Judicial Watch: Big Hog Slammed Again
Judicial Watch: Big Hog Slammed Again North Carolina juries are speaking clearly to Big Hog: Clean up your act, or keep facing huge awards to injured neighbors. In the third and largest win for injured neighbors yet, a jury awarded over $473 million in damages against global megacorporation Smithfield Foods. Testimony and other evidence in the […]
Legislative Watch: Deceiving the Voters
Legislative Watch: Deceiving the Voters On party-line votes Saturday morning, the North Carolina General Assembly voted to make two late changes to the November ballot, designed to withhold important information from voters. The majority party in both legislative chambers used its supermajorities to override Gov. Roy Cooper’s vetoes of House Bill 3, dealing with the […]
Education & Resources: Call for a Life Preserver
Education & Resources: Call for a Life Preserver A new analysis of the areas threatened by sea level rise along North Carolina’s coast is alarming. The Union of Concerned Scientists’ new report projects that in less than 12 years, 6,500 coastal homes could be flooded by normal high tides every other week. By 2060, dozens […]
Administrative Watch: State Puts Fumigation Permits on Hold
Administrative Watch: State Puts Fumigation Permits on Hold The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has put on hold four controversial permits for log fumigation operations while it reviews possible tougher standards for the highly toxic chemical used in that process. DEQ had previously paused processing of the permits while it reviewed the environmental […]
Judicial Watch: Conservationists Challenge Duke Rate Hikes
Judicial Watch: Conservationists Challenge Duke Rate Hikes Last week, six advocacy groups filed notice with the state Supreme Court that they will appeal the recent North Carolina Utilities Commission decision allowing a Duke Energy Carolina rate hike. Five of the groups (including the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association, the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, and the […]
Legislative Watch: Flagrant Ballot Manipulations Get Worse
Legislative Watch: Flagrant Ballot Manipulations Get Worse On less than 24 hours’ notice, the North Carolina General Assembly went back into special session last week. The legislature acted swiftly to undermine progress toward transparent elections with an informed public. Phil Berger and Tim Moore decided to call their colleagues into a surprise extra session, and […]
Judicial Watch: Stein, Environmental Groups Sue EPA Over Dirty Diesel Rule
Judicial Watch: Stein, Environmental Groups Sue EPA Over Dirty Diesel Rule Last week, North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein joined with the attorneys general of 15 other states and the District of Columbia to challenge the EPA’s attempt to re-open the “dirty truck loophole.” National environmental groups sued over the same issue earlier in the […]
Campaign Watch: Making Voting Easier?
Campaign Watch: Making Voting Easier? Counties around North Carolina have been hammering out deals—or failing to reach a deal—on what has become a key option for voter turnout in our state: early voting. In at least two counties (Wake, Orange), the local Board of Elections was unable to reach an agreement. By splitting 2-2 along […]
Judicial Watch: Stopping GenX Emissions
Judicial Watch: Stopping GenX Emissions Cape Fear River Watch has sued to force the immediate cessation of all GenX emissions from the Chemours plant near Fayetteville. The group acted through the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) after the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) declined its request to issue the ruling. SELC argues in its filing […]
Education & Resources: A Fresh Breeze for Wind Power
Education & Resources: A Fresh Breeze for Wind Power Once again, the breeze is fresh for wind power in North Carolina. A new report confirms that there’s no conflict between commercial wind farms and military activities. Read the commentary by wind energy advocate Katherine Collins of the Southeastern Wind Coalition here. A controversial legislatively imposed moratorium […]
