BILL POTEAT
Alligator weed won t eat chickens, cats, or small dogs, but it can put a hurting on Gaston County lakes and rivers.
Think about it as kudzu on the water - just as prolific in its growth and just as difficult to contain.
A century ago, the weed grew naturally only in the temperate regions of South America, including Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay.
But, due to its parasitic nature, it hitched a ride aboard a cargo ship or two and has since become established across the southeastern United States, including in the waters of the South Fork, the Catawba, and Lake Wylie.
Active Energy disregards state rules (again), DEQ cites wood pellet plant for violations ncpolicywatch.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from ncpolicywatch.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Lawsuit Says Smithfield Biogas Project Must Fix Water Pollution And Environmental Injustices
On behalf of the Environmental Justice Community Action Network and Cape Fear River Watch, the Southern Environmental Law Center today challenged in the N.C. Office of Administrative Hearings four state permits for Smithfield-owned hog operations to use giant pits of untreated hog feces and urine to produce gas while spraying the harmful waste on surrounding areas, which continues a long history of water pollution and harm to the families – disproportionately Black and Brown people – living nearby.
“The law requires Smithfield to use cleaner technology, and Smithfield is not above the law,” said Blakely Hildebrand, attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center. “Smithfield must do more to stop its pollution and continued environmental injustices rather than clinging to the cheapest, most harmful method possible to handle untreated sewage collecting it in pits and spraying it
State Rep. Pricey Harrison, a Democrat from Guilford County (Photo: NCGA)
All state agencies would have to consider environmental and public health justice when deciding on whether to approve publicly funded projects, according to a bill filed today by State Rep. Pricey Harrison, a Democrat from Guilford County. House Bill 784 would also require the agencies to deny permits for these projects if they would disproportionately burden low-income neighborhoods or communities of color that are protected by Title VI of the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Although many state agencies transportation, commerce, cultural and natural resources touch on environmental justice, the bill singles out the NC Department of Environmental Quality because its decisions most often affect these underserved communities.
Smoke from the Enviva plant fire in Sampson County (Photo courtesy Derb Carter, Southern Environmental Law Center)
A fire broke out Friday afternoon at an Enviva wood pellet plant with an extensive history of environmental violations, sending thick clouds of smoke across Interstate 40. A pile of raw wood at a facility in Faison, in Sampson County, caught fire. In a statement, the company said it was investigating the cause. According to TV media reports, the fire, whipped by strong winds, also spread to a nearby woods. More than 50 firefighters, as well as the NC Forestry Service, were on the scene. No one was injured.