Coal is one of our country’s most plentiful and affordable energy sources. Coal-fired power plants supply about 50 percent of the electricity used by Progress Energy’s customers in the Carolinas and about 40 percent of the energy used by customers in Florida.

In the process of generating electricity, coal-fired plants also generate coal-combustion products. As part of our ongoing commitment to the environment, we seek to handle these products in the safest, most responsible manner possible, either through storage or beneficial use.

• View this handout for an overview of coal-combustion products at Progress Energy.

Coal Ash

One of the most common coal-combustion products is ash. When coal is burned to generate electricity, the non-combustible minerals remain as coal ash. Most of this ash is very light and much of it would go up a smoke stack if not removed by air pollution control equipment at the plant. It has the consistency of fine powder and contains materials found in the earth’s crust.

Coal ash is moved from the power plant to either an ash pond, where it settles, or into a dry-storage system. Progress Energy Carolinas has nine active wet storage facilities (ash ponds) and one active dry storage facility. Progress Energy Florida has one active dry storage facility.

There are several beneficial reuses for coal ash. For example, it is used in the production of concrete and many other consumer products, such as paints, automobile brake pads and bowling balls.

• View a fact sheet on coal ash from the Utilities Solid Waste Activities Group.

Q: Is coal ash a hazardous waste?

A: After nearly 20 years of study, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency concluded in 2000 that coal ash is not a hazardous waste. Since that time, state regulations have become even more stringent, and in 2008, many state regulatory agencies reiterated the position that coal ash should be regulated as a non-hazardous waste. In 2009, the EPA announced that it would review coal ash regulations and, if needed, propose new rules by the end of the year.

• Additional Resource: Electric Power Research Institute’s Technical Brief:
  Is Coal Ash Toxic?  

Ash Ponds

Our ash ponds and landfills are operated in compliance with all local, state and federal environmental permitting regulations.

• View our Ash Pond FAQs for more information.

Structurally stable

On Dec. 21, 2008, an ash pond wall at the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Kingston Power Plant failed and released more than a billion gallons of fly ash and water. This tragic accident has brought increased attention on coal ash ponds around the country.

• All of our ash ponds have been inspected within the last 12 months and all are considered to be structurally sound. We monitor the structural integrity of its ash ponds and landfills on a monthly basis and third-party experts evaluate each ash pond on an annual basis. A major engineering inspection is completed every five years and the information is submitted to the N.C. Utilities Commission.
• The EPA conducted independent inspections of three of our plants and confirmed these ponds are structurally sound. We take these inspection reports seriously and are addressing every recommendation they contain.
  • View a statement on the EPA’s ratings for the Cape Fear Plant.
  • View a summary of our actions in response to the inspection reports.

Groundwater around ash ponds

We voluntarily monitor the groundwater around all active ash ponds on a regular basis to ensure the protection of public health and safety. The company has installed groundwater-monitoring wells around all active ash ponds and takes samples twice a year. We share the data with the appropriate state agencies.

• The company owns the majority of land around its active facilities and therefore, there are very few public or private groundwater wells or residents located near the ash ponds.
• Most of the constituents for which we monitor are non-toxic and do not have health-based drinking water standards associated with them. For example, in monitoring manganese, there is an aesthetics-based secondary drinking water standard for the smell and color of the water. There is no drinking water standard established for some other constituents, such as boron.
• View our Groundwater Fact Sheet for more information.
• View more information on the Upper Watauga Riverkeeper/Appalachian Voices report.

Related Resources

• U.S. EPA’s Coal Combustion Products Partnership 
• The American Coal Ash Association 
• The Utility Solid Waste Activities Group