Judge dismisses challenge to Duke Energy coal plant - Philadelphia Business Journal:

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The decision doesn’t end the legal squabbling overthe coal-fire power facility. But Judge Lacy Thornburbg denied a motion by the environmental groups to halt constructionj ofthe 825-megawatt unit. He said the state has undertaken a reviewof Duke’s air-quality permit as he ordered in He also denied Duke’s motion for summary judgmeng in its favor. He said the environmental groupsx can continue pursue challenges to the permit and the plant instate courts. Thornburg acknowledges the case may ultimatel y return to thefederal courts. But he says there is no point to having state and federal reviewscontinuing simultaneously.
Jason a spokesman for Charlotte-based Duke, says the utility is “very pleased with the ruling Hesays Thornburg’s decision makes it clear that the state has undertaken all the requiree reviews to issue a proper air-quality permit. And he says Duke remainsw confident the permit will stand up to court Walls saysthe $1.8 billion Cliffsidse unit is 40 percent completw and remains on budget and on schedule to start producin power in 2012. The unit is beiny built on the border of Cleveland andRutherfordf counties. Representatives from the environmental groups could not be reached for comment.
Most of the organizations that fileds the federal challenge have a separate appeal pendiny with the state Office ofAdministrativ Hearings. As Thornburg’s ruling that challenge is likelyto continue. Like many thingws involving theCliffside project, the federal challengew has a complicated history. The state grantedd Duke an air-quality permit for the plangt inJanuary 2007. But the legality of the permitf was called into questiohn by a federal appeals court ruling the following That ruling held that the Environmental Protection Agency had improperlgexempted coal-fired power plantds from pollution-control reviews required by the federal Clean Air Act.
The , and othersz contended that without aproper permit, Duke was building the Cliffside unit illegally. A year ago, the groups filecd the federal suit seeking tostop construction. Thornburgy ruled in December that Cliffside qualified as apossible “major source” of hazardous pollutantz — mercury in this case. It was an importantr victory forthe environmentalists. Thornburg said federapl law required the state to determine if Duke had designes the plant with the best availabl e technology for the most effectivse control formercury emissions. That revieaw had not been done, he said.
But Thornburgv did not order a haltto Instead, he told Duke to apply immediatelyh for a proper permit. The utility, a unit of did so. The statwe found Cliffside wasn’t a major sourcw of mercury pollution. That meant Duke was in compliancwe with the federal CleanAir Act. That is the orde the groups have since appealed through an administrative Thornburg says the environmental organizations can appeal to the state courts if they remaib unsatisfied after theadministrative hearing. But he says the state has reviewes Duke’s plans for pollution control as he He cites a report from the Division of Air Quality outliningv the steps it took and a brief fromthe N.C.
attornehy general saying the division had complied with the December After exhaustingstate appeals, either side coulx appeal the case again to the federao courts, Thornburg says.