Cleveland Co. residents feel requests for clean water ignored by Duke

CLEVELAND COUNTY, N.C. — Residents outside Cliffside in Cleveland County say they feel their requests for clean water have fallen on deaf ears.

Residents said the power giant refuses to clean up coal ash from three ponds at the James E. Rogers Energy Complex.

A Duke spokesperson said the company has already finished cleaning out those basins, but residents said their water is still contaminated.

Last month, Channel 9 reported neighbors living near coal ash ponds will have to wait even longer for information about permanent drinking water because a state panel investigating the coal ash created three months ago still does not have enough members.

State law requires Duke to provide either new water lines or filtration systems by next October.

Cox Media Group