Activists, residents speak out against Duke permit
By Joey Pitchford
Published in News on December 16, 2016 8:12 AM
News-Argus/JOEY PITCHFORD
Members of the Down East Coal Ash Coalition pose for a photograph Thursday night at Wayne County Center.
A group of activists, community members and environmental experts gathered at the Wayne County Center Thursday night to speak out against a draft wastewater permit currently sought by Duke Energy.
The permit would allow Duke to discharge water from the coal ash basins at the H.F. Lee power plant into the Neuse River, as well as provide for a coal ash landfill which Upper Neuse Riverkeeper Matthew Star said would be built in a floodplain on the banks of the Neuse.
Department of Environmental Quality engineer Sergei Chernikov, who read a summary of the draft permit before the public comment section, had an accent which some in the audience found difficult to understand. DEQ Environmental Program Supervisor Jim Gregson advised those audience members to give their names to DEQ staff to receive printed copies.
Star said that the proposed permit gives Duke Energy far too much latitude when it comes to pumping dangerous chemicals into the Neuse.
"Not only would this permit pave the way for a coal ash landfill, but the draft permit would also allow Duke Energy to pollute the Neuse River with arsenic at over 2,000 times the surface water standard for water supplies and protection of human health, and unlimited amounts of other coal ash pollutants like lead, chromium and mercury," he said. The proposed permit does not include limits on how much lead, chromium, mercury and other heavy metals could be pumped into the river, and sets the cap for arsenic at more than six times the daily average.
Residents in the area around the H.F. Lee plant came forward to say that their communities had been struck by a rash of cancer-related deaths, stretching back for decades.
Emory Lofton, who lives half a mile from the H.F. Lee plant, said that he had been watching those near him die from cancer for years. He said that his neighbor two doors down died from cancer, followed by his next-door neighbor and then a next-door neighbor on the other side of his house.
He said that there are still wells in the area that have not been tested for contaminants, despite repeated attempts to get service.
Many of those in attendance were part of the Downeast Coal Ash Coalition, a Goldsboro activist group formed to press for action on coal ash dangers in North Carolina.
Bobby Jones, a community organizer with DECAC who lives near the H.F. Lee plant, urged the DEQ to deny the permit. He also questioned the honesty of Duke
Energy, saying that the company has not made the effort to reach out to communities impacted by coal ash.
"Will you do what you say you're going to do?" he said, asking if Duke would stick to their promises to effectively self-moderate the outflow of dangerous chemicals. "And will you afford my community members the basic human dignity by speaking to them?"
Duke Energy has maintained that they must meet state and federal requirements when it comes to the disposals of heavy metals, but community members expressed doubt that the company would properly monitor itself.
Resident John Wagner said that the wastewater testing should be conducted by independent scientists, not Duke Energy.
The sole speaker in favor of the permit was Duke Energy Government and Community Relations district manager Mille Chalk. She called the permit "a critical step to advance the ash basin closure process," and said that the document "includes strict standards to ensure people and environment remain protected."
She also denied the notion that coal ash basins are impacting local water supply wells, even though multiple community members had come forward to say that their wells were contaminated.
Duke Energy is currently providing alternative water sources, such as bottled water for people within half a mile of the plant, even though they say the water supply has not been tainted.
"We support bringing peace of mind to neighbors by providing permanent water solutions for eligible well owners within a half-mile of coal ash basins, as required by state law."
Star called for the DEQ to draft a new permit with heavy metal limits, as well as removing any mention of the coal ash landfill. Duke Energy has said that the landfill would be a bad fit for the area, but the option to build it remained in the draft permit. The permit will now go back to the DEQ, which will decide whether to approve, deny or modify the document.