Weatherspoon Steam Electric Plant has 19 groundwater monitoring wells, 9 of which have been polluted above federal advisory levels based on samples collected between November 16, 2010 and August 16, 2017. Groundwater at this site contains unsafe levels of radium, cobalt, arsenic, cadmium and molybdenum.
Site descriptionDuke Energy's W.H. Weatherspoon Steam Electric Plant was a former coal-powered power plant located near Lumberton, North Carolina. The plant was originally opened in 1949 and, following the addition of two more coal-fired units in the 1950s, had a generating capacity of 166 MW. The coal-fired units were officially closed in 2011 and destroyed in 2013, but four peaking units, fueled by natural gas and oil, continue to operate. The 1979 Ash Basin located northeast of the plant is regulated under the CCR rule. You can find the industry-reported data here. For more information on the Roxboro Steam Electric Power Plant, see EIP’s 2019 National Coal Ash Report.