollution along the Saluda River.
The concerns at Duke Energy's soon-to-be-retired W.S. Lee coal plant in Williamston arise as the company faces a huge cleanup effort in North Carolina, where this month a popular recreational river was contaminated after the utility said faulty pipes caused more than 30 tons of coal ash to spill.
Duke is reviewing its storage of coal ash following the Dan River incident, company spokesman Ryan Mosier said.
"We agree that coal ash basins must be addressed, and we're taking another look at the best way to do that," Mosier said. "There's a lot of eyes on Dan River, and we've got to see what kind of guidance comes out of that."
The coal ash ponds over 64 acres at Lee are held back by dams that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said pose a "significant safety hazard" and have showed signs of seepage over the past several years.
Duke maintains that the dams are safe, but environmental groups have called on the company to remove coal ash from its two South Carolina plants and dispose of it in dry landfills safe from waterways.
"They're essentially hazardous waste dumps," said Ulla Reeves, the director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy's high-risk energy program.
"They're regulated less stringently than household garbage disposal. Dan River really should be the last straw. Duke Energy really needs to step up."
The Lee plant has burned coal for more than 60 years, though Duke says it is scheduled to wind down coal operations next year and expected eventually to switch to natural gas.
The byproducts of burning coal create ash that contains toxins dangerous to human health and the environment, according to the EPA.
The ash at Lee is stored in ponds constructed in 1974 that use two dams to contain contaminants, according to an EPA study commissioned in 2010 to study coal ash storage at the Lee plant.