The building was demolished last fall, but residents keep pressing for a real clean up at the former CTS of Asheville site on Mills Gap Road.
Tag: CTS
Showing 22-42 of 72 results
NC House committee issues subpoenas to compel EPA officials to testify on CTS
A North Carolina House Select Committee has issued subpoenas to compel key EPA officials, including Superfund Branch Chief Don Rigger, to testify in a hearing in Raleigh next month, even as Mills Gap Road-area residents file a formal complaint of criminal negligence against the agency in the case of the former CTS of Asheville, and another Mills Gap home receives an emergency supply of bottled water from the EPA. Photo by Susan Andrew.
New contamination emerges in Mills Gap; neighbors await municipal water hookups
At a kitchen table in the Mills Gap community in South Asheville last night, neighbors of the former CTS of Asheville plant met to plan next steps, after two new domestic wells nearby recently tested positive for industrial contaminants including cyanide. CTS has signed an agreement with EPA to provide filtration to all homes within a one-mile radius of the recently demolished plant; but neighbors say they were anticipating municipal water hookups.
NC lawmakers hear testimony from DENR, CTS neighbors on contamination case
A Statehouse committee chaired by Buncombe Rep. Tim Moffitt convened in Raleigh Jan. 17 to question DENR officials and hear from residents near the former CTS electroplating facility on Mills Gap Road south of Asheville. Here, Moffitt embraces CTS neighbor Dot Rice, whose family’s spring was contaminated by hazardous chemicals used at the plant; numerous Rice family members have become gravely ill.
EPA rejects CTS plan for soil sampling; says more robust plan needed for Mills Gap site
The EPA has rejected a plan submitted by CTS to investigate the current extent of contamination at its former plant site on Mills Gap Road. The site is presently awaiting final approval to EPA’s National Priorities List, a move expected to place it alongside the other “Superfund” sites, the most contaminated sites on EPA’s national docket. Photo by Katie Damien.
Rep. Moffitt will chair committee to review handling of CTS site
The state’s handling of environmental contamination surrounding the former CTS of Asheville plant on Mills Gap Road is about to get some concerted attention in Raleigh, thanks to a special committee chaired by Rep. Tim Moffitt. See a detailed timeline of the long-standing CTS case after the jump. Photo by Katie Damien.
Green Scene: The walls fall
With asbestos abatement completed, a Buncombe County contractor began demolishing the former CTS of Asheville plant in south Asheville earlier this month. But while neighbors of the derelict structure have applauded the move as a long-overdue first step in cleaning up the contaminated site, resident Tate MacQueen, who’s played a key role in efforts to […]
Buncombe County begins demolishing CTS building in Mills Gap
While area residents applaud the CTS building demolition as a positive step, resident Tate MacQueen argues that Buncombe taxpayers will be picking up a tab that should rightfully be paid by the company responsible for contaminating the site and nearby ground water.
Local Matters: Buncombe County Commission tackles ABYSA, CTS
In this edition of the Mountain Xpress’ local news podcast, reporter Jake Frankel talks about the most recent Buncombe County Commission meeting, which saw some contentious public comment and a vote on the lease of several public soccer fields for use by the Asheville Buncombe Youth Soccer Association (ABYSA).
Buncombe Commissioners vote to lease soccer fields to ABYSA
The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously Oct. 18 to lease seven soccer fields at the Buncombe County Sports Park in Enka-Candler to the Asheville Buncombe Youth Soccer Association.
Local Matters: EPA’s $6.5 million bill for CTS
In this edition of the Mountain Xpress’ local news podcast, Green Scene reporter Susan Andrew discusses the most recent developments at the former site of the CTS plant, including Buncombe County’s decision to postpone demolishing the existing structure and the EPA’s $6.5 million bill for cost incurred thus far.
CTS is not about politics — it’s about people and the environment
I think it’s only fair and just to actually look at the facts that escaped Mr. Ramsey in his letter in the Oct. 5 Xpress [“Don Yelton, Problem Solvent”]. I am an environmental-systems engineer with a concentration in water-quality management. I have a master’s degree in environmental-systems engineering from Clemson University and a master’s degree […]
EPA seeks action, demands CTS and current owners cover costs on proposed Superfund site in Mills Gap
In a letter dated September 13, 2011, the Environmental Protection Agency has demanded payment of $6.5 million dollars to cover costs already incurred in its efforts to deal with contaminated ground water and soils near the former CTS of Asheville plant, located on Mills Gap Road in South Asheville. Meanwhile, Buncombe County Commissioners have postponed until November 1 their consideration of a decision to demolish the derelict building at taxpayer expense. Photo: Officials from EPA’s Superfund Branch stand at the gate to the CTS property during a recent sampling trip. Photo by Susan Andrew.
Buncombe County commissioners preview: Playing the field
At its Oct. 18 meeting, the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners will consider a proposal to lease soccer fields at the Buncombe County Sports Park in Enka-Candler to the Asheville Buncombe Youth Soccer Association.
EPA demands $6.5 million for “costs incurred to date” at contaminated CTS site
In a Sept. 13 letter to CTS Corporation and Mills Gap Road Associates, the Environmental Protection Agency demands that the companies pay about $6.5 million “for costs incurred to date.”
CTS property owner appeals condemnation
In an Oct. 6 letter to the Buncombe County Clerk, CTS property owner Mills Gap Road Associates appealed the county’s recent order that the building be demolished, saying that it would continue to cooperate with EPA. That agency is moving to place the property on the National Priorities List, a.k.a. Superfund, which would rank the Mills Gap site among the most contaminated properties in the nation.
Don Yelton, problem solvent
Thanks for keeping the community updated on the tragedy in slow motion happening at CTS [“Going Green,” Sept. 21 Xpress]. Don Yelton, a conservative talk-show host and political aspirant, brings up an interesting, yet straightforward scientific question: Will demolishing the building widen the scope of the already terrible industrial pollution on Mills Gap Road? Considering […]
CTS owners appeal county decision to condemn derelict plant building in Mills Gap
As Mills Gap residents looked on, an attorney representing the current owner of the former CTS of Asheville plant appealed to local government officials, asking them not to move forward with their plan to demolish the derelict plant building. Attorney Billy Clarke, representing Mills Gap Road Associates, told the presiding officials — County attorneys Kurt Euler and Michael Frue, and County Building Inspector Matt Stone — that the owners want to stabilize the building instead.
Local Matters: County Commission, CTS, Women In Business and more food trucks
In this edition of the Mountain Xpress’ local news podcast: Jake Frankel on the most recent Buncombe County Commission meeting; Susan Andrew with the latest on the CTS cleanup; Tracy Rose on the Women In Business supplement and David Forbes on the Asheville City Council meeting about downtown food trucks.
When there’s a Superfund site next door: Neighbors anticipate demolition of CTS plant
Larry Rice stands at the fence surrounding the spring that once provided his family’s drinking water. Contamination of the spring by hazardous chemicals, presumably from the former CTS of Asheville property immediately uphill, led to the area being fenced off by the state. EPA staff are hosting a “public availability session” regarding the site this evening at the Skyland Fire Department.
Not so fast on Superfund status: EPA reports delay in decision on CTS site
Superfund status for the CTS site likely won’t be decided in September: EPA officials recently told residents that placing the contaminated Mills Gap Road site on the federal National Priorities List — a key move toward Superfund status and cleanup — may be delayed.
Photo by Jonathan Welch