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Environment

Tom Augspurger, USFWS, taking core sample as EPA's Alan Humphrey documents the ash bar during February 8th reconnaissance of Dan River coal ash spill. Photo by Sara Ward, USFWS..

The Latest News On The Coal Ash Spill in Eden, NC

Coal ash is the waste that remains when coal is burned. It is usually collected in a dump, known as a pond. North Carolina has more than 30 such sites in 14 different locations across the state. A pipe running under one of the ponds run by Duke Energy in Eden NC ruptured in February of 2014. The coal ash spilled, largely affecting the Dan River which flows into Virginia. The spill is the third largest of its kind in U.S. history.Many see potential complications because North Carolina's governor, Pat McCrory, worked for Duke Energy for 28 years.

State Regulators At Odds With Environmentalists Over Coal Ash Cleanup

WUNC | By Will Michaels,

Frank Stasio

Published January 6, 2016 at 12:03 PM EST

A picture of a coal ash pond.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality says Duke Energy will have to excavate most of its coal ash pits in North Carolina.

A new report says 20 pits have to be cleaned up rather than covered, but environmental groups think that number should be higher and point to an earlier draft report that identified 27 pits for excavation.

Host Frank Stasio talks with WUNC environment reporter Dave DeWitt about the disagreement over coal ash cleanup in North Carolina.

Tags

Environment The State of Things Dave Dewitt Duke Energy Department of Environmental Quality Coal Ash Environment

Will Michaels

Will Michaels is WUNC's Weekend Host and Reporter.

See stories by Will Michaels

Frank Stasio

Longtime NPR correspondent Frank Stasio was named permanent host of The State of Things in June 2006. A native of Buffalo, Frank has been in radio since the age of 19. He began his public radio career at WOI in Ames, Iowa, where he was a magazine show anchor and the station's News Director.

See stories by Frank Stasio

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