The Colon Mine is five miles north of Sanford; under a recent settlement, the former clay mine will not receive coal ash, as previously permitted. (Map: DEQ)
Coal ash will not be disposed of in a former clay mine in Lee County, according to a settlement between three environmental groups, Charah, Inc., and the NC Department of Environmental Quality.
After a five-year legal battle, Charah has agreed that it would not deposit ash in the Colon mine, five miles north of Sanford, in Lee County. The state had originally permitted Charah to put 8 million tons of coal ash on the 411-acre site.