Friday, September 27, 2013

Alcoa appeals denial of 401 water quality certificate

Alcoa Power Generating Inc. (APGI) filed an appeal of the NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources’ (DENR) decision to deny the company’s application for a 401 water quality certificate for the Yadkin Hydroelectric Project. The appeal was filed Tuesday in the Office of Administrative Hearings in North Carolina’s administrative court system.

When the State of North Carolina filed a lawsuit on Aug. 2 lawsuit claiming ownership of the riverbed, it spurred DENR’s denial of the 401 water quality certificate. We believe that DENR acted unlawfully when it denied our 401 water quality certificate because the denial was based purely on unproven allegations in the state’s lawsuit.

Equally important, the state’s lawsuit asserts no claims with respect to water quality, which is the sole focus of the 401 certification process. In fact, the hearing officer who recommended issuing the 401 water quality certificate to APGI specifically noted that the questions raised in the state’s lawsuit were outside the scope of the 401 certification process.

Additional Legal Filings
In addition to filing the appeal, APGI made two additional legal filings today related to the riverbed lawsuit brought by the state, which is now in federal court. The filings include our answer to the complaint and our opposition to the Yadkin Riverkeeper’s petition for intervention.

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