The Wall Street Journal: Florence Washes Away Portion of Coal-Ash Landfill in North Carolina
Duke Energy is once again responsible for a spill of toxic coal ash into North Carolina’s waterways. Our lawmakers have been soft on Duke and even allowed them to charge their customers to clean up their toxic mess. It’s time the politicians protected the health of the people and hold corporate polluters accountable to clean up their mess.
Heavy rains from Florence washed out a portion of a landfill used to dispose of coal ash, a byproduct of burning coal to generate electricity.
Part of the earthen top of the 20-foot tall landfill was gone, exposing the deep gray ash beneath, and an undetermined amount of the coal ash washed into nearby Lake Sutton, which feeds into the Cape Fear River.
Duke Energy Corp., owner of the coal ash landfill at the L. V. Sutton Power Plant near Wilmington, N.C., said crews were on the scene assessing the situation. Paige Sheehan, a company spokeswoman, said she believed a ditch around the landfill’s perimeter contained some of the washed-away coal ash, but some escaped into the lake.
