U. S. Department of Justice
Thomas G. Walker
United States Attorney
Eastern District of North Carolina

News Release

Terry Sanford Federal Building
310 New Bern Avenue
Suite 800
Raleigh, North Carolina 27601-1461

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
FRIDAY – FEBRUARY 20, 2015

Telephone (919) 856-4530
Criminal FAX (919) 856-4487
Civil FAX (919) 856-4821
www.usdoj.gov/usao/nce

CONTACT: Don Connelly
PIO
(919) 856-4712

DUKE ENERGY SUBSIDIARIES CHARGED WITH CLEAN WATER ACT VIOLATIONS

RALEIGH

–

The

United

States

Attorney’s

Offices

for

the

Eastern, Middle, and Western Districts of North Carolina, along
with

the

Department

of

Justice

–

Environmental

Crimes

Section,

filed criminal charges today against three subsidiaries of Duke
Energy Corporation: Duke Energy Business Services LLC, Duke Energy
Carolinas

LLC,

and

Duke

Energy

Progress,

Inc.

for

multiple

separate

criminal

violations of the Clean Water Act.
The

three

U.S.

Attorney’s

Offices

filed

bills of information in their respective federal courts, alleging
violations

of

facilities:
Steam

the

Clean

Water

Act

at

the

following

Duke

Dan River Steam Station (Rockingham County); Cape Fear

Electric

Plant

(Chatham

County);

Asheville

Steam

Electric

Generating Plant (Buncombe County); H.F. Lee Steam Electric Plant
(Wayne County); and Riverbend Steam Station (Gaston County).

The

alleged violations include unlawfully failing to maintain equipment
at

the

Dan

River

and

Cape

Fear

facilities

and

unlawfully

 discharging coal ash and/or coal ash wastewater from impoundments
at the Dan River, Asheville, Lee, and Riverbend facilities.
The U.S. Attorney’s Offices for Middle and Western Districts
also filed papers asking their courts to transfer the cases to be
heard in the Eastern District of North Carolina.
The defendants face a maximum penalty on each charged count of
five years probation; a fine in an amount of the greater of not
less

than

$2,500

nor

more

than

$25,000

per

day

of

violation;

$200,000.00; or twice the gross gain or loss; restitution; and a
special assessment of $125.00.
Persons directly and proximately harmed as a result of the
conduct charged in this matter may have rights under the Crime
Victims’ Rights Act.

See 18 U.S.C. § 3771.

If you believe that

you are a crime victim in this matter, please contact the United
States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina
at USANCE.CrimeVictimsRightsAct@usdoj.gov no later than March 6,
2015.
A

criminal

information

is

not

a

finding

of

guilt.

A

corporation charged by criminal information is presumed innocent
unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
The U.S. Attorney’s Offices will have no further comment on
this matter until after court proceedings.
# # #
News releases are available on the U. S. Attorney’s web page at
www.usdoj.gov/usao/nce within 48 hours of release.

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