The next phase of cleanup at the former Dan River Steam Station is moving forward. Duke Energy is transferring nearly 2 million tons of coal ash to a lined landfill on the property.
It's been three years since the massive coal ash spill at the Dan River near Eden. Duke Energy says cleanup around the retired plant is ongoing. It's now in the process of excavating the waste that's stored in ponds at the site.
The company has already sent more than a million tons of coal ash by rail to a lined landfill in central Virginia. But the remaining ash will be placed in a new site at Dan River. State regulators recently issued a permit that allows the company to start using the landfill.
Duke Energy spokesperson Jeff Brooks says the first truckloads have been transferred.
“We're moving ash farther away from the river," says Brooks. "We're removing the moisture and storing that ash dry and we are storing it in a fully lined containment system there and disposing of it in there, so that it will remain protected and the environment will remain protected for years ahead.”
The Environmental Protection Agency's rules label coal ash, which is the byproduct of burning coal, as a non-hazardous waste. Nevertheless, it contains toxic substances including lead, arsenic and selenium, and in high concentrations some health experts worry it's harmful to humans and the environment.
Brooks says the new landfill will be lined with clay and synthetic materials. The waste will be stored in sections and capped with multiple layers of barriers.
State law requires Duke Energy to close its ash ponds near the Dan River facility by August 2019. The company says it's on track to meet the deadline.
Meanwhile, the company is asking the North Carolina Utilities Commission to approve their request for a rate hike to help pay for system upgrades, damage from Hurricane Matthew and the cleanup of coal ash pits in the state. According to a recent filing, Duke Energy wants to raise electricity rates by an average of 14.9 percent for its Progress Division, which serves customers in the eastern part of the state, Raleigh, and Asheville areas.
The company says a rate hike request for its Carolinas Division, which includes many customers in the Piedmont is also expected to be filed with the Commission in the coming months. Brooks says the amount the company will ask for hasn't been finalized at this time.
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