BREDL Reports

Dec. 14, 2016: The report, subtitled “Unfair, Illegal and Unjust,” concludes that the Buckingham County Planning Commission failed with respect to its legal obligation to ensure that the facility does not have a disproportionate impact on Buckingham’s African American community.

BREDL Press Release | BREDL Pollution Report

Jan. 21, 2016: Today the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League released a report on sound pollution and called on the Town of Boone to protect residents from excessive levels of noise from stock car races at the newly opened auto speedway on Roby Green Road. The report, "Noisy Neighbors–Sound Pollution in the High Country", reveals the hazards to mental and physical well-being of residents in neighborhoods near the track.

BREDL Press Release | BREDL Technical Report

March 24, 2014: Today the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League released a technical report which details the dangers of landfilling coal ash and recommends the proven saltstone technology for the coal ash at Duke Energy's fourteen power plants. The report entitled "Coal Ash Disposition: The Alternative for North Carolina," describes the saltstone technology which would encase the coal ash waste and isolate the toxins from the soil, air and water.

View BREDL Technical Report

BREDL Report - Homeland Security: Threats to the Sustainability, Safety and Security of North Carolina's Food and Water View Presentation

This is a BREDL presentation by Duke University Stanback Intern Wendy Shi.

BREDL Report - Trade Secrets in Hydraulic Fracturing
View Presentation | View Report
Presentation and Report go together. Be sure to download both.

BREDL report and presentation by Duke University Stanback Intern Maria Khvatskaya.

June 6, 2013: The results of a detailed investigation released today reveal residents living near or downwind of Browns Ferry are at greater risk for cancer and death than average U.S. communities. The study found potential links between radioactive emissions from Browns Ferry and adverse health effects in seven counties near and downwind of the plant.

Read Press Release | View Report: Radioactive Emissions and Health Hazards Surrounding Browns Ferry Nuclear Power Plant in Alabama

BREDL Report - Taking Action Against Hot-Dip Galvanizing Pollution.
View Report

This is a BREDL report by Duke University Stanback Intern Kelsey Behrens.

BREDL Report - Hot Topic: Hydrofracking and Radiation Exposure.
View Report

This is a BREDL report by Duke University Stanback Intern Allison Mitchell.

June 2012: Weakening North Carolina’s Air Toxics Regulations: Not good for children and other living things

View pdf version of this BREDL PowerPoint Presentation

Feb. 22, 2012: A new report by Joseph J. Mangano, MPH MBA finds that in the past decade levels of most types of radioactivity at the Savannah River Site are rising, as are rates of radiosensitive diseases. A new inquiry is needed to understand why these are occurring as cleanup continues at SRS. Mangano directs the Radiation and Public Health Project research group which has assembled epidemiological evidence of a probable causal link between low-level internal radiation from the ingestion of man-made fission products and world-wide increases in immune deficiency diseases and cancer.  

Read BREDL Press Release | Download the Report | View the Report Summary

This BREDL report highlights the main issues with hydrofracking.

• Water use
• Water Contamination
• Waste product disposal
• Air Pollution
• Public Health
• Earthquakes
• Leases, Split Estates and Forced Pooling
• Infrastructure Strains
• Community Disruption

Download the report

From The History of the North Carolina Air Toxics Program Section:
In the 1980’s North Carolina established regulations for the reduction of toxic air pollutants— chemicals which are irritants, acute or chronic toxicants, or carcinogens. The change was prompted by rising levels of public concern about pollution and health. The NC Environmental Management Commission was empowered by state law and executive order to control toxic air pollution.

From the Fast Forward to 2012: A is for Arsenic Section:
To see a snapshot of what is ahead for North Carolina’s air toxics standards, one has only to look at what has been occurring at the state level regarding this well-known poison and carcinogen; increasingly shown to have alarming endocrine disrupting effects.

Download the Report

This is a BREDL report by Duke University Stanback Intern Kathie Sun.
Download the report

Report Map: It's best to use the arcreader and zip file mentioned below, but if you are having trouble with that here's a screenshot of the map.
Kathie's map of sewage sludge application sites and their proximity to schools, hospitals and nursing homes can be viewed with the free ArcReader available for download at:
http://www.esri.com/software/arcgis/arcreader/download.html
Download Map and Data zip file (Save zip file to your computer. Unzip files in a folder on your computer. Then open Map_full.pmf file.)
Need software to unzip a file? Try winzip (free or paid version) or 7Zip (free)
Questions? Please email Therese Vick

An Investigation by Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League

Sept. 2011: Sandhills Environmental LLC has proposed  locating a 370 acre landfill near the Johnsonville area of Harnett County, North Carolina. The landfill site is a sand mine owned and operated by G&S Materials, which is slated for  closure and reclamation. First alerted  to the landfill proposal in early August 2011 by an anonymous flyer, nearby residents have organized in opposition to the plan.

Local government activities have put the siting  process into high gear with little opportunity for public participation. The decision on granting Sandhills Environmental a franchise could come in early October 2011- only two months from the community’s first awareness of the plan. It is inherent on public officials to recognize potential conflicts and to act with integrity. Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League feels that there is ample evidence for a formal investigation of this matter.

Download the report: The Harnett County Connection

Sept. 26, 2011: This report indicates that any uranium mill tailings storage operation in Coles Hill, Virginia would create high risk of chronic and/or catastrophic release of radioactive contamination into the aquatic environment.

Read BREDL Press Release

Download BREDL Report with Attachments

Download BREDL Report without Attachments
Download Report Attachments:
Attachment A – FEMA flood zones and historic flood events at Coles Hill
Attachment B – Flood of November 11 & 12, 2009 - Coles Hill, VA
Attachment C – spring and wetlands at Coles Hill

The History of Dominion-Virginia Power's Seismic Cover-up

The North Anna nuclear power plant is on unstable ground. The potential danger of an earthquake in central Virginia was brought to the attention of regulators by the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League in 2005. Our investigative report reveals the events which led to the building of nuclear reactors in an active earthquake zone.

Download our report

Sept. 6, 2011: Candor NC- Tonight at a meeting organized by Candor citizens concerned about a proposed biomass incinerator to be operated by NC-CHP 1 LLC, Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League released their white paper Second Opinion: The Medical Profession Diagnoses Biomass Incineration. The white paper compiles statements of concern from medical organizations and professionals across the country who oppose biomass incineration.

Read BREDL Press Release
Download - Second Opinion: The Medical Profession Diagnoses Biomass Incineration.

At high temperatures used in poultry waste gasification, toxic metals including arsenic, hydrochloric and sulfuric acids, and ozone-forming nitrogen oxides would be released. Also, dioxins and furans would be created in the cooling process following the burning of chlorinated compounds and cellulose. These poisons are dangerous at extremely low levels and modern pollution control devices do a poor job of reducing these emissions into the atmosphere.

Download the BREDL Technical Report: Poultry Waste Gasification - Impacts on the Environment and Public Health

May 12, 2011: Today at a press conference in Elon, the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League released its report The Importance of Sustainable Development in Troubled Economic Times. The new report provides a blueprint for community planning. The League also presented a list of recommendations for economic development which protect the health and quality of life of present and future residents and the natural and cultural resources of Alamance County.

BREDL Press Release | Report: The Importance of Sustainable Development in Troubled Economic Times | Recommendations for Alamance County

Jan. 27, 2011: Today at a press conference the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League launched a campaign to halt biomass energy incinerators in the Southeast. Based on its new report on biomass energy, Smoke and Mirrors, the League will press for local, state and national policy changes to reduce global warming. The message is: Biomass is a False Solution.

Read BREDL Press Release | Press Conference Slides | Report: "Smoke and Mirrors"

Jan. 24, 2011: A new report cites broad increases in the amount of medical waste unnecessarily incinerated in North Carolina and argues that much of this waste could be treated safely with less cost using already approved non-burning methods. The report urges state regulators to lead a coordinated effort to reduce unnecessary incineration and involve North Carolina healthcare facilities in solving this problem.

Download the report: "Medical Waste in NC: The need to reduce incineration by more effective waste segregation and use of nonincineration technologies"
Read Press Release

Jan. 13, 2011: The air pollution permit issued by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division for the Wiregrass Biomass-Fired Power Plant grants the company many ways to emit excess levels of pollution. A close examination of the permit, the permit application and other documents indicate that biomass power plants are not clean sources of power and that the first priority of their owner-operators is neither public health nor environmental quality.

Read the BREDL Report

Nov. 9, 2010: Today at a press conference in Matthews, the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League and Citizens for a Healthy Environment released an air pollution study which concludes that the BMWNC medical waste incinerator is too dangerous to operate. The groups called for a shut-down of the incinerator.

BREDL Press Release | BMWNC Air Modeling Report

Contaminated Dry Cleaning Sites in NC

Powerpoint Presentation | PDF format

June 21, 2010: Today at a press conference in Raleigh, the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League called for a moratorium on the spreading of sewage sludge in critical watersheds. The League released two reports which detail sewage sludge spreading in critical areas that supply drinking water to downstream communities. These sites are located in Orange, Alamance, Gaston, Caldwell, Catawba, and Wake counties. The League maintains that these sludge sites pose an imminent hazard to public health and the environment.

BREDL Press Release

REPORTS:

Sludge Spreading in Critical Watersheds in North Carolina

Why sludge should be banned from critical watersheds

MAPS:

Map of Permitted Sludge Fields in Critical Watersheds of North Carolina Sludge fields permitted before 1992
Map of Permitted Sludge Fields in Critical Watersheds of North Carolina Sludge fields permitted after 1992


New report reveals sewage sludge fields permitted in critical watersheds in 6 NC counties

Senator Ellie Kinnaird will host a press conference in the press room at the NC General Assembly on Monday, June 21 at 3 p.m. Senator Kinnaird will discuss the findings of a new report to be released by the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League. The League’s report, “Sludge Spreading in Critical Watersheds of North Carolina,” discusses the spreading of sewage sludge on farmlands in these critical watersheds. The report lists the locations of each field and summarizes the risks to public health and the environment. At the press conference, the League’s Sue Dayton will present a series of maps showing the locations of each of the sludge fields.

BREDL Press Advisory

May 2010: Land application of sewage sludge: Risks and recommendations

Download BREDL Presentation - Powerpoint format | pdf format

Dec. 3, 2009: Today at a press conference in Chester, the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League released a new report on toxic air pollution impacts from the Covanta incinerator proposed for Chester County. The study shows that poisonous air emissions would be deposited more than six miles away from the facility. Read BREDL Press Release | BREDL Technical Report: Toxic Air Pollution Impacts from the proposed Covanta Energy Chester County WTE Project

June 15, 2009: BREDL co-releases a new report by Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives. The Report - An Industry Blowing Smoke - outlines 10 reasons why gasification, Pyrolysis & Plasma Incineration are not "green solutions".
BREDL Press Release | Download: An Industry Blowing Smoke

May 6, 2009: League Opens Fire on Fibrowatt - Today at a press conference in Elkin, the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League released a stunning report showing that the proposed Fibrowatt manure incinerator would deposit dangerous levels of poisons up to six miles from the plant site. The report concludes that the incinerator would contaminate the surrounding area with arsenic, chromium, mercury and other pollutants. More info: BREDL Press Release | BREDL Modeling Report | May 11 Forum Flyer

BREDL Analysis: "Electric Power from Poultry Waste is Not Green...and Not Carbon Neutral"

February 2009: BREDL revises our April 2002 report: Waste Gasification - impacts on the environment and public health

Nov. 20, 2008: Today at a Durham press conference, the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League released a report aimed at preventing North Carolina from exempting from regulation more than 1400 air pollution sources. The study Poison Loophole details the dangers of toxic air pollution from coal plants, paper mills and asphalt plants. Read BREDL Press Release | Download the study Poison Loophole

The Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League released a study in March 2007 which shows that harmful levels of air pollution from the Savannah River Site are reaching nearby communities. The group published its results in a report titled Sow The Wind: Toxic Air Pollution from the Savannah River Site.
More Details and Download the Report

Oct. 23, 2007: Today at a press conference in Spruce Pine, the Mitchell County Citizens for Clean Air and the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League released an air pollution study of the proposed Young & McQueen asphalt plant which shows that air toxins would be deposited far from the plant site. The League’s report shows dangerous levels offsite of formaldehyde, benzene and arsenic. BREDL Press Release | BREDL Air Pollution Study of proposed asphalt plant | Asphalt Plants Page

June 20, 2007: The data presented in this report detail the increases in environmental radioactivity and local rises in cancer rates since the Vogtle reactors began operating. The parallel between these two trends is to be taken seriously, as radioactive fission products are carcinogenic, and are especially toxic to the young. The addition of two new reactors at Vogtle would double the capacity of the plant and presumable double the radioactive emissions. Assuming there is no major reduction in health risk to the local population – such as an influx of new medical services or a large reduction in poverty – the local population will be at increased risk of cancer, based on the findings in this report.

Report: Health Risks of New Reactors at Vogtle, June 2007
Vogtle - child cancer mortality change

Joseph J. Mangano, MPH, MBA, is Director, Secretary, and the National Coordinator of the Radiation and Public Health Project. Mr. Mangano is a public health administrator and researcher who has studied the connection between low-dose radiation exposure and subsequent risk of diseases such as cancer and damage to newborns. He has published numerous articles and letters in medical and other journals in addition to his book Low Level Radiation and Immune System Disorders: An Atomic Era Legacy which examines the connection between radiation exposure and widespread health problems.

July 12, 2006: BREDL Report on proposed Fibrowatt facility - Executive Director Janet Marsh Zeller's comments on the report: Fibrowatt's Thetford plant, in 2004, put out 234,430 kilograms (516,824 pounds) of carbon monoxide. I call these incinerators rather than power plants, because 50 megawatts is a tiny amount of power for what is lost. The amount of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide -- if this plant is similar to their Minnesota plant -- would be roughly similar to a coal plant. One disadvantage of burning poultry litter is the creation of air poisons not in the original materials. They are created in the smokestack itself. Fibrowatt's Thetford plant put out 30 milligrams of dioxins in 2004. We are going to see larger amounts if they build what they plan for North Carolina. If you dissect what they say -- hold on, here are details.
BREDL Report | Emissions Table

May 1, 2006: BREDL requests the NC Utilities Commission promote policies which accelerate the growth of wind and solar power and discourage further incentives for fossil-fuel and nuclear power.
Lou Zeller's testimony before the NC Utilities Commission

April 17, 2006: A new University of North Carolina School of Public Health study released by a local citizens group found that Duplin County residents remain concerned about the potential for declining air quality, contamination of their wells, and lost opportunities for future parks and outdoor activities. The report, “A Community Health and Demographic Survey Near a Proposed Landfill Site in Northwestern Duplin County, NC”, found slightly elevated rates for allergies and asthma, as self-reported by residents, already existed in a two mile radius around the proposed site near Faison.
BREDL Press Release | Download the University of North Carolina School of Public Health study:
"A Community Health and Demographic Survey Near a Proposed Landfill Site in Northwestern Duplin County, NC "

Oct. 20, 2005: Analysis: Asphalt Plant versus Wood Stove Pollution - Comparing Apples and Hedgehogs (a household wood stove emits but a tiny fraction of the pollution emitted by an asphalt plant.)

October 2005: An Overview of Polluting Industry Ordinances: The Wilkes County Model

Sept. 23, 2005: APAC: POLLUTING WITHOUT BOUNDARIES
This is a report on APAC-Atlantic, Inc., one of the nation’s largest transportation construction contractors. The League's report lists APAC's violations of environmental laws and citizens’ complaints for the asphalt plants which the company operates in Rutherfordton, Burnsville, Penrose, Hendersonville and Morganton, North Carolina. Our report is based on public records on file in the NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources Division of Air Quality. The company’s track record in western North Carolina reveals a corporation that shows little care for the health and well-being of the people who live nearest the asphalt factories it operates.

August 30, 2005: BREDL Report on 2005 Southern Energy & Environment Expo, which was held at the Western NC Agricultural Center in Fletcher on August 26-28. The Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League participated with an information booth, two workshops, and a parking lot-sized educational display. The League’s focus this year was nuclear power and nuclear waste transportation.

Nov. 30, 2004: BREDL Report on Savannah River Site Citizens Advisory Board Meeting of November 15-16, 2004, which was held in Augusta, GA.

October 5, 2004: Table slides detailing actual radioactive releases to the air and water from Dominion/Virginia Power's North Anna nuclear station, and the high rates of mortality in the area within 30 miles of the North Anna reactors located near Charlottesville, VA.

BREDL Press Release: DEATH RATES INCREASED AFTER NORTH ANNA STARTUP - Group Calls for Comprehensive Health Study

Radioactive Materials Released from North Anna Nuclear Reactors from 1978-1987

Changes in Death Rates in nine counties closest to North Anna Nuclear Plant after startup of reactors

June 26, 2004: North Anna information slides. (First new reactors in 25 years, Facts about North Anna, What's wrong with nuclear power and proposed expansion?, Timeline for expansion)

June 3, 2004: Map of High-Level Radioactive Wastes and Aquifers in the Southeast featuring Savannah River Site

June 3, 2004: Map of Drinking Water information featuring Savannah River Site

Mar. 31, 2004: Strategic Planning: What it is and Why it matters

Feb. 5, 2003: BREDL Slide Show presentation by Dr. Rick Weisler: Childhood Brain Cancers Near Asphalt Industry in Salisbury, North Carolina

Nov. 22, 2002: BREDL Press Release | BREDL releases Don Moniak report: "Does America Need A New Atomic Bomb Plant?: A Preliminary Review of DOE's Plans to Restore Large-Scale Plutonium Pit Production"

June 11, 2002: BREDL has released a report which reveals that the US DOE's plutonium fuel testing program would require tens of thousands of miles of national and international shipments. BREDL Press Release and Report

April 1, 2002: BREDL releases report: Waste Gasification - impacts on the environment and public health | BREDL report: Incineration and Gasification: A Toxic Comparison

March 8, 2002: The Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League Bethel-Cullasaja community health survey report. The Bethel-Cullasaja community is the site of an asphalt plant permitted to produce 180 tons/hour and 100,000 tons/year of paving asphalt.

March 8, 2002: The Blue Ridge Environmental Defense released a study showing the adverse impacts on property values and quality of life around an asphalt plant in Pineola, North Carolina.

Nov. 16, 2001: Janet Zeller's report from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Advisory Committee on Reactor Safety (ACRS) meeting to hear staff reviews of the key issues in Duke Cogema Stone & Webster’s (DCS) Construction Authorization Request (CAR) for the plutonium fuel factory proposed for the Savannah River Site.

Aug. 15, 2001: "A Study of Dry Cleaning Solvents and Clothing: Source of Dioxin Exposure?" - a report by the Clean Water World Initiative. The report finds that dry-cleaning solvents and brand-new as well as dry-cleaned clothes are contaminated with dioxins.

June 7, 2001 - BREDL's Report to the Technical Advisory Committee of the Western NC Regional Air Pollution Control Agency

May 3, 2001: Press Release with links to report In Charlotte, NC today BREDL releases a new plutonium fuels transportation report outlining past problems with the U.S. Department of Energy's handling of plutonium.

March 21, 2001 - Today at a press conference in Wilmington, the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League launched a statewide campaign to protect North Carolina school children from toxic chemical exposures. The group plans to work with parents and school officials to determine the level of environmental toxins in the state’s schools and to implement programs to reduce or eliminate these threats.

BREDL released a new national report called Poisoned Schools: Invisible Threats, Visible Actions. The report details the dangers to children attending schools located near toxic air pollution sources and contaminated sites. More info: BREDL Press Release

Feb. 6, 2001 - Aiken, SC: The Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League will commemorate the 5th Anniversary of former Secretary of Energy Hazel O’Leary’s last “openness” press conference at which DOE released its publication “Plutonium, The Last 50 Years.” More info: BREDL Press Release, BREDL MEDIA ALERT , PLUTONIUM REPORT

Jan. 15, 2001 - Asphalt Plant Campaign Report: This report gives an update on BREDL's campaign to reduce toxic pollution from asphalt plants in western North Carolina. It includes information about six communities which oppose existing or proposed asphalt plants. (including asphalt plants in Pineola , Boone , Jefferson , Cullasaja , White Oak Creek ) Newly posted Asphalt Plant Flyer Fact Sheets

BREDL comments and Air Quality Report regarding I-73 DEIS (Roanoke, VA - NC border)

November 21, 2000 - Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League and our Halifax County
chapter, Citizens Against Regional Dumping, held a press conference and rally on the steps of
the courthouse in Halifax, NC.  CARD members spoke against the county’s plans for a
regional, commercial landfill to be operated by WMX in their community.  Details about the press conference (including photos and statements) plus a report on the landfill.

The Dangers of Plutonium Transportation: a report delivered by Lou Zeller at the People's Forum on Plutonium Fuels which was held Nov. 9, 2000 at Winthrop University, Rock Hill, SC

October 24, 2000 - Clean Energy for a Sustainable Future: Report on Wind Powering America technical workshop and Green Mountain Wind Farm by Louis Zeller (includes photos and video clips)

July 17 - 24, 2000 - Reports from BREDL's Lou Zeller in Okinawa, Japan at the G-8 Summit.

Reports from BREDL's Lou and Janet Zeller in Russia as they travel with the American Delegation on Plutonium Fuel. May 21 - June 11, 2000