Cleaning Up Coal Ash
For well over a century, power plants across the country have burned coal to generate electricity. And for just as long, leftover coal ash has been dumped in open, unlined pits near the power plant, usually located on a river or lake. Every year, U.S. power plants produce 130 million tons of coal ash, which is the second largest waste stream in the country after municipal garbage.
Coal ash concentrates the toxic heavy metals found in coal, including arsenic, mercury, lead and selenium. Stored in unlined, wet impoundments, coal ash has been leaking these toxics into our groundwater and surface waters for years. Sometimes these impoundments collapse — with disastrous results.
Yet government regulations for coal ash management are either non-existent or sparse, and there is little enforcement of the regulations that do exist. In North Carolina, this lack of oversight — and the complicity between state regulators, elected officials and Duke Energy — came to a boiling point in February 2014 when one of Duke’s coal ash impoundments spilled 39 million tons of ash into the Dan River.
Citizens living near North Carolina’s 33 coal ash impoundments — all of which have leaked — have fought for transparency from Duke and the state, and for cleanup of the pollution that threatens their property value, health and family. Their actions forced this issue into the headlines of news networks and to the forefront of environmental justice conversations in the United States.
Appalachian Voices stood with these communities as we worked for years to compel Duke Energy and the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality to excavate coal ash from all the North Carolina sites and dispose of it either in lined, dry landfills, away from waterways, or by recycling it for concrete or other uses, provided it’s done in a manner that protects public health and the environment.
On Jan. 2, 2020, North Carolina announced a historic settlement with one of the state’s most powerful corporations and polluters, Duke Energy. The settlement requires Duke to move nearly 80 million tons of toxic coal ash at six of its power plants to properly lined landfills onsite or recycle it.
Learn information about specific coal ash impoundments in the South, including health threats and safety ratings:
Additional Resources
Fact sheets, videos, links to academic research, and more
Sign Up to Act
Help us protect the health of our communities and waterways.
Latest News
Residents Across Five States Benefit From Local Air Quality Monitoring
Through the Upper South and Appalachia Citizen Air Monitoring Project, community members and organizations are collecting data about local air quality.
Changes for MVP Southgate Pipeline are Part of a Web of Proposed Methane Gas
“Families and farmers are being asked to sacrifice land, health and peace of mind for projects that are less reliable and affordable than renewables,” said Ridge Graham of Appalachian Voices.
Concerns Over Proposed Cumberland Methane Plant and Pipeline
The Tennessee Valley Authority and Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company push ahead with plans for the Cumberland Pipeline amid concerns for the environment, property and public safety.
Biden Admin Finalizes Silica Rule Update
A new federal rule would cut miners’ exposure to silica dust, but miners and their advocates have concerns about whether industry will follow the new rule under the current enforcement mechanisms.
Reducing Methane Emissions from Wells Could Create Tens of Thousands of Jobs
Decommissioning unplugged oil and gas wells and reducing emissions at operating wells in accordance with new federal guidelines would create tens of thousands of jobs across four states, according to a recent report.
TVA Moves Forward with Kingston Gas Plant
Ignoring EPA concerns and calls from lawmakers for more transparency, Tennessee Valley Authority moved forward with plans to convert the Kingston Fossil Plant from coal to methane.
