A coal ash spill is quickly cleaned up, but community leaders are still concerned.
Duke Energy has confirmed to GoldsboroDailyNews.com that approximately 150 tons of processed coal ash left a storage dome at the former H.F. Lee Plant in Goldsboro on March 23rd.
A seal on a door reportedly came loose allowing the processed material to escape.
Duke Energy calls it a “minor incident” and says all of the material remained on the plant’s property while it was cleaned up.
Bobby Jones with the Down East Coal Ash Coalition and Goldsboro Resiliency Hub says he wants Duke Energy to provide better updates for the community in the event of such incidents.
Jones brought the coal ash spill to the attention of the Wayne County Board of Commissioners this week, though, at the time, few details of the incident were known.
He says the public needs to have the necessary information so everyone can decide how to protect themselves.
Duke Energy says it has since informed the county leaders of the incident.
As a courtesy, Duke Energy says it notified the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality.
Duke Energy also the site was shut down during the cleanup, and the public and environment remained protected during the incident.
Duke Energy reopened the former coal-fired H.F. Lee Plant in October of 2020 to recycle the 6 million tons of coal ash remaining the facility.
The facility processes the coal ash to remove the carbon, turning it into a product that can be used in construction materials.
