"EPA Reaches Deal With Duke To Clean Dan River Coal Ash"

"RALEIGH, N.C. — Federal environmental officials said Thursday that they have reached a deal with Duke Energy to clean up its mess from a massive coal ash spill into the Dan River that coated 70 miles of the waterway in North Carolina and Virginia with toxic gray sludge.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced it had finalized an enforceable agreement with the nation's largest electricity company over the Feb. 2 spill that was triggered when a pipe collapsed at Duke's Dan River Steam Station.

EPA will oversee the cleanup in consultation with federal wildlife officials under provisions in the Superfund law. Duke will reimburse the federal government for its oversight costs, including those incurred in the emergency response to the spill."

Michael Biesecker and Mitch Weiss report for the Associated Press May 22, 2014.

SEE ALSO:

"Wrenching Political Change Comes To N.C., And Energy Is Part of the Struggle" (E&E Daily)

"Rural NC Sites Become Dumping Grounds for Unwanted Coal Ash" (Raleigh News & Observer)

"North Carolina Senate passes pro-fracking bill" (Aljazeera America)