coal ash

Regulatory attention is rarely welcome in the best of times. When the attention is focused on a practice that has been standard operating procedure for more than a century—especially a practice that has left

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) issued a $6.6 million fine to Duke Energy on February 8 for environmental violations related to the February 2014 coal ash spill from the Dan River power plant near Eden, N.C. Although the fine is not insignificant, it pales in comparison to the $102 million the company […]

The identification and containment of coal ash has risen to the top of the priority list for plant managers across the U.S. after inadvertent releases of coal ash into unintended areas resulted in adverse

Georgia Power plans to close all 29 of its coal ash ponds to comply with the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) December 2014–finalized rule and forthcoming guidelines governing effluent limitations. The Southern Co. subsidiary will consult with state regulators, the Georgia Environmental Protection Division and the Georgia Public Service Commission, to develop and finalize the plan within […]

Duke Energy announced on Sept. 29 that it had agreed to pay a $7 million fine to resolve all groundwater issues with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) relating to its 14 facilities in the state. The settlement comes after Duke appealed a proposed $25.1 million fine the NCDEQ levied in March. The […]

The U.S. House of Representatives on July 23 passed by a 258–166 vote a coal ash bill that industry and states say is much-needed, but which the White House has threatened to veto.  The Improving Coal Combustion Residuals Regulation Act of 2015 (H.R. 1734) sponsored by Rep. David McKinley (R-W.Va.) seeks to implement standards finalized […]

Senators John Hoeven (R-N.D.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) have introduced a much-awaited coal ash bill in the Senate that they say will provide more certainty than will the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) final rule alone. The bill introduced on July 17 is companion legislation to a measure introduced by Reps. John Shimkus (R-Ill.) and David […]

The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) first-ever national standards for the disposal of coal ash are ridden with complications, warned witnesses at a Senate oversight hearing.  The June 17 hearing before the full Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW) featured five witnesses representing a coalition of state environmental agency leaders, the American Coal Ash Association, […]

Duke Energy, the largest electric utility in the U.S. in terms of market value, is transitioning its generating fleet away from volatile and sometimes unprofitable wholesale markets and toward the traditional, regulated, cost-of-service model that prevails in much of the Carolinas and Florida service territories where Duke dominates. Late last March, the Federal Energy Regulatory […]

Dominion Virginia Power will close all its coal ash ponds at power plants in Virginia to comply with standards established by state and federal regulations. The company announced on April 17 that it would close ponds at four locations: Bremo Power Station in Fluvanna County, Chesapeake Energy Center in Chesapeake, Chesterfield Power Station in Chesterfield […]