Getting Our Day in Court
Our legal dispute against Alcoa’s 401 Water Quality Certification has begun. If you have been following the Yadkin Relicensing issue, you know that this case, pitting the Yadkin Riverkeeper (and Stanly County) against the NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources, could determine the fate of the Yadkin River for the next 50 years! This is the most important issue ever facing the Yadkin River.
The trial of Yadkin Riverkeeper and Stanly County vs. NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources began on Sept. 27 in Raleigh and will be in court for weeks. Dean Naujoks, the Yadkin Riverkeeper, said the major thrust of this case is that DENR’s Division of Water Quality did not exercise the full scope of its authority under the Clean Water Act when issuing a 401 water quality certification permit to Alcoa last year.
Judge Joe Webster confirmed the state “did not exercise the full scope of its jurisdiction when deciding certain water quality impacts” when he issued an injunction last year, blocking Alcoa from obtaining the 50 year federal license. The aluminum giant Alcoa is seeking the water quality permit as part of its re-licensing efforts to retain control over a 38-mile stretch of the Yadkin River that includes four hydroelectric dams at the High Rock, Tuckertown, Narrows and Falls reservoirs.
Charles D. Case, a lawyer for Alcoa, argued during a Sept. 10 hearing that the four hydroelectric dams do not have significant environmental impacts on the area and many state environmental regulations do not apply to the project because it is not new dam construction. “Alcoa shuttered its responsibility to the community when they shut down the Badin Works aluminum smelting facility at Badin Lake in 2002, leaving behind a toxic legacy.” Naujoks said. “Now Alcoa is suggesting they should not have to comply with Clean Water Act protections and address the numerous environmental damages they created, which is completely unacceptable to Yadkin Riverkeeper.”
Help us make Alcoa clean up its pollution! Please consider making a donation today to support Yadkin Riverkeeper’s campaign to reclaim the Yadkin River for the citizens of North Carolina and assist with legal expenses.
Read the Charlotte Observer's article: Alcoa's Fate On Yadkin River In Raleigh Judge's Hands
Read the Winston-Salem Journal article: Battle for control of Yadkin dams at critical point
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