Duke Energy caught dumping MILLIONS of gallons of coal waste into North Carolina water

This hits really close to home for me.

This is the eighth time within a month that Duke Energy has been accused of violating environmental regulations. The other times include safety violations, like having leaky containers to keep their coal ash/waste in, and inadvertent pollution. This time they were actually caught by aerial surveillance on a fixed wing aircraft dumping 61 million gallons of coal waste into a tributary.

Duke is allowed to dump waste into the canal, however they are legally required to go through a filter, called a "riser" to clean the heavier components out of the waste. They didn't do this...

“We’re concerned with the volume of water that was pumped and the manner it was pumped,” DENR Communications Director Drew Elliot told ABC. “It did not go through the treatment facility as it should have.”

Here is a link to read the full story.

This is incredibly negligent, especially considering this canal dumps into the Cape Fear River and provides drinking water to several cities and towns.

Coal ash, which is the waste material generated from the combustion of coal, can contain lead, arsenic, mercury and selenium. If the toxic chemicals in coal ash leak from storage vats it can poison wildlife and fish, and can lead to cancer and neurological disorders in humans.


Due to their previous mishaps and ground contamination claims, NC regulators were originally going to work with Duke and allow them to pay a measly $99,000 fine with no requirement that they clean up their pollution. Thankfully, however, this charge, and one other charge from February - a spill into the Dan River in Eden, NC, seems to have changed their minds. Regulators are now working with the EPA to pursue a lawsuit against them, as well as several civil groups.

reply to post by jacktorrance


Also, I did a search and didn't see this posted. The closest thing to it was an article from 2 years ago. If I missed something however, please close this thread.

reply to post by jacktorrance

This is incredibly negligent, especially considering this canal dumps into the Cape Fear River and provides drinking water to several cities and towns.

Not negligent, but willful. They know they will be slapped with a minimal (and very affordable) fine and they will promise to clean it up - which will never happen. Bottom line, it's the cheapest route for them to get rid of the toxins.

I'm from the Carolinas, and let me say that I am not the least bit surprised. Duke Energy gives a lot of jobs down here, they're pretty much a monopoly in most places, and they are as crooked as a dog's hind leg.

reply to post by jacktorrance

Fair should be fair in this case. A fine is not gonna cut it.

Duke energy should not be allowed to collect any revenue until they've conducted a thorough clean-up and pay for any damage up-front.

Why aren't there Ever any penalties like this?

reply to post by Snarl

Fair should be fair in this case. A fine is not gonna cut it.

Duke energy should not be allowed to collect any revenue until they've conducted a thorough clean-up and pay for any damage up-front.

I completely agree. However, Duke CEO Lynn Good has said in the past that if they are fined, they will "seek to recover the cost through customer rates." Although she did conclude that this won't happen immediately, and said it’s an issue “that will unfold over time.”

Nice, huh?

reply to post by Maluhia


You are probably correct that they will only be fined a small amount, especially considering our Governor is Pat McCrory - a 29 year employee of Duke Energy.

reply to post by AnIntellectualRedneck


I'm from North Carolina too and you're exactly right, they've essentially got a monopoly between the two Carolinas. It's frustrating that Duke customers may be footing the bill for any cleanup that they're forced to do.

Should be seized and nationalised....these criminals are not responsible to anyone.....take their company with a huge fine and run it yourselves for Carolinans......the example may start a trend....

reply to post by jacktorrance


I'll tell you what you do.

Take some of that dirty, toxic, polluted waste water put it in a few 5 gallon containers (one for each of Dukes officers) and every time they step out of their front door or back out of their garage...Throw it at em'!

This kind of crap is ridiculous, illegal, immoral, not right, senseless, disrepectful, life threatening and infuriating 😡

Lynn Good is a worthless human being and will get what she deserves...hopefully sooner than later

reply to post by jacktorrance

Nice, huh?

We can have recall elections for non-performing politicians. Why not here? These guys have a monopoly working and the people are powerless to do anything about it?

The EPA fines are a joke compared to what it would cost to dump all of that legally. Therein lies the problem.....

Refineries often clean their towers with illegal burns, once again the fine is cheaper than doing it the right way.

Nothing changes people will continue to screw over their own planet for a buck.

reply to post by Snarl

These guys have a monopoly working and the people are powerless to do anything about it?

They have a lot of support. It would be a pretty massive undertaking, and honestly, I feel like complacency of the people would win out over getting things changed. Maybe I'm wrong though.


reply to post by ThePublicEnemyNo1


That would be awesome

So how come poisoning the water supply isn't terrorism? Hey NSA and FBI, I'd really like to know!

If I, wearing a suitable bit of towel-like headgear, were seen dumping something or other into the local water reservoir, I'd be the focus of a nationwide manhunt, complete with tanks, riot geared police and SWAT teams.

How is this not terrorism, for real?

People of the locale where this occurred, please look at it in the proper perspective.

THESE PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO KILL YOU.

reply to post by jacktorrance


As a Progress/Duke customer, I worry about their retribution as well. But they seemed to just get caught with all this at an inopportune time. Just after the Dan river mess, they take the chance of pumping ash illegally? I think this might have been a regular practice. Otherwise, someone would have been smart enough to hold off for a bit, or do it right.

Look for a change in management, some retirements, and a new logo soon. (Probably a new name as well)

Someone should pipe water straight from the river into the CEO's home drinking water. What get's me is that we even allow them to pump out the waste into a river in the first place, whether or not it goes to drinking water down river. If the water is not drinkable straight out of the waste pumps it should never be allowed. This is not at all an uncommon problem. If we keep doing things like this we're all going to go to hell, but we're not going to have to die to get there.

reply to post by jacktorrance


If people read the article, they are allowed to dump their chemicals in this body of water. They are only allowed to do it when the water is high enough and they have to use a filter type system to get the big debris out of this waste. So I feel many here are going a little crazy with this story honestly....They are allowed to do this! WHY?? That would be the major part of this I would be mad at...

There should be a better way, IMHO....Why are they allowed to do this? Nobody should be allowed to dump toxic chemicals in any body of water, that should be the companies responsibility to find a way to do this a safe way for the environment...

It happened, it will happen again and with the minor fines the company has to pay this is probably the cheapest way for the to dispose of this....What a crock!!

reply to post by Chrisfishenstein

If people read the article, they are allowed to dump their chemicals in this body of water. They are only allowed to do it when the water is high enough and they have to use a filter type system to get the big debris out of this waste. So I feel many here are going a little crazy with this story honestly....They are allowed to do this! WHY?? That would be the major part of this I would be mad at...

I know, that honestly shocks me as well - that they can simply dump it in the water in the first place. Especially water that is going to be drinking water for several cities and towns. I usually buy bottled water because our city water tastes like chlorine, but I have been buying water that is bottled in NC - which concerns me as well. As another user stated, this has probably been a common practice of theirs and they are just now getting caught...how long have we been drinking water that is poisoned with this stuff?

I guess it's time to start drinking imported water ... and I'll just have to hope the practices there are better than here.