Celeste Gracia
Environment ReporterCeleste Gracia has been at WUNC since September 2019. She moved over as environment reporter after starting off as morning producer. She's interested in covering several topics within her beat, including climate change and environmental justice.
Celeste graduated from the University of North Texas. She previously interned at CBS News Radio in New York and Morning Edition in Washington D.C.
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U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm visited Raleigh on Friday to announce $18.3 million in funding to support Siemens Energy as the company plans to produce equipment needed to integrate more renewable energy into the grid.
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The new rules establish legally enforceable levels for six kinds of PFAS. Levels range from four-to-10 parts per trillion. Public water systems across the country have until 2029 to meet these standards.
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A decade ago, toxic coal ash poured into the Dan River. That was just the beginning of the story.
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The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will use a chemical to improve water quality in Lake Mattamuskeet. Conservationists worry it will harm birds at North Carolina's largest freshwater lake.
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A new economic model from North Carolina researchers suggests that tax incentives for high income property owners and federal subsidies for beach nourishment projects continue to increase coastal property prices, despite growing climate risks from sea level rise.
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Lake Mattamuskeet is the largest natural freshwater lake in North Carolina. The lake has experienced declining water quality for decades, leading to harmful algal blooms. A proposal would address these algal blooms using a chemical treatment.
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The council issued a formal statement saying the chemical companies have disregarded the rights and wellbeing of residents along the lower Cape Fear River in North Carolina.
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The horseshoe crab species is more than 400 million years old. Their population has declined rapidly over the past few decades because of overharvesting and habitat loss.
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The lawsuit filed in federal court argues the proposed Southside timber project violates federal law. The area slated for logging is near the Whitewater River in the Nantahala National Forest.
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A 2021 North Carolina state law requires Duke Energy to reduce its carbon emissions by 70% compared to 2005 levels by 2030, and to be carbon neutral by 2050. Critics say the latest proposed plan relies too heavily on fossil fuels.