If Governor Says Duke's Coal Ash Record Is "Quite Poor" On National TV, How Big A Mess Is It?

[hatrack]

Gov. Pat McCrory said on CBS’ “60 Minutes” Sunday that Duke Energy has done “very little” to clean up its coal ash contamination. “I think the record’s been quite poor because, frankly, it’s been out of sight and out of mind,” said McCrory, a longtime Duke executive. He questioned how much Duke knew about potential structural problems at its ash ponds.

The segment focused on the February ash spill into the Dan River and Duke’s continuing problem of disposing of 108 million tons of ash in North Carolina. Aerial footage showed the blackened, empty ash pond that ruptured, spilling up to 39,000 tons into the Dan.

Correspondent Lesley Stahl noted that repeated independent inspections had recommended that Duke closely watch the stormwater pipe that broke under the pond.

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Duke has estimated it would cost up to $10 billion to move ash from ponds into lined landfills. A much cheaper solution, authorized by state legislators for some ponds, would be to drain them and leave the ash in place, capped to keep out water. Holleman predicted that method would not keep water from being contaminated. “Cap in place is only pollute in place,” he said. Contaminated groundwater has been found at each of Duke’s North Carolina plants. The segment aired footage of contaminated seepage from its Cape Fear plant in Chatham County that the state says is illegal.

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http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2014/12/07/5369574/mccrory-duke-energys-ash-record.html

[Scuba]

1. Who cares about clean water when there's profits at stake?