Dive Brief:
- In the last year, the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources has several times blocked lawsuits against Duke Energy over its coal ash ponds by asserting its enforcement authority at the last minute.
- Clean water advocates contend that North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory's administration has been protecting Duke. McCrory worked for Duke for 28 years.
- Duke donated at least $1.1 million to McCrory's campaign for governor. After being elected in 2012, McCrory has selected Duke employees for key positions in his administration.
Dive Insight:
The McCrory-Duke relationship has taken sharper focus since last week's leak at a Duke coal ash pond that spilled about 82,000 tons of coal ash and 27 million gallons of contaminated water into the Dan River. Initially, Duke and state regulators did not make it clear how serious the leak was. (It's the third largest in U.S. history.) Duke has 31 coal ash ponds in North Carolina. North Carolina has asserted its enforcement jurisdiction over all the ponds, blocking citizen suits under the Clean Water Act. Last year, the state proposed settling violations at two ponds for $99,111.
