EPA, Duke Energy reach agreement about cleanup of February coal ash spill into Dan River

The Environmental Protection Agency and Duke Energy reached an agreement Thursday about cleanup of the 39,000 tons of coal ash spilled in February into the Dan River, Bruce Henderson reports for the Charlotte Observer. "The agreement covers continued monitoring of the river, removal of ash and assessments once the work is done. It sets timelines for Duke to submit work plans but does not include an overall deadline to finish the work."

"The settlement, filed under the federal Superfund hazardous-sites law, allows the EPA to seek penalties of $1,000 to $8,000 a day if Duke’s work doesn’t follow its conditions," Henderson writes. If EPA has to take over the cleanup, Duke will pay $500,000. Duke also agreed to pay the agency’s costs of responding to the spill, which are currently about $1 million. (Read more)