North Carolina lawmakers on Tuesday overrode vetoes of two bills Gov. Roy Cooper had said would hurt the state's environmental and climate efforts.
Lawmakers overrode the vetoes of House Bill 600, the regulatory reform bill, and Senate Bill 678, which could give a boost to Duke Energy's plans to build new nuclear plants.
Among other things, the regulatory reform bill includes provisions that could speed up permitting for a proposed extension of the Mountain Valley Pipeline into North Carolina. The 304-mile main pipeline would carry natural gas extracted by fracking from West Virginia to Virginia and the proposed Southgate extension would bring it to central North Carolina.
Another section of the reform bill would ease requirements on discharges of hog waste and other animal waste. Critics worry it could make it harder to consider environmental injustice in issuing permits.
The governorsaid Oct. 2 that he vetoed the energy bill because it contradicts previous bipartisan legislation to support clean energy to fight climate change. He said it prioritizes "construction of traditional power plants, and higher profits for the utility companies, over lower-cost solutions like energy efficiency."
Environmental and climate action groups had also criticized the bill.
Duke Energy plans to use small nuclear reactors to replace some electricity generation lost when coal plants are shut in the coming years.
"S678 highlights nuclear’s critical importance as a carbon-free resource in our ‘all of the above’ strategy, and we remain committed to moving forward with exploring the potential for advanced nuclear facilities in North Carolina that bring jobs, new investment and clean energy to this state," Duke spokesman Bill Norton said.
The two veto overrides were among five by lawmakers Tuesday afternoon. They included bills that Republicans passed to change the way elections are run. One bill ends a three-day grace period for ballots postmarked by Election Day and says mail ballots won't count if they're received by the time polls close.
