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Local residents share ideas, voice concerns at EPA meeting

Community members listen to a presentation from the EPA during a public meeting on June 23, 2020, in the Lakeside Special Events Center at Carolina Marina on Belews Lake in Stokesdale. KERI BROWN/WFDD

Residents near the Dan River and Belews Lake joined a listening session Thursday.

The Environmental Protection Agency is collecting ideas and concerns from nearby communities, as part of an environmental justice analysis.

The agency is developing new limits for polluted water released from coal-fired power plants. The EPA made revisions to the Steam Electric Rule in 2015 and 2020.

The proposal would update technology standards for each of the different types of polluted water released. This includes wastewater from the burning process and polluted water from ash ponds and landfills.

The smokestacks at Duke Energy's Belews Creek plant can be seen throughout this area. The company is in the process of cleaning up that site and excavating tons of coal ash into a lined landfill on its property.

David Hairston grew up just a few miles from the power plant in Walnut Tree, and he's worried about the health impacts especially on low-income communities.

“The citizens are still concerned about how Duke Power is handling their cleanup situation and that we want them to stay on top of it and help us, and guide us through to make sure that this is a complete and safe process for all communities that's surrounding this," says Hairston. "We've been through enough to go backwards now.”

He's advocating for federal requirements on utilities to provide independent testing and data transparency.

Other residents say they want medical monitoring, better technology to prevent pollution, and improved outreach to rural communities.

Officials with the EPA say this is all under consideration and more public hearings will be held before any rules are finalized. 

Follow WFDD's Keri Brown on Twitter @kerib_news

Keri Brown is a multi-award winning reporter and host at 88.5 WFDD. She has been honored with two regional Edward R. Murrow awards for her stories about coal ash, and was named the 2015 radio reporter of the year by the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas (RTDNAC).Although she covers a variety of topics, her beats are environmental and education reporting.Keri comes to the Triad from West Virginia Public Broadcasting, where she served as the Chief Bureau Reporter for the Northern Panhandle. She produced stories for the state's Public Television and Radio programs and was honored by the West Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters Association for her feature and enterprise reporting.She also served as an adjunct instructor at Wheeling Jesuit University and Bethany College in West Virginia. She worked with the Center for Educational Technologies in Wheeling, WV, and other NASA centers across the country to develop several stories about the use of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) concepts in the classroom.Keri's journalism career began at WTRF-TV 7 in Wheeling. She worked in several roles at the station, including the head assignment editor. She also was a field producer and assignment manager at WPGH-TV Fox 53 in Pittsburgh.Keri is a graduate of Ohio University. When she's not in the studio or working on a story, she enjoys watching college football with her family, cooking, and traveling.Keri is always looking for another great story idea, so please share them with her. You can follow her on Twitter @kerib_news.

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