Droughts Conditions Developing along the Yadkin River

People who like to spend time fishing, boating and playing on the lakes along the Yadkin River have enjoyed consistently high water levels throughout the summer recreation season.  But now comes news that the Yadkin-Pee Dee River Basin is beginning to experience drought conditions. 

The NC Drought Monitor has classified more than 10% of the region as “Moderate Drought.” The National Weather Service has indicated that, based on low stream flows in the Upper Yadkin, drought conditions could worsen. 

We are closely monitoring the developing drought conditions and taking steps to minimize the impact of a drought before it even arrives.

To protect the water supply and downstream environment, Alcoa Power Generating Inc. (APGI) will reduce the amount of water it sends downstream (targeting a weekly average release of 1,000 CFS) and begin working with the Yadkin Drought Management Team to identify how to minimize the impact of drought conditions.  The team – comprised of state and federal agencies, hydropower operators, local homeowners, business interests and others – will meet on September 30 to discuss drought conditions, including factors such as actual and forecasted stream flow, precipitation, and ground water levels.

Stay tuned for further information about drought conditions, or visit the NC Drought Monitor for the latest news and updates. 

Alcoa responds to Senate committee

Alcoa has delivered a letter to Sen. Fletcher L. Hartsell, Jr., chairman of the Senate Judiciary II committee, defending the company’s safety and environmental record in North Carolina.

“Alcoa has been a good corporate citizen for more than 120 years, including nearly 100 years in North Carolina, is proud of both its environmental and worker safety records and wants to ensure there is a fair exposition of the matters discussed by your Committee,” wrote William J. O’Rourke, Alcoa vice president of sustainability, environment, health and safety.  The letter responded to questions raised during a meeting of the Senate Judiciary II committee on July 6, 2010. 

Click here to read the entire letter.

UNC-TV Releases Emails Between Reporter, Former Board Member

UNC-TV has released additional copies of unredacted emails between reporter Eszter Vajda and Bruce Thompson, a Stanly County lobbyist who served as a member of the UNC-TV Board of Trustees during the development of Vajda’s controversial series on Alcoa.  The UNC-TV segments have been widely criticized by journalism professors as slanted, unsupported by the facts and failing to meet accepted journalism standards.  The additional emails shed even more light on how the production was influenced by those outside of UNC-TV.


Thompson is one of several Alcoa opponents -- including former House Speaker Richard Morgan, political consultant Carter Wrenn and Stanly County banker Roger Dick -- who worked closely with Vajda as part of a coordinated effort to support a government takeover of Alcoa Power Generating Inc’s Yadkin Project. The recently released emails indicate that Vajda asked for feedback from Thompson on drafts of stories about Alcoa and forwarded to him internal UNC-TV emails about the station’s resistance to produce a documentary about Alcoa.  


Thompson resigned his seat on the UNC-TV board on September 7. He requested that UNC-TV make available unredacted copies of his email correspondence with Vajda.  Click here to view the emails.


Click here to read more about the UNC-TV issue and view the complete set of public records originally provided by UNC-TV.

NC Division of Public Health: PCBs in Badin Lake fish can’t be directly linked to Alcoa

Alcoa has received a memo prepared by the NC Division of Public Health (DPH) in July 2010 that casts a great shadow of doubt over contentions that Alcoa is solely responsible for PCBs found in Badin Lake.


The memo, provided to Alcoa as a public record from Stanly County, indicates that Alcoa cannot be identified as the source of PCBs found in Badin Lake fish.   


“It is possible that the PCBs in Badin Lake have been contributed from sources other than the Alcoa facility.  As far as DPH knows, upstream sources of PCBs have not been evaluated,” the memo states.


Click here to read the entire memo.


Alcoa has long believed that upstream sources of PCB contamination deserve closer scrutiny.  The NC Division of Water Quality has reported that fish in the Yadkin River near Mocksville – well upstream of Badin Lake – have PCBs levels similar to the fish in Badin Lake.


There are 4,500 square miles that drain into the Yadkin Project and more than 100 industrial users and municipalities are permitted to release discharges into the Yadkin River upstream of Badin Lake.

Judge denies motions for summary judgment

A planned hearing on whether the N.C. Division of Water Quality properly issued a water quality certificate for the Yadkin Hydroelectric Project will move forward on September 27, following today’s ruling by Administrative Law Judge Joe Webster to deny all motions for summary judgment.

We look forward to a full hearing on these issues and are fully prepared to present our case at trial.  It has been more than 16 months since the Division of Water Quality announced that the Yadkin Project met the standards for Section 401 certification, and we are eager for these issues to be resolved so FERC will act on our relicensing application.