Energy & Environment

Electric utilities are preparing for the possibility of widespread power outages if Hurricane Irma blows into the Carolinas next week.  Forecasters say the mostly likely problem will be wind.

Duke Energy announced last week it's pulling the plug on two proposed nuclear power projects.  But executives say Duke isn't shutting the door on the idea of building more nuclear plants someday.

Updated Aug. 26, 2017

Duke Energy wants to increase electricity rates by an average of 17 percent for residential customers in western North Carolina, including Charlotte. The higher rates would pay for new facilities, cleaning up coal ash - and for a South Carolina nuclear plant the company has decided not to build.

Neighbors with contaminated wells near Duke Energy's North Carolina coal ash ponds are suing to halt Duke's demand that they sign away future legal claims in exchange for compensation. 

A decade ago, nuclear power’s future looked bright. It offered a carbon-free energy alternative amid worries about greenhouse gases and climate change. But a lot has happened since then, like the 2011 meltdown at Fukushima and skyrocketing nuclear construction costs. Last month, two South Carolina utilities scrapped a multi-billion dollar nuclear project. Now, the future of nuclear is even cloudier. 

Updated at 3:47 p.m. 

Some South Carolina Lawmakers have called for a special session to deal with the abandonment of two nuclear reactors announced earlier this week. $9 billion has already been spent building the V.C. Summer plant about 30 miles north of Columbia.

Updated 5:15 p.m.
Two South Carolina utilities said Monday they are halting construction on an expansion of a nuclear plant about 30 miles north of Columbia. Now the question is who pays for the $9 billion dollars already spent.

A federal environmental review has found that the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline would have some negative effects on water, forests and endangered species. But the pipeline's builders call the report favorable overall and say it clears the way for final approval. 

Legislation designed to encourage more solar energy in North Carolina is in jeopardy after the state House and Senate passed different versions of the bill. A key sticking point is a provision the Senate added that would halt new wind power projects in the state until the end of 2020. 

Duke Energy has withdrawn a request for state permission to use an additive at its coal-fired power plants that caused problems two years ago with Charlotte's drinking water. Environmental groups had sued, and celebrated the move. Duke said its decision was unrelated to the challenge.

What’s 14 feet long, 500 pounds, and could be hunted for the first time in almost 45 years? Alligators. The Wildlife Resources Commission reports the alligator population is growing in southeastern North Carolina and is considering lifting a hunting ban on them as soon as September 2018. 

A trade association representing energy organizations in the Carolinas say President Trump's decision to pull out of the Paris Accord will have little immediate effect on local energy companies.

Do you drive to and from work in the Charlotte area? Several local groups are promoting a bit of a competition this month called the Clean Commute Challenge. Charlotte Area Transit System, Sustain Charlotte and Charlotte Air Awareness are asking drivers to look for alternatives during the month of June.   

Today marks the beginning of what’s predicted to be a busy hurricane season. Scott Sharp, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Raleigh, says it’s likely North Carolina will see another Hurricane Matthew-sized storm this year.

“Those two ingredients – a little less wind shear aloft and abundant warm water - will indicate that we will have a little bit more active season than we would normally have," says Sharp.

Updated 3:07 p.m.
Warmer winter weather slowed Duke Energy's electricity sales in the first three months of the year. But profits still rose slightly, and executives say overall Duke is growing.  During the first quarter, the company also logged expenses from its October merger with Piedmont Natural Gas, and saw international revenues disappear, after the December sale of its Latin American operations.