Western North Carolina residents are asking Duke Energy to rethink its use of fossil fuels in the region. 

Community leaders delivered to Duke Energy representatives more than 5,500 petitions from area residents urging the company to move from burning coal at its Asheville coal plant to investing in homegrown clean energy solutions, the Western North Carolina Alliance said in a press release.

Pollution from the plant is leaking into the French Broad River, says Riverkeeper Hartwell Carson, who helped deliver the petitions. 

“Duke’s toxic coal ash problem is another reason why Asheville needs this plant replaced with clean energy solutions,” Carson said. 

Asheville City Council passed a resolution in late October calling on Duke Energy to partner with the city in moving from fossil fuels to clean energy, the press release stated. 

“North Carolina is now fourth in the country for installed solar capacity,” said Erika Schneider, director of communications at Sundance Power Systems. “Our state is a leader and our region can be a leader, too. Duke Energy only has to look around to find companies and people ready to power our homes and business with clean, local energy made right here.”