Through public meetings and community outreach, Appalachian Voices is working to help citizens living near coal plants like the Belews Creek Power Station stand up for their right to clean water.

Over the past three weeks, the Winston-Salem Journal published a series of excellent articles focusing on the significant environmental and health threat of toxic coal ash in North Carolina — specifically from Duke Energy’s coal plants.

Appalachian Voices’ Red, White, & Water team has been working this year in communities surrounding the Belews Creek coal plant near Walnut Cove, N.C., and we’ve found a mountain of stories and data pointing to Duke Energy’s poor pollution record.

The articles, researched and written by Bertrand M. Gutierrez, paint a clear picture of the air and water contamination spreading out from the Belews Creek coal ash pond. The three-part series includes:

• Environmental Concerns Persist at Belews Creek Plant
• Belews Creek Plant is one of top US greenhouse gas emitters
• Contamination lawsuits push Duke Energy to address pollution

The Winston-Salem Journal also published an editorial on the issue, referring to the Tennessee Valley Authority coal ash spill in 2008 and describing the regulations needed to prevent a similar catastrophe at Belews Creek. It’s a sound position on pushing Duke to protect our water and clean up toxic coal ash.

Human stories are what count the most in times of identifying environmental justice problems and solutions. The newspaper series touched on how residents near Belews Creek and other coal plants owned and operated by Duke Energy are coping with the burden of air and water pollution.

There’s much more to be told, and Appalachian Voices continues to work with residents living on the front lines of environmental injustice. We’ll be hosting a community meeting in Belews Creek at the Forest Chapel Church on December 2. Check our Red, White, & Water page for more information in the coming weeks.