Impacted Residents in NC and VA Protest Duke, Dominion Shareholder Meetings

Photo courtesy of Chesapeake Climate Action Network

This spring, Appalachian Voices and our partners attended the Duke Energy and Dominion Resources shareholder meetings to remind them to protect ratepayers and our planet. It’s no secret that these big utilities don’t have a strong track record on clean energy. Duke is working with the state of North Carolina to circumvent citizen demands that it quickly and thoroughly clean up coal ash contamination, and the utility is blocking third-party solar (see page 22). And both Dominion and Duke would rather invest in risky natural gas pipelines that accelerate fracking in central and northern Appalachia than invest those resources in affordable clean energy options like solar and energy efficiency.

During their May 5 annual meeting, Duke Energy shareholders, CEO Lynn Good and the company’s board of directors were confronted by residents affected by the coal ash in their neighborhoods. Joined by a slew of climate and solar advocates, they asked tough questions during the meeting’s Q&A section. Sarah Kellogg, our departing North Carolina Field Coordinator, pointed out numerous inaccuracies in what Good said throughout the meeting. Good’s response: “I can see we have a lot of work to do to rebuild trust.”

Citizens from across the Southeast converged outside Dominion Resources’ annual shareholder meeting in Columbia, S.C., on May 11, urging the company to abandon its agenda for decades of more dirty energy investments and instead lead the region’s transition to renewable energy. Hannah Wiegard, our Virginia Campaign Coordinator, and concerned Dominion Virginia customers were among those protesting the meeting.