Chemours hit with $200,000 in fines for continuing to discharge PFAS

North Carolina environmental regulators have penalized Chemours nearly $200,000 for failing to meet terms of a consent order and violations related to the construction and installation of required measures to treat residual “forever chemicals” at the company’s Fayetteville Works plant.

In 2017, the Department of Environmental Quality ordered Chemours to stop discharging its wastewater into the river, but residual PFAS have continued to escape from the outfall and groundwater seeps on the company’s property.

It's long past time we reassess our approach to permitting discharges into our creeks & rivers. Somebody once asked me (a 12 year-old, no less) why we let chemical companies build their facilities right on the edge of our rivers, and I was forced to tell this child the truth: so they could more easily dispose of their wastewater. Coal plants need to be close to water resources because they use it for steam and for cooling purposes. But chemical plants? Nope. They don't have such needs. For decades they have used rivers as a convenient (and cheap) method for getting rid of their toxic wastes, and we have allowed them to do that. Shame on us. Here's a breakdown of the fines assessed:

Thursday News: Anti-Union Union?

EX-TEACHER FORMS CONSERVATIVE ALTERNATIVE TO NCAE: “We support America, we support patriotism and we want protection for the teachers who want to focus on academic content,” Marshall said in an interview Tuesday with The News & Observer. “If a teacher is harassed for not teaching something political or (for not teaching) critical race theory, we want to support the teacher.” Carolina Teachers Alliance has aligned itself with Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, who recently announced the formation of a a task force to collect complaints from parents, students and teachers about “indoctrination” in the classroom. Robinson charges that the “radical left” wants to indoctrinate students. “Our Teachers need to have the freedom to teach patriotism and love of country, and should not be forced to deliver biased political indoctrination,” the group says in its “about us” section.
https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/education/article250313834.html

Madison Cawthorn takes credit for funding he opposed

How can you tell if he's lying? Because his mouth is moving:

The official account for Cawthorn, the 25-year-old Republican from Hendersonville, tweeted Tuesday afternoon that he was “happy” to see needed money go to four health clinics in his district that help vulnerable residents. Not only that, he was “Proud to see tax-payer dollars returned to NC-11.”

As Cardinal & Pine previously reported, Cawthorn skipped the vote to give a speech to conservative activists, where he criticized the bill as a waste of money and a handout that would foster laziness and dependency.

Dude is shameless, just one lie after another. Apparently "focusing on comms" is code for saying anything, regardless of the truthfulness of it. Here's more on Madi's lust for media exposure:

Wednesday News: Selling the drama

RALEIGH CITY COUNCIL STILL AT WAR WITH DISBANDED CACS: At a March 2021 meeting, Johnson denounced the “slimy way (the council) plotted” against the CACs. “You’re all complicit in this denial of basic democracy to the people of Raleigh,” he said. “No wonder so many big money builders and developers and their gray-money PACs supported you. They’re certainly getting their money’s worth from you while the people of Raleigh are short-changed by your entitled arrogance.” While personal, Baldwin said the public comments are not interfering with city business. “We know what we need to do, and we are moving forward,” she said. “We know what we were elected to do.” Still, the COVID-19 pandemic has put people especially on edge, Baldwin said. “When we are hearing from some CACs you realize you are getting the perspective of white adult homeowners and not necessarily the perspective of others in the community,” Fearn said.
https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/counties/wake-county/article250286480.html

Tuesday News: Re-hooked on Phonics?

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BERGER AND TRUITT PUSH BILL TO SHIFT READING INSTRUCTION: North Carolina Senate Republican leaders want schools to emphasize the use of phonics to help deal with how many young children are having challenges learning to read. The Excellent Public Schools Act of 2021, which was filed on Monday, requires Pre-K and elementary school teachers to be trained in the “science of reading,” a method of reading instruction that stresses phonics. The legislation comes as reading scores have dropped in the state despite the efforts of the Read To Achieve program to improve early childhood literacy. “Training teachers in the science of reading is a crucial strategy for literacy improvement,” Senate leader Phil Berger, one of the bill’s primary sponsors, said at a news conference Monday.
https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/article250290305.html

Tuesday Twitter roundup

Will Voting Rights Battles Come to NC – Again? #ncpol https://t.co/u8G0KtisFm

— Gary Pearce (@jgaryp) March 30, 2021

Inevitably. The NC GOP has joined their counterparts in several other states already by pushing a bill that will make it harder to vote. Whether that is stopped by a Veto or ends up in court remains to be seen, but the battle is happening now.

This is how the 1st Amendment dies a slow death

Gaston County protest ordinance is riddled with problems:

Under the new ordinance, groups of 25 or more people who wish to protest on county property must submit an application to the county at least 24 hours in advance.

The applications would be reviewed by the county sheriff and sheriff's deputies, who would have the power to approve or deny them, and could revoke a protest permit "at any time."

That last part is a doozie. All it would take is one rookie deputy who doesn't like the looks of somebody, and the permit is revoked. At that time, any delays in "dispersing" could be met with violence and arrests, all in the name of "keeping the peace." How do I know this? Because it's happened several times in my County. It's also not a coincidence that both Alamance and Gaston Counties have all-Republican Boards of Commission. More from the Gaston District Attorney:

BlueNC