Ever since the Dan River spill in February 2014, coal ash disposal has been a high-profile issue in North Carolina. Right now, state officials are taking public comment to determine which coal ash disposal sites are most in need of immediate action – and local environmental advocates are getting the word out to make sure everyone’s in the know.

On Saturday, February 20, the League of Women Voters of Orange, Durham, and Chatham Counties and the Southern Environmental Law Center are co-hosting a program on coal ash disposal at 9:30 am in the Greenbridge building on Rosemary Street. Nick Torrey of SELC will be among the featured speakers.

Torrey says coal ash is a major issue across the state, and it may be more local than you think: there’s even a coal ash dump in Chapel Hill, near Bolin Creek by the Chapel Hill Police Department headquarters on MLK. It was discovered in 2013 and it’s still being investigated.

More info on Chapel Hill’s coal ash dump here.

Nick Torrey spoke with Aaron Keck on WCHL this week, along with Eva Rogers of the LWV’s Environmental Issues Group.

 

Saturday’s program is primarily to get the word out about a series of public meetings being hosted in March by the NC Department of Environmental Quality, to receive public feedback on a set of proposed classifications for coal ash disposal sites. (The classifications are meant to help state officials prioritize which sites are in need of quickest action.)

The closest meeting to Chapel Hill will be in Pittsboro, on Thursday, March 10, at 6 pm in the multipurpose room of Building 2 of Central Carolina Community College (764 West Street).

For more on coal ash and coal ash disposal from the DEQ, visit this page.

For a full list of public meetings, visit this page.

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