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Here are some of the other stories catching our attention.

Duke Picks Goldsboro Plant For 2nd Coal Ash Recycling Center

Coal ash pond at Duke Energy's H.F. Lee plant in Wayne County will be drained and excavated, and the coal ash recycled in concrete products.
Duke Energy
Coal ash pond at Duke Energy's H.F. Lee plant in Wayne County will be drained and excavated, and the coal ash recycled in concrete products.

Duke Energy has picked a site in eastern North Carolina's Wayne County for the second of three planned coal ash recycling facilities.  The company says it will excavate about 6 million tons of coal ash stored near the H.F. Lee plant in Goldsboro and recycle it for concrete products.

That's a change in Duke's plans for cleaning up the Lee plant. Duke previously said it would move the ash to a new lined landfill at an old clay mine in Lee County. The company said it still could use the Colon Mine project to dispose of coal ash from other plants around the state.

"After evaluating a variety of locations, our experts have determined that H.F. Lee is an ideal site for a project of this nature based on a number of factors including, proximity to market demand, the volume of ash at the site, ash quality and the site’s current closure deadline," Duke said in a press release Tuesday..

In October, Duke announced a similar coal ash recycling center at the Buck Steam Station near Salisbury.  

The state's coal ash cleanup law requires Duke to build a total of three recycling centers as part of its cleanups statewide. Under the law, it must recycle at least 900,000 tons of coal ash annually.

Coal ash is the residue left after burning coal for energy. It can contain toxic heavy metals such as mercury, selenium or chromium.

Last week, Duke detailed plans to supply safe, permanent water supplies to neighbors of most of its coal ash sites. That also was required by state law.  

RELATED LINKS

Duke Energy's coal ash information web page, https://www.duke-energy.com/ash-management

Dec. 13, 2016, Duke Energy press release, "Duke Energy to recycle coal ash at H.F. Lee Plant in Goldsboro" -

David Boraks previously covered climate change and the environment for WFAE. See more at www.wfae.org/climate-news. He also has covered housing and homelessness, energy and the environment, transportation and business.