The states of North Carolina and Virginia have joined with federal agencies to sue Duke Energy for the damages caused by the massive Dan River coal ash spill. 

Last weeks’ federal court legal filing was accompanied by a tentative settlement between the parties, including Duke, on liability and the scope of restoration needed. Those plans are to be more fully detailed in a series of upcoming public meetings.

Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) senior attorney Frank Holleman commented on the filing, “Even over five years later, the fallout from Duke Energy’s Dan River coal ash spill is not over. The complaint filed by the U.S. Department of Justice, North Carolina, and Virginia underscores once again the harm that Duke Energy inflicted upon North Carolina and Virginia when it illegally dumped thousands of tons of coal ash into the Dan River. Duke Energy admitted that it failed in cleaning up the river because it was unable to remove more than 90 percent of the ash that it dumped into the Dan River. This suit shows again that Duke Energy must remove all its coal ash from all its unlined riverfront pits in North Carolina so that we will never again have an ongoing tragedy like the Dan River catastrophe.”

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