It ain’t easy living on bottled water

In North Carolina, Duke Energy has generated millions of tons of coal ash over the years at its G.G. Allen coal-fired power plant, storing it in leaky dumps that surround a nearby neighborhood on three sides. The N.C. Coal Ash Management Act of 2014 required well water testing of homes within 1,000 feet of Duke’s coal ash ponds.

In the Belmont community near G.G. Allen, more than 200 families have been told their well water is not safe to drink or cook with due to high levels of the toxic heavy metals, vanadium and hexavalent chromium.

Amy Brown received one of those letters. Since the spring of 2015, the mother of two has been working with her neighbors to make sure everyone has access to bottled water. This is her story.

Videography and editing by Sandra Diaz.

About Sarah Kellogg

A sunny-spirited North Carolinian with a passion for hiking, viola, ceramics and poetry, Sarah joined Appalachian Voices as our 2013-14 Americorps Education Outreach Associate and later served as our N.C. Coordinator working on coal ash cleanup and pipeline awareness from 2014-2016.