Everyone's encountered it in one form or another. In cyberspace these days, you can't pick up a cookie without running into a shadowy pocket of it, intruding on your internet experience like so much salt and bready table crumbs.
This creature has its hands in every online cookie jar. It's expanded to the point that even the brightly lit central byways and forums of the internet have noticed the creeping infestation and begun to implement preventative measures.
I'm speaking, of course, of the faceless, motherless, many-tentacled monster of internet anonymity. Seen most often in comments on YouTube or news articles, this apparition presents itself as an angry, overtly bigoted polemic on whatever issue is in vogue.
(By that I only mean whatever is most topical; I often find Vogue to be sorely lacking in coverage of these types of pertinent issues.)
And while this infestation has thus far proven to be a substantial obstacle to civil cyber discourse, it is a beast with many different sides — and not all of them are wholly negative. In fact, some of them might be manifestly positive.
Now I won't try to redeem that modern experiment we call "trolling," where real people spend their time gallivanting through the internet like a 20th century Russian composer, concerned only with provoking a swift, visceral response from those they encounter.
But outside of these trolls — and those pseudo-trolls who are actually sincerely expressing their unsavory perspectives — there are others who use this impersonalized force for good.
Without fear of social retribution, those others are free to say those things and ask those questions that are normally silenced by acculturated taboos.
Wandering through Yahoo Answers, it's clear that the principal benefactors of this are middle school boys curious about "How long is long enough?" But there are many less grossly pubescent things that people ask that they otherwise wouldn't be able to.
Is it okay if I shower with my cousin?
Does baby powder smell bad?
Do all toenails smell like poop when you cut them, or am I gross?
All real, important questions that people would otherwise have to bottle up inside. That's only the lighthearted beginning — when asking these questions makes people feel a little more confident and secure in themselves, protecting them from a little inconvenience and embarrassment.
But for every 20-year-old college male who wants to find out if he's using soap right, there's another individual who desperately needs to know there are others like him out there, that he is not alone.
Whether he's dealing with abuse of any sort or a nascent mental illness, this anonymity helps him feel comfortable sharing — potentially giving him a safe path out of silence and stigmatized repression.
Might this be worth a troll or two?
http://www.dailytarheel.com/article/2013/01/comfort-in-the-nameless-mob
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Monday, December 31, 2012
If you can't hide the hate, drown it out (Campus BluePrint Winter 2012 Online editorial)
The Chapel Hill Town Council has finally made a decision on the town's bus advertising policy, ruling to allow political ads and marking the conflict as a victory for freedom of expression and the public marketplace of ideas.
Expression of all opinions is allowed, but ads cannot be false, misleading, deceptive or disrespectful. This is noble, but chances are, it won't last.
These new restrictions definitively rule out the American Freedom Defense Initiative's strongly worded pro-Israel ad, but AFDI director Pamela Geller has already demonstrated that she won't give up easily.
"In any war between the civilized man and the savage, support the civilized man. Support Israel; defeat Jihad," reads the AFDI's ad. The ad comes across as dehumanizing and incredibly demeaning toward the entire nation of Palestine -- not to mention the Islamic faith as a whole -- and Geller has made it clear she will sue the town if she isn't allowed to run the ad in response to an ad she claims is anti-Semitic.
Based on common interpretation of the First Amendment and precedents set in other states, Geller will likely get her way. Chapel Hill's local government and media seem oblivious to this same battle taking place outside North Carolina, but the AFDI ad has already been prominently featured on public transportation in Washington D.C., San Francisco, and New York City.
Geller had to take legal action to run it in New York and Washington D.C., but the courts did not stop her. If she does the same here, as she said she will, then Chapel Hill's rule against "disrespectful" ads will likely be brushed aside as a well-meaning but thoroughly unconstitutional attempt at maintaining civil discourse.
So where do we go from there? Must divisive and "disrespectful" perspectives simply be tolerated? Should the bus advertising policy be modified yet again, removing political speech from buses and sheltering citizens from opinions they might not agree with?
The community should take this opportunity to participate in the public forum that's been created. More organizations should take a stand and let Geller and the local community know what they believe in.
One portion of the community that especially needs to make itself heard is the Jewish population. When the first ad was put on buses by the local Church of Reconciliation, it was treated as if it was uniformly offensive to all people of Jewish faith or descent, but no one has seen fit to mention that the ad was produced with input from a wide interfaith community, including local organization Jews for a Just Peace NC.
"Join with us," said the ad that started the controversy. "Build peace with justice and equality; end U.S. military aid to Israel." The ad shows Israeli Jeff Halper and Palestinian Salim Shawamreh, each holding their children. The ad could be construed as offering a potentially callous decision to a complicated and admittedly problematic conflict, but to see it as anti-Semitic is simply irrational, especially considering the real story behind the ad.
Halper, an Israeli Jew and Nobel Peace Prize nominee, is the founder of the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions, which works to preserve and rebuild Palestinian houses in the occupied territories after they've been destroyed by Israeli forces. Halper and his organization have rebuilt Salim Shawamreh's house five times already, and they plan to continue doing so until it stays standing for Shawamreh and his family.
Just like Halper and Jews for a Just Peace NC, we should all seize this opportunity to join with the Church of Reconciliation and send an overwhelming message of peace, drowning out Geller and the AFDI's hateful, one-sided rhetoric.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/117416616/Campus-BluePrint-Winter-2012-Online
Expression of all opinions is allowed, but ads cannot be false, misleading, deceptive or disrespectful. This is noble, but chances are, it won't last.
These new restrictions definitively rule out the American Freedom Defense Initiative's strongly worded pro-Israel ad, but AFDI director Pamela Geller has already demonstrated that she won't give up easily.
"In any war between the civilized man and the savage, support the civilized man. Support Israel; defeat Jihad," reads the AFDI's ad. The ad comes across as dehumanizing and incredibly demeaning toward the entire nation of Palestine -- not to mention the Islamic faith as a whole -- and Geller has made it clear she will sue the town if she isn't allowed to run the ad in response to an ad she claims is anti-Semitic.
Based on common interpretation of the First Amendment and precedents set in other states, Geller will likely get her way. Chapel Hill's local government and media seem oblivious to this same battle taking place outside North Carolina, but the AFDI ad has already been prominently featured on public transportation in Washington D.C., San Francisco, and New York City.
Geller had to take legal action to run it in New York and Washington D.C., but the courts did not stop her. If she does the same here, as she said she will, then Chapel Hill's rule against "disrespectful" ads will likely be brushed aside as a well-meaning but thoroughly unconstitutional attempt at maintaining civil discourse.
So where do we go from there? Must divisive and "disrespectful" perspectives simply be tolerated? Should the bus advertising policy be modified yet again, removing political speech from buses and sheltering citizens from opinions they might not agree with?
The community should take this opportunity to participate in the public forum that's been created. More organizations should take a stand and let Geller and the local community know what they believe in.
One portion of the community that especially needs to make itself heard is the Jewish population. When the first ad was put on buses by the local Church of Reconciliation, it was treated as if it was uniformly offensive to all people of Jewish faith or descent, but no one has seen fit to mention that the ad was produced with input from a wide interfaith community, including local organization Jews for a Just Peace NC.
"Join with us," said the ad that started the controversy. "Build peace with justice and equality; end U.S. military aid to Israel." The ad shows Israeli Jeff Halper and Palestinian Salim Shawamreh, each holding their children. The ad could be construed as offering a potentially callous decision to a complicated and admittedly problematic conflict, but to see it as anti-Semitic is simply irrational, especially considering the real story behind the ad.
Halper, an Israeli Jew and Nobel Peace Prize nominee, is the founder of the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions, which works to preserve and rebuild Palestinian houses in the occupied territories after they've been destroyed by Israeli forces. Halper and his organization have rebuilt Salim Shawamreh's house five times already, and they plan to continue doing so until it stays standing for Shawamreh and his family.
Just like Halper and Jews for a Just Peace NC, we should all seize this opportunity to join with the Church of Reconciliation and send an overwhelming message of peace, drowning out Geller and the AFDI's hateful, one-sided rhetoric.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/117416616/Campus-BluePrint-Winter-2012-Online
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Renewable energy in North Carolina: Waiting on the winds of change (Campus BluePrint December 2012)
It should no longer be a surprise to hear that North Carolina has the highest potential for wind energy in the southeast or that the largest wind resource on the East Coast sits just past the shores of the Outer Banks; this certainly isn't news to the energy industry.
The state's substantial wind resources have been common knowledge for years, but the question remains: where are all the wind turbines? Small turbines have popped up at various schools, businesses and homes, but there is not even a trace of any kind of large-scale wind energy development anywhere in the state.
Not for lack of effort, however, as several larger projects have been planned, but they have taken far longer than expected for any to get off the ground. One 49-turbine wind farm, the Pantego Wind Energy project, has run into problems first with environmentalists, who were concerned about risks for migratory birds in the area, and secondly with the Air Force, who contend that the wind turbines could interfere with radar and jets flying on practice runs through the area.
Another major problem is that neither the Pantego Wind Energy project nor the Desert Wind Energy project, which is to include 150 turbines and cover 31 square miles in Pasquotank and Perquimans counties, has yet to successfully negotiate a price with any of the major utilities in North Carolina who could feasibly buy the electricity generated.
Beyond the coast and offshore resources, the mountains of North Carolina are also windy enough to be excellent sources of energy. Large-scale wind development there, however, has been thoroughly limited by the Mountain Ridge Protection Act of 1983, which prohibited visible "tall buildings or structures" 40 feet or taller on mountain ridges in North Carolina.
The act provides an exception for thinner structures like windmills, but it is widely believed that wind turbines are not covered by the exception, and that possibility has been enough to deter any large-scale wind manufacturer from investing in the area.
Besides the lack of interest or investment on the part of the more prominent power companies, the central issues stalling the wind industry have been political.
The federal subsidies that make wind energy substantially more tenable, such as the Production Tax Credit, are also set to expire at the end of 2012, and the wind industry as a whole has contracted in anticipation. The American Wind Energy Association predicted 37,000 Americans employed in the renewable energy industry would lose their jobs by early 2013 if the tax credit is not renewed, and energy producer NRG went so far as to put its entire wind development sector on hold in early 2012 until the industry regains strength and stability.
The North Carolina Offshore Wind Coalition currently estimates that no actual offshore wind energy production is likely prior to 2017 or 2018. Even if economic and bureaucratic barriers continue to slow down development, the fact remains that wind energy has the potential to be a tremendous source of carbon-neutral revenue, and jobs. Wind is a logical and feasible component of the state's energy future; the only question is how long it will take to reap the benefits it offers.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/116582765/Campus-BluePrint-Fall-2012-Issue-3
The state's substantial wind resources have been common knowledge for years, but the question remains: where are all the wind turbines? Small turbines have popped up at various schools, businesses and homes, but there is not even a trace of any kind of large-scale wind energy development anywhere in the state.
Not for lack of effort, however, as several larger projects have been planned, but they have taken far longer than expected for any to get off the ground. One 49-turbine wind farm, the Pantego Wind Energy project, has run into problems first with environmentalists, who were concerned about risks for migratory birds in the area, and secondly with the Air Force, who contend that the wind turbines could interfere with radar and jets flying on practice runs through the area.
Another major problem is that neither the Pantego Wind Energy project nor the Desert Wind Energy project, which is to include 150 turbines and cover 31 square miles in Pasquotank and Perquimans counties, has yet to successfully negotiate a price with any of the major utilities in North Carolina who could feasibly buy the electricity generated.
Beyond the coast and offshore resources, the mountains of North Carolina are also windy enough to be excellent sources of energy. Large-scale wind development there, however, has been thoroughly limited by the Mountain Ridge Protection Act of 1983, which prohibited visible "tall buildings or structures" 40 feet or taller on mountain ridges in North Carolina.
The act provides an exception for thinner structures like windmills, but it is widely believed that wind turbines are not covered by the exception, and that possibility has been enough to deter any large-scale wind manufacturer from investing in the area.
Besides the lack of interest or investment on the part of the more prominent power companies, the central issues stalling the wind industry have been political.
The federal subsidies that make wind energy substantially more tenable, such as the Production Tax Credit, are also set to expire at the end of 2012, and the wind industry as a whole has contracted in anticipation. The American Wind Energy Association predicted 37,000 Americans employed in the renewable energy industry would lose their jobs by early 2013 if the tax credit is not renewed, and energy producer NRG went so far as to put its entire wind development sector on hold in early 2012 until the industry regains strength and stability.
The North Carolina Offshore Wind Coalition currently estimates that no actual offshore wind energy production is likely prior to 2017 or 2018. Even if economic and bureaucratic barriers continue to slow down development, the fact remains that wind energy has the potential to be a tremendous source of carbon-neutral revenue, and jobs. Wind is a logical and feasible component of the state's energy future; the only question is how long it will take to reap the benefits it offers.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/116582765/Campus-BluePrint-Fall-2012-Issue-3
Mike Tyson Thinks He's on Law and Order, Maybe (Bounce Magazine Vol. 13 Issue 2 December 2012)
Mike Tyson, grizzled boxer and veteran of a thousand and one punches in the head, made an appearance at a benefit for Breast Cancer research Friday, professing throughout the 4-hour course of the event his belief in the cause and the redemptive power of justice.
Tyson, who exists in a perpetual state of concussion, arrived at the convention center dressed for a title match and spent most of the event wandering between the stage and the little table in the corner with the shrimp cocktail, questioning those he ran into about their right to an attorney.
The man known throughout the world for biting a man's ear off 15 years ago was seen earlier in the evening mumbling to himself about DNA evidence, or bears maybe. The diaper-changing tables in both of the convention center's bathrooms were found out in the parking lot later that night, bent into a crude approximation of a hexagon and sheltering a dead cat.
Evidence suggests that Tyson, finding himself without chalk, had chosen to outline the expired feline's corpse with baby powder, leaving a trail of it around the perimeter of the lot.
A desperate tweet from his handler earlier in the day said that Tyson had gone missing, and was likely to be late for his weekly dentist appointment. He believed the former undisputed heavyweight champion may have wandered off in search of a chili dog, and he asked that whoever might find him would kindly point him toward home and avoid causing undue stress to his jaw and/or brain pan.
He also recommended steering away from any discussion relating to breakfast or criminal prosecution.
Tyson, for his part, was firm in his support of the fundraiser, which he seemed to believe was some kind of "center for AIDS tiger rehabilation [sic]," or possibly a Bar Mitzvah.
"They got any pig in a blanket left?" Tyson asked, not so much dodging questions about his concern for breast cancer as stumbling blindly by them completely unfazed, mumbling something about hepatitis and leading the witness.
For the most part Tyson was ignored, but there came a tense moment when he stopped on stage and demanded the speaker spit up what she knew about eggs and a homicide. However, he might also have been talking about Iron Man.
The contention passed after Tyson seemed to lose his already tragically undermanned train of thought. He grew quiet and then wandered down the hall to pee in the water fountain.
As the slightly perturbed guests filed out of the building at the end of the night, Tyson was observed power-walking toward the dumpster at the back of the building, muttering something about Ice T and CSI.
"Fingerprints and semen stains," Tyson lisped quizzically as he loped away.
Tyson, who exists in a perpetual state of concussion, arrived at the convention center dressed for a title match and spent most of the event wandering between the stage and the little table in the corner with the shrimp cocktail, questioning those he ran into about their right to an attorney.
The man known throughout the world for biting a man's ear off 15 years ago was seen earlier in the evening mumbling to himself about DNA evidence, or bears maybe. The diaper-changing tables in both of the convention center's bathrooms were found out in the parking lot later that night, bent into a crude approximation of a hexagon and sheltering a dead cat.
Evidence suggests that Tyson, finding himself without chalk, had chosen to outline the expired feline's corpse with baby powder, leaving a trail of it around the perimeter of the lot.
A desperate tweet from his handler earlier in the day said that Tyson had gone missing, and was likely to be late for his weekly dentist appointment. He believed the former undisputed heavyweight champion may have wandered off in search of a chili dog, and he asked that whoever might find him would kindly point him toward home and avoid causing undue stress to his jaw and/or brain pan.
He also recommended steering away from any discussion relating to breakfast or criminal prosecution.
Tyson, for his part, was firm in his support of the fundraiser, which he seemed to believe was some kind of "center for AIDS tiger rehabilation [sic]," or possibly a Bar Mitzvah.
"They got any pig in a blanket left?" Tyson asked, not so much dodging questions about his concern for breast cancer as stumbling blindly by them completely unfazed, mumbling something about hepatitis and leading the witness.
For the most part Tyson was ignored, but there came a tense moment when he stopped on stage and demanded the speaker spit up what she knew about eggs and a homicide. However, he might also have been talking about Iron Man.
The contention passed after Tyson seemed to lose his already tragically undermanned train of thought. He grew quiet and then wandered down the hall to pee in the water fountain.
As the slightly perturbed guests filed out of the building at the end of the night, Tyson was observed power-walking toward the dumpster at the back of the building, muttering something about Ice T and CSI.
"Fingerprints and semen stains," Tyson lisped quizzically as he loped away.
The Curious Case of the Mormon in the Daytime (Bounce Magazine Vol. 13 Issue 2 December 2012)
More than a month after the election, America collectively looked back over the events of the political race and election and said, "Wait, who's that white guy with the shit-eating grin and the dyed hair who looks like he wants to sell my family?"
Apparently suffering from some kind of self-imposed cultural amnesia, America was unable to identify the courteous automaton who had inexplicably found his way onto the political stage.
"It's like watching one of those really surreal movies where everything is twisted but people act like it's totally normal," America said, rubbing its eyes in disbelief. "How did he get up there? Why don't I remember him?" America asked.
"Does he even have pupils? I can't tell. I think he wants to cry though," said America, watching old debate footage like it was one of those home movies from before you remember where you suddenly have a creepy Uncle Ted for a few scenes.
"Is this a joke? It doesn't even look like he wants to be there," America said. "Where the hell was I when this happened?"
Visibly distressed, America got up to call a couple of allies and corroborate the unreal events of the last year. The nation went silent as the United Kingdom gave its account of the election.
Like the obliviously hungover man told of the incredible series of events from the night before, America's face faded first from bemused disbelief to shock, and then finally through shame and remorse to a quiet acceptance.
Apparently suffering from some kind of self-imposed cultural amnesia, America was unable to identify the courteous automaton who had inexplicably found his way onto the political stage.
"It's like watching one of those really surreal movies where everything is twisted but people act like it's totally normal," America said, rubbing its eyes in disbelief. "How did he get up there? Why don't I remember him?" America asked.
"Does he even have pupils? I can't tell. I think he wants to cry though," said America, watching old debate footage like it was one of those home movies from before you remember where you suddenly have a creepy Uncle Ted for a few scenes.
"Is this a joke? It doesn't even look like he wants to be there," America said. "Where the hell was I when this happened?"
Visibly distressed, America got up to call a couple of allies and corroborate the unreal events of the last year. The nation went silent as the United Kingdom gave its account of the election.
Like the obliviously hungover man told of the incredible series of events from the night before, America's face faded first from bemused disbelief to shock, and then finally through shame and remorse to a quiet acceptance.
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Stand-Alone Headline Tickers (Bounce Magazine Vol.13 Issue 1 & 2 - Fall 2012)
Vol. 13 Issue 1
Pope Benedict XVI excommunicates neighbor's bull terrier
AP News: Ukuleles no longer quirky or unique
Study shows smoking weed and talking to your cat good for your heart
PBR: Now made with real Americans
Vol. 13 Issue 2
War on Christmas escalates: four new elf civilian casualties reported
Junior's life-changing study abroad experience reduced to series of alcohol blackouts
Lady Gaga takes stand against child labor, wears Nigerian infant to Grammys
Radical gay Muslim atheists already regretting vote for Obama
Pope Benedict XVI excommunicates neighbor's bull terrier
AP News: Ukuleles no longer quirky or unique
Study shows smoking weed and talking to your cat good for your heart
PBR: Now made with real Americans
Vol. 13 Issue 2
War on Christmas escalates: four new elf civilian casualties reported
Junior's life-changing study abroad experience reduced to series of alcohol blackouts
Lady Gaga takes stand against child labor, wears Nigerian infant to Grammys
Radical gay Muslim atheists already regretting vote for Obama
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Coal ash leak: Environmentalists ask Duke and Progress to clean up mess (Mother Nature Network Blog November 2012, Campus BluePrint Blog November 2012)
Several North Carolina environmental groups recently asked the state to reexamine current legislation and tighten restrictions on coal ash disposal, saying that many storage sites have been leaking toxic substances and contaminating local groundwater for decades, constituting a major threat to public and environmental health.
The Southern Environmental Law Center filed the request with the N.C. Environmental Management Commission on Oct. 10, citing several sites where they said the commission should require corrective action. The Commission met to discuss the request on Nov. 8.
"All of North Carolina's ash ponds that have monitoring wells and test data are showing that they're leaking heavy metals in the groundwater," said Donna Lisenby, member of the Waterkeeper Alliance, one of the conservation organizations involved in making the request.
These toxic chemicals are being found in concentrations far exceeding typical state standards at 14 coal ash ponds across the state, Lisenby said in an interview. She said environmentalists have met with the commission three times in the past, but no action has been taken yet. "This has been going on for years," she said.
Lisenby said this is a serious problem because coal ash can cause serious health problems by spreading to the air, wells and surface water.
Kelly Martin, representative of the Beyond Coal campaign for the Sierra Club in North Carolina, said, "The chemicals that are in coal ash have the potential to harm every organ in our bodies if ingested." They can also damage aquatic wildlife by getting into creeks and streams, she said in an interview.
Martin said the operators of the ponds, Duke Energy and Progress Energy, and the state are all aware of the pollution, but they haven't done anything. "I think the state should require each facility to clean up the coal ash ponds."
Lisenby said the government has always been lenient with its regulation of the coal industry. "[The Waterkeeper Alliance] in North Carolina wants the utility industry to have to play by the same rules as everyone else," she said.
Duke denies claims of preferential treatment
Spokeswoman Erin Culbert for Duke Energy said the groups filing the request are exaggerating and oversimplifying the data. "In typical fashion, these organizations draw health conclusions that are not based in fact and well overstate the risks to communities from coal ash storage," Culbert said in an email interview.
Culbert said that the utilities have worked extensively with the state to monitor pollution. "Duke Energy and Progress Energy have been sampling groundwater around their ash basins for years, and all that data have been reported to state regulators along the way," she said.
Culbert said that many of the exceedances involve only chemicals like iron and manganese, which aren't toxic, and the high concentrations often aren't the fault of the utility industry. "These constituents often occur naturally at elevated levels independent of any influence by ash basins," she said.
"It's also important to note that an exceedance at or near the ash basin does not mean groundwater off the site has been or would be impacted," Culbert said. If an increase in these chemicals was found in local groundwater away from the individual sites, the companies would work with the state to resolve the problem, she said.
"Duke Energy continues to be committed to managing coal ash responsibly at all our plants," Culbert said.
Martin said new coal ash facilities in North Carolina are allowed to contaminate groundwater within a certain boundary, but old sites are supposed to clean up and eliminate the source of pollution if contaminants are found in the groundwater at the ash basin itself.
"The state has been treating [these coal ash basins] as if they are newer facilities," Martin said. "Most of them were built when the coal-fired power plants were built back in the 1960s."
Martin said the purpose of the complaint with the commission is to make the commission look closer at the law and clarify its position.
"It is high time for Duke and Progress to take responsibility for the contamination and for the threat they're posing to our health and our communities and clean up the coal ash ponds," Martin said.
The Commission voted at the November meeting to hold a full public hearing on the issue in Raleigh on Dec. 3.
Environmentalists Want Duke and Progress to Clean up Their Mess
http://campusblueprint.com/2012/11/08/environmentalists-want-duke-and-progress-to-clean-up-their-mess/
Coal ash leak: Environmentalists ask Duke and Progress to clean up mess:
Green organizations want utilities to address groundwater contamination around coal ash sites in North Carolina
http://www.mnn.com/local-reports/north-carolina/local-blog/coal-ash-leak-environmentalists-ask-duke-and-progress-to-cle
The Southern Environmental Law Center filed the request with the N.C. Environmental Management Commission on Oct. 10, citing several sites where they said the commission should require corrective action. The Commission met to discuss the request on Nov. 8.
"All of North Carolina's ash ponds that have monitoring wells and test data are showing that they're leaking heavy metals in the groundwater," said Donna Lisenby, member of the Waterkeeper Alliance, one of the conservation organizations involved in making the request.
These toxic chemicals are being found in concentrations far exceeding typical state standards at 14 coal ash ponds across the state, Lisenby said in an interview. She said environmentalists have met with the commission three times in the past, but no action has been taken yet. "This has been going on for years," she said.
Lisenby said this is a serious problem because coal ash can cause serious health problems by spreading to the air, wells and surface water.
Kelly Martin, representative of the Beyond Coal campaign for the Sierra Club in North Carolina, said, "The chemicals that are in coal ash have the potential to harm every organ in our bodies if ingested." They can also damage aquatic wildlife by getting into creeks and streams, she said in an interview.
Martin said the operators of the ponds, Duke Energy and Progress Energy, and the state are all aware of the pollution, but they haven't done anything. "I think the state should require each facility to clean up the coal ash ponds."
Lisenby said the government has always been lenient with its regulation of the coal industry. "[The Waterkeeper Alliance] in North Carolina wants the utility industry to have to play by the same rules as everyone else," she said.
Duke denies claims of preferential treatment
Spokeswoman Erin Culbert for Duke Energy said the groups filing the request are exaggerating and oversimplifying the data. "In typical fashion, these organizations draw health conclusions that are not based in fact and well overstate the risks to communities from coal ash storage," Culbert said in an email interview.
Culbert said that the utilities have worked extensively with the state to monitor pollution. "Duke Energy and Progress Energy have been sampling groundwater around their ash basins for years, and all that data have been reported to state regulators along the way," she said.
Culbert said that many of the exceedances involve only chemicals like iron and manganese, which aren't toxic, and the high concentrations often aren't the fault of the utility industry. "These constituents often occur naturally at elevated levels independent of any influence by ash basins," she said.
"It's also important to note that an exceedance at or near the ash basin does not mean groundwater off the site has been or would be impacted," Culbert said. If an increase in these chemicals was found in local groundwater away from the individual sites, the companies would work with the state to resolve the problem, she said.
"Duke Energy continues to be committed to managing coal ash responsibly at all our plants," Culbert said.
Martin said new coal ash facilities in North Carolina are allowed to contaminate groundwater within a certain boundary, but old sites are supposed to clean up and eliminate the source of pollution if contaminants are found in the groundwater at the ash basin itself.
"The state has been treating [these coal ash basins] as if they are newer facilities," Martin said. "Most of them were built when the coal-fired power plants were built back in the 1960s."
Martin said the purpose of the complaint with the commission is to make the commission look closer at the law and clarify its position.
"It is high time for Duke and Progress to take responsibility for the contamination and for the threat they're posing to our health and our communities and clean up the coal ash ponds," Martin said.
The Commission voted at the November meeting to hold a full public hearing on the issue in Raleigh on Dec. 3.
Environmentalists Want Duke and Progress to Clean up Their Mess
http://campusblueprint.com/2012/11/08/environmentalists-want-duke-and-progress-to-clean-up-their-mess/
Coal ash leak: Environmentalists ask Duke and Progress to clean up mess:
Green organizations want utilities to address groundwater contamination around coal ash sites in North Carolina
http://www.mnn.com/local-reports/north-carolina/local-blog/coal-ash-leak-environmentalists-ask-duke-and-progress-to-cle
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