A globally prominent expert on methane’s impacts on the climate is urging Governor Roy Cooper and Duke Energy CEO Lynn Good to lead a cooperative effort for North Carolina to help slow the global climate emergency. In a letter signed by 40 former EPA officials from this state, Dr. Drew Shindell said lessons from the ongoing pandemic and the cancelled Atlantic Coast fracked gas Pipeline (ACP) provide a critically important opportunity to spring forward to a more equitable and economically timely “new normal” while a return to business as usual could be disastrous.
See the Op-Ed Running in the N&O, Charlotte Observer, Durham Herald-Sun, NC Policy Watch, and the Fayetteville Observer
NC WARN News Releases
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Persistent Opposition to Duke Energy’s Rate Hikes as Hearings Approach — News Release from NC WARN
As a long-awaited hearing begins next Monday, attorneys for NC WARN and allies will firmly oppose Duke Energy’s request for yet another electricity rate hike even as the Utilities Commission’s Public Staff and other parties recently announced settlements with Duke on portions of the rate request.
See coverage by WFAE
Legal Action Challenges Duke Energy’s Buildout of Unapproved Gas-fired Power Units — News Release from NC WARN, Allies
Climate-justice groups filed a legal petition with the North Carolina Utilities Commission today asserting that Duke Energy — one of the top polluting U.S. utilities — is violating state law by quietly building large amounts of inefficient gas-burning capacity without commission approval.
See coverage of our petition in The Charlotte Business Journal
Toxic Legacy of Atlantic Coast Pipeline Requires State Investigation — News Release from NC WARN
The Atlantic Coast Pipeline was cancelled last week, but 80,000 large steel pipes have been stored improperly for over four years, posing an immediate risk of toxic air and water exposures to multiple communities and increasing the risk of a catastrophic gas explosion if the pipes are used at another project. That’s according to a report by a career state regulator being filed today with NC Department of Environmental Quality secretary Michael Regan.
Statement on ACP Cancellation by Duke, Dominion — News Release from NC WARN
Jubilation! We hope the cancellation of the $8 billion Atlantic Coast fracked gas pipeline will soon be followed by a move by both of these corporations to stop building gas-fired generation, and to begin replacing all existing coal- and gas-fired power with the cheaper, more reliable approach: renewables matched with storage and energy-saving and balancing programs.
Energy Democracy Leadership Institute Launches in Eastern NC — News Release
NC Climate Justice Collective and NC WARN launched a new collaborative project–the Energy Democracy Leadership Institute (EDLI)–on Saturday, June 27th. Debuting virtually, EDLI is an energy and climate justice grassroots organizing and leadership program. It will run for 6 months with an intergenerational and Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) cohort of emerging leaders from eastern North Carolina. The 8 counties represented are all counties where chronic disinvestment, climate disasters and pollution from energy corporations are pervasive issues.
Ethics Case on NC Senate Minority Leader Blue Moves Forward — News Release from NC WARN
State ethics investigators are moving forward on a complaint by NC WARN alleging an improper relationship between Duke Energy and Senate Minority Leader Dan Blue. The 2019 complaint says Blue was lead promoter of hotly contested – and ultimately failed – legislation sought by Duke Energy while his family law firm was suing 32 landowners to make way for the proposed Atlantic Coast fracked gas Pipeline.
Public Interest Groups Unite to Form Duke Energy Watchdog — News Release from Duke Energy Accountability Coalition
A coalition of public interest, social justice, watchdog and environmental groups are joining forces to hold Duke Energy, the largest investor-owned U.S. electric utility, accountable for its policies, which impact almost 8 million Americans in six states – and by extension, impede the nation’s progress toward a clean energy future.
NEW REPORT: Former Energy Exec Warns Dominion, Duke Investors to Abandon High-risk Gas Pipeline — News Release from Friends of the Earth and NC WARN
An analysis by former energy executive Thomas Hadwin released today shows that rapidly changing energy markets, new legislation in Virginia, a surplus of gas across the region, and climate impacts of fracked gas are among the reasons Dominion Energy and Duke Energy should stop trying to build the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP).
Duke Energy Reaps Windfall While Fighting Business Request for Relief during Corona Crisis — News Release from NC WARN
Industry, governments, schools, are paying thousands for services they aren’t getting – a “double whammy” for workers and “financial cascade” for state economy Manufacturers across North Carolina are seeking temporary power-bill relief for services not being received by a host of business, government and nonprofit facilities during the coronavirus crisis. …