News

Cooper signs new order pushing state toward electric vehicles

Gov. Roy Cooper signed an executive order Friday, Jan. 7, that aims to reduce greenhouse gases to net-zero by 2050. Cooper also wants to transition all state vehicles to electric and to enhance goals for drivers to switch to electric and other zero-emission vehicles. Cooper, in a news release, said the action will help create...

Theresa Opeka
News

Appeals Court rejects lawsuit challenging recent farm laws

A unanimous three-judge panel of the N.C. Court of Appeals has affirmed a lower court’s decision to dismiss a lawsuit challenging 2017 and 2018 amendments to North Carolina’s Right to Farm Act. The Rural Empowerment Association for Community Help, N.C. Environmental Justice Community Action Network, and Waterkeeper Alliance filed suit in 2019 against the amendments....

CJ Staff
News

N.C. lithium mine proposal draws fire despite Tesla contract, job projections

A N.C. company looking to bring a lithium mine to Gaston County is facing pushback from environmental groups, despite a deal already in place to use the mine’s products for electric vehicle batteries. Piedmont Lithium has submitted an application to open a lithium mine near the town of Cherryville on about 1,500 acres of private...

Andrew Dunn
News

State Supreme Court takes second crack at AG’s hog farm ‘slush fund’

A controversial environmental program controlled by North Carolina’s attorney general and funded by hog farm proceeds returned today to the N.C. Supreme Court. The court must decide whether the AG can maintain control of the funding moving forward. Among the most interesting revelations in oral arguments Tuesday: Plaintiffs’ lawyers argue that the attorney general has...

CJ Staff
News

This blows: Proposed OBX offshore wind farm full of risks, hits snag with fishermen

Avangrid Renewables wants to erect 69 wind turbines, spread out over 50,000 acres, 27 miles offshore of Corolla, North Carolina. The project hasn’t gotten final approval from federal regulators, and in recent comments to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, one expert urged environmental reviewers to refrain from proceeding with the project because of significant...

Jeff Moore

Help Support Non-profit Journalism & Donate Today

Opinion

Let the science decide on PFAS in water

Saying “per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances” is a mouthful—so let’s stick with the common abbreviation for this group of man-made chemicals: PFAS. And no, you don’t want a mouthful of them. If consumed in high concentrations, PFAS may be harmful to human health. But we don’t know how high a concentration it takes. That’s why the...

Rep. Mark Alliegro
Video

Locke’s Jon Sanders documents improvement in greenhouse gas emissions

Jon Sanders, senior fellow in regulatory studies and research editor at the John Locke Foundation, discusses recent improvements in N.C. and U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. Learn more here: “Greenhouse gas emissions continue to plummet in North Carolina.”

Jon Sanders
News

‘Our No. 1 vulnerability:’ Senate won’t confirm Cooper’s pick to lead environmental agency

North Carolina relies on a single pipeline for its natural gas, making it uniquely vulnerable to disruptions, shortages, and even more nefarious problems. “North Carolina’s future, not to mention lights, heat, and air conditioning in millions of homes, is at risk because of the state’s full reliance on a single natural gas pipeline,” Sen. Norm...

John Trump
Video

The Right AOC on Point: Pipeline shutdown offers preview of Green New Deal

John Locke Foundation CEO Amy Cooke, “The Right AOC,” explains why this week’s pipeline shutdown should make us more concerned about the Green New Deal. Contact Amy at [email protected]. Follow her at https://www.facebook.com/TheRightAOC​ and https://twitter.com/TheRightAOC.

Amy Cooke
News

Utilities Commission approves partial rate hike, coal ash settlement with Duke Energy

The N.C. Utilities Commission on Friday, April 16, issued an order approving a partial rate increase for Duke Energy Progress and a settlement addressing coal ash cleanup costs.  The amount of the increase will be less than the 12.3% rate hike the private power provider requested, but the final number hasn’t been determined. Duke Energy...

Johnny Kampis