In the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew, another of Duke Energy’s Coal Ash ponds has been compromised with the breach of a holding dam at Duke’s Lee Plant near Goldsboro, North Carolina.
Reports say that just minutes before the dam collapsed, Duke issued a statement saying that it was operating properly. It was a Raleigh News station that informed Duke and the public of the 50-foot break in the dam.
Neuse River’s water keeper Matthew Star released a statement shortly after the discovery saying that the cooling pond at Lee “has a long history of structural problems” and the dam that breached was the same one that did so after Hurricane Floyd in 1999.
Furthermore adds Star, there are three ash ponds at the Lee plant, totaling 160 acres, now completely submerged under flood waters. And an update report says coal ash is already washing out of those ponds, although Duke is characteristically downplaying the amount.
Star also points out that even though two years have passed since the disaster at Dan River, "Duke’s coal ash continues to sit behind rickety dams on the banks of flood-prone rivers all across the state.”
After all the problems with Duke's coal ash, including one of the worst spills in US history, Duke is still not doing what it should to avoid further polluting North Carolina's waters.
Sign this petition to demand that Duke fix all its Coal ash dams before the next hurricane hits.
To Duke Energy CEO Lynn Good;
It is one thing for North Carolina to have to deal with the devastating effects of a natural disaster, but there is no excuse for the state to have to continue to deal with Duke Energy's preventable, man-made disasters that are wreaking havoc on the state's natural water sources.
Therefore, those who support this petition demand that you speed up all efforts to remove coal ash waste and in the meantime fix the dams enclosing that waste before the next hurricane hits.
Thanks for your time.
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