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Public Meetings Set To Discuss Coal Ash Basin Closures For Belews Creek, Other Sites

KERI BROWN/WFDD

The public will have a chance weigh in on new risk classifications and closure options for some Duke Energy coal ash sites. The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality will hold information meetings in several communities this month.

DEQ officials recently approved the low-risk classification of several coal ash ponds. Those include Duke Energy's Belews Creek and Allen facilities.

The agency says the company has met criteria set forth in the state's Coal Ash Management Act (CAMA). It requires the company to establish permanent water supplies and rectify dam safety deficiencies.

The law also says the company must eventually close all of its ash basins across the state. The low-risk classification means that process could be excavation, capping the waste in place, or a hybrid approach.

Coal ash contains toxic substances and heavy metals. Environmentalists say unlined leaking pits at some sites are contaminating groundwater. They want the ash removed from every facility.

DEQ will hold six public meetings in January to gather comments. The first will take place in Stokes County on January 10 at Walnut Cove Elementary.

*You can 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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