By Cassie Gavin
Director of Government Relations
The NC General Assembly today wrapped up their September session by passing House Bill 56 “Amend Environmental Laws” which the Chapter has long opposed. The catch-all bill rolls back water quality protections, repeals the Outer Banks plastic bag ban, and gives waste management control to private companies at local governments’ expense. A provision added at the last minute provides some funding for UNC-Wilmington and the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority, but none to DEQ, to investigate contamination of the Cape Fear River.
The original H 56 was a non-controversial two-page bill about engineers but, as often occurs, the Senate larded up the bill with many bad environmental proposals. Then, last night the H 56 conference committee (made up of appointed Senate and House members) added the GenX provision. Some House members complained that they would have liked to vote for the GenX funding as a standalone bill; but not combined with H 56. The bill next goes to the Governor for consideration.
Opportunity for Action
Please thank legislators who voted against H 56. See who voted “no” in the House and in the Senate. The House had a lengthy debate about the bill today and Representatives Pricey Harrison (D-Greensboro), Robert Reives (D-Pittsboro), Billy Richardson (D-Fayetteville), Verla Insko (D-Chapel Hill), Darren Jackson (D-Raleigh) and Rodney Moore (D-Charlotte), among others, raised many concerns about the bill. Three House members from the majority party voted against H 56; please thank Representatives Nelson Dollar, Chuck McGrady and Josh Dobson for taking a tough stand for the environment.
Outer Banks plastic bag ban repealed by H 56
The plastic bag ban helps protect endangered sea turtles, which can mistake the bags for food, and prevent litter in sensitive coastal areas. Local Outer Banks governments passed resolutions opposing repeal, but the Retail Merchants Association, John Locke Foundation and Americans for Tax Reform, pushed lawmakers to eliminate the ban.
Minimal funding for GenX contamination
H 56 directs $435,000 to the local water utility and UNC-Wilmington to study GenX contamination of the lower Cape Fear River by Chemours and find a way to clean the water.
The Legislature ignored a request from Governor Cooper for emergency funding to investigate not only GenX contamination, but the presence of other unregulated chemicals in drinking water. Cooper requested $2.58 million for the Department of Environmental Quality and Department of Health and Human Services. DEQ has been challenged to keep up with water quality inspections and permitting in the face of years of legislative budget cuts. Chemours, the company that discharged GenX, is operating on an expired permit.
H 56 leaves DEQ without needed resources to monitor discharges from the Chemours plant and DHHS without adequate staffing to address the toxicology issues. DHHS, for example, has only one toxicologist to address these and other issues statewide. The Legislature seems committed to putting resources anywhere other than with the two state agencies charged with protecting public health and the environment.
Trash “flow control” handed to private waste companies
At the request of private waste companies, H 56 includes a new provision that takes authority from local governments for determining where solid waste is disposed of, and gives it to the companies themselves. The technical term for this is “flow control.” Unlike local governments, private waste companies are not bound by law to provide environmentally safe waste disposal for citizens. The shift in control could be a bonanza for these companies, as they compete for revenue from both in-state and out-of-state waste streams. It also raises the question of whether the Legislature wants NC wants to become a net importer of out-of-state trash.
Other water protections weakened
In addition to the above provisions and just days after an impassioned public addressed the Environmental Review Commission in Wilmington to ask for meaningful action on water quality, the Legislature nonetheless adopted measures to weaken water quality protections. H 56 includes two sections that would create new exemptions to buffer rules for waterways. Both provisions appear to be unnecessary and were unsupported by facts in committee discussions about the bill.
Garbage juice veto override not taken up
Although H 576 “Allow Aerosolization of Leachate” sat on the legislative calendar for several days this week, it did not get taken up. Other veto overrides did occur, so it could be that the votes are not there to override Governor Cooper’s veto of this bill. The Chapter continues to oppose this bill that would require DEQ to allow a landfill-wastewater spraying technology over landfills, potentially putting workers and neighbors at risk.
October session
The Legislature will return October 4th for a session that could include judicial redistricting, constitutional amendments, veto overrides, appointments, impeachment, or bills that have not yet been agreed upon between the House and Senate (conference reports). Be on the lookout for a legislative update before then with information about what to anticipate.
Thank you for your advocacy!