Published:
State Directs Environmental Review Commission to Study Impacts of Granting Alcoa a 50-Year License for Control of the Yadkin River, Allows All Available Options To Be Examined
RALEIGH, N.C., July 18 /PRNewswire/ -- The N.C. Water Rights Committee
(www.ncwaterrights.org) is commending both chambers of the North Carolina
General Assembly for their unanimous votes to direct the Environmental Review
Commission to study the impact of granting the request by Alcoa Power
Generating, Inc. ("Alcoa") for renewal of a 50-year license to control the
water and for a monopoly on the generation of hydroelectric power from the
Yadkin River, also known as "the Yadkin Hydroelectric Project." The bill
requires the Commission, consisting of members of the state legislature, to
consider and develop proposals and include them in a report due Feb. 1, 2009.
The options open for the Commission to study and recommend to the legislature
include recapture of the license and restoring a natural resource of the state
for hydroelectric power to benefitNorth Carolina citizens. The recapture
option would not take private property away from Alcoa, as the company does
not own the water from theYadkin and has only had a lease on its dam
operations for the past 50 years. Additionally, under a formula set forth in
federal law, the process would fairly compensate Alcoa equal to its net
investment.
The Commission can also study and suggest conditions to be placed on a
license if Alcoa receives its renewal. These conditions could range from ones
protecting the environment to those impacting the economic well-being of the
citizens inPiedmont North Carolina. Alcoa has made arrangements in other
states such asNew York andWashington to provide jobs and clean up
environmental contamination. This study by the Commission could result in
similar benefits for North Carolinians.
The Commission can also look into state tax breaks that Alcoa received on
the promise of maintaining jobs at the Badin Works inStanly County.
Estimates are that Alcoa received $1 million per year in tax breaks on the
electricity it generated while it was in the process of shutting down the
Badin Works plant and eliminating all the jobs it vowed to maintain.
The study provides an opportunity for theState of North Carolina to weigh
in before it gives away one of its most precious resources -- water -- to a
multinational company that has shown no discernable benefit to the people of
North Carolina.
The Environmental Review Commission will consider and develop proposals
regarding all of the following issues:
1) Analysis of the socioeconomic impacts of Alcoa's decision to
discontinue its job-producing manufacturing activities at itsBadin facility
that relied on the use of low-cost Yadkin River hydroelectric power. In 1958
Alcoa received a 50-year license from the federal government on the basis that
it could create and maintain almost 1,000 jobs at its smelting operations at
the Badin Works, but now all of those jobs have disappeared as Alcoa has
discontinued smelting atBadin.
2) Assurance of an adequate, clean future water supply for the region. A
study conducted this year by John H. Rodgers, Jr., Ph.D., a renowned water
quality expert with Clemson University inSouth Carolina, found that the
available data clearly indicate thatBadin Lake, a 5,300-acre reservoir that
empties into the Yadkin River through the Narrows Dam, and the area downstream
have significant human, health and ecological problems that are and will
continue to be affected by Alcoa's dam operations. The DENR is considering
the report as part of its review of Alcoa's water quality certificate
application.
3) The allocation of water for non-power uses from the Yadkin
Hydroelectric Project. This includes such activities as water used for
drinking and recreational purposes.
The Environmental Review Commission's composition is bipartisan and
includes members from every region of the state. The Commission meets
regularly between legislative sessions to study environmental issues and
develop proposals for the General Assembly to consider. By directing the
Commission to study the impacts of the Yadkin Hydroelectric Project, the
General Assembly has sent a clear message that control of the public waters is
an issue of paramount importance to the citizens ofNorth Carolina.
The study by the Environmental Review Commission will not prevent the
Governor or any state agency or department from taking any action necessary to
protect the interest of the state in the current relicensing procedure. The
bill establishing the commission received unanimous votes on July 15 in the
House Judiciary Committee by 15-0, on July 16 in the state House by 114-0 and
on July 17 in the state Senate by 46-0.
The N.C. Water Rights Committee is a group of concerned citizens, business
leaders, government officials and others who have joined together to make sure
that the citizens ofNorth Carolina are properly informed about the critical
issue of the public's water rights. They were among several groups who
requested the state legislature to establish the commission due to concerns
about several aspects of the Yadkin Hydroelectric Project previously
mentioned. The committee also commissioned a recent poll that found that by
at least a 2-to-1 margin, voters in every region ofNorth Carolina say the
state should take time to study the renewal of Alcoa's license because this
issue will affectNorth Carolina's economy, the environment, and access to
water for the next 50 years.
Related Links:
www.ncwaterrights.org
www.mmimarketing.com
Quotes:
"The focus of this study will be who should control the water," said Sen.
Fletcher L. Hartsell, Jr. (R-Cabarrus). "The well-being of the people of
North Carolina must be our paramount concern as we examine the impact of
potentially granting a 50 year license. All of the state's options will be on
the table."
"Much of the Yadkin River basin inNorth Carolina has suffered devastating
job losses over the past 10 years, including the loss of nearly 1,000
high-paying jobs with the closure of Alcoa's aluminum smelter atBadin," said
Rep. Kenneth R. Furr (R-Stanly). "The Yadkin River is an economic engine that
should once again be harnessed to bring prosperity to the region."
"By studying this issue,North Carolina can make wise and prudent
recommendations to FERC about the relicensing of the Yadkin Project hydropower
dams," said Sen. William R. Purcell (D-Scotland).
"Our sole intention in suggesting the study was to make sure thatNorth
Carolina was not giving away a precious resource for 50 years," said Senate
Majority Leader Tony Rand (D-Cumberland). "Water and its use are vital to our
entire state. We are pleased that the interests of our citizens can be
protected through this study."
"On behalf of the N.C. Water Rights Committee, I sincerely thank all the
members of the General Assembly who voted unanimously in favor of establishing
this commission, as well as the support we have received from Gov. Mike Easley
and Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue on this matter," said Lindsey Dunevant,Stanly
County Commissioner and North Carolina Water Rights Committee member. "We
recognize that the Yadkin Hydroelectric Project has statewide implications for
control the waters of our state, its economic viability and what is best for
the environment."
About N.C. Water Rights Committee:
The N.C. Water Rights Committee is a coalition ofNorth Carolina
businesses and concerned citizens who have joined this statewide effort to
inform citizens of the critical issues and decisions concerning water rights
that affect all North Carolinians now and for many decades to come. For more
information, visit www.ncwaterrights.org.
Patty Briguglio
MMI Associates, Inc.
(919) 233-6600
patty@mmimarketing.com
PR Firms Raleigh, NC
SOURCE N.C. Water Rights Committee
Copyright © 2008, PRNewswire
Copyright © 2008, NewsBlaze,
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