More Bad News For Duke Energy

[bobabode]

http://www.latimes.com/nation/nation...#axzz2wCebMJ4j

"MONCURE, N.C. - While poring over regulatory documents for Duke Energy coal ash ponds, environmentalists at the Waterkeeper Alliance grew suspicious of the way the giant utility was handling the toxic ash waste left over from burning coal.
They decided to send up a team in an aircraft to photograph Duke's shuttered Cape Fear coal-burning power plant and ash ponds, tucked into piney woods in this tiny community in central North Carolina.
The photos revealed what the Waterkeeper Alliance says is evidence that Duke, the nation's largest electric utility, is deliberately pumping toxic coal ash wastewater from the containment ponds into a canal that eventually feeds into the Cape Fear River, a source of drinking water for downstream cities.
In the photos, two portable pumps and hoses can be seen drawing water from a coal ash pond and dumping into the canal and into nearby woods. According to the environmental group, that is a criminal violation of the Clean Water Act and state laws.
"They were trying to hide it. It was just dumb luck that we caught them at it," said Peter Harrison, staff attorney for the alliance.
State regulators said the pumping could be illegal, and added that they were investigating the incident." LATimes

Time to put this energy conglomerate in the dock.

[BlueStreak]

This is why the right hates environmental laws. They want to pollute with impunity.
Same principle applies to civil rights, labor laws.................

Dave

[Boreas]

Originally Posted by BlueStreak

This is why the right hates environmental laws. They want to pollute with impunity.
Same principle applies to civil rights, labor laws.................

Dave

The marketplace will take care of all this. As soon as Duke's customers fond out about this they'll just get their electricity from someone else.

John

[bobabode]

"FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — North Carolina regulators citedDuke Energy on Thursday, saying the utility deliberately dumped 61 million gallons of toxic coal ash waste into a tributary of the Cape Fear River, which provides drinking water for several cities and towns in the state.
The state Department of Environment and Natural Resources said the giant utility, responsible for a massive spill from a different coal ash containment pond Feb. 2, had illegally pumped the ash from two coal ash ponds at its Cape Fear plant in Moncure, N.C., and into a canal that feeds into the Cape Fear River.
Regulators said they caught Duke pumping the toxic ash March 11, one day after an environmental group took aerial photographs of what it said were pumps illegally dumping the waste. Environmental groups have accused the agency of coddling Duke Energy and allowing coal ash waste to seep for years from the utility's 14 coal-fired plants in the state."



http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-...#ixzz2wdHdKqIp


Looks like the jack booted thug regulators are doing their jobs for once.

[MrPots]

It appears that way. We'll see how long they intend on keeping up appearances.

[bobabode]

Originally Posted by MrPots

It appears that way. We'll see how long they intend on keeping up appearances.

True that. The governor insists that the regulators act as partners/enablers to Duke Energy so I'm not holding my breath. If I lived downstream of this poison being dumped into the water supply, I'd be packing my bags. It's criminal what the giant companies continually get away with.

[MrPots]

Indeed, all those former regulators are soon to become highly paid executives of Duke Energy assuming this works out as usual, and this issue will quietly fade away until 25 years from now when someone will remark on the unusually large cluster cancers occurring in N.C.

[bobabode]

Originally Posted by MrPots

Indeed, all those former regulators are soon to become highly paid executives of Duke Energy assuming this works out as usual.

As you probably read, the governor worked for Duke for 23 years. What ever happened to conflict of interest rules? Bad for business, I guess.

[BlueStreak]

Originally Posted by bobabode

As you probably read, the governor worked for Duke for 23 years. What ever happened to conflict of interest rules? Bad for business, I guess.

You got it.

We complain about politicians who are beholden to "corporate interests". Then, we elect them because they are beholden to "corporate interests".

Dave

[BlueStreak]

Originally Posted by MrPots

Indeed, all those former regulators are soon to become highly paid executives of Duke Energy assuming this works out as usual, and this issue will quietly fade away until 25 years from now when someone will remark on the unusually large cluster cancers occurring in N.C.

This is due to the infamously short attention span of the American voter.

Dave