Duke wins in court; county ordered to issue permits
Jackson County last week suffered another defeat in its ongoing legal battle with Duke Energy over the removal of the Dillsboro Dam.
Superior Court Judge Laura Bridges March 23 ordered county officials to “immediately process and issue” permits the power company needs to begin dredging sediment behind the dam.
Bridges ruled in favor of Duke across the board, and her order states that the county is “without authority to deny (Duke) the Land Development Compliance Permit or Floodplain Development Permit” the power company has applied for. Bridges made that determination based on “the pre-emptive nature of the Federal Power Act” and writes that Jackson County cannot require Duke to seek other local permits in order to remove sediment from the Dillsboro Reservoir because the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s order requiring Duke to remove the sediment was issued “pursuant to the FPA.”
While both Jackson County Manger Ken Westmoreland and Planning Director Linda Cable both declined comment, saying they had not seen the judge’s order, Fred Alexander, Duke’s district manager for government and community relations, said the ruling is good news for the electric company and for the public.
Read more in Thursday’s newspaper.
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