Coal Ash Removal/Truck Routes
Duke Energy is hosting an open house this Thursday, May 7 at the Williamston Municipal Center to explain the removal of approximately 3.4 million tons of coal ash from the W. S. Lee Steam station.
The open house will be from 4:30 p.m. untll 7:30 p.m. and bus tours to the plant will be available, Duke officials said.
Duke Energy spokesman Ryan Mosier said that the energy giant understands that the project will be highly visible and that every effort is being made to reduce the impact on the community.
Duke Energy, in partnership with Waste Management, will begin removing more than three million tons of that coal ash in mid May.
The ash will be relocated by truck to Waste Management’s fully lined and permitted solid waste disposal facility, in Homer, Ga.
The project is expected to take approximately three years to complete. Waste Management has allocated 50 new trucks for the project.
Residents of Williamston, Pelzer, West Pelzer, Piedmont and surrounding areas including Cheddar and South Greenville, will be impacted by the additional traffic.
There will be an inbound route and an outbound route with a morning route from staging and fuel area to W. S. Lee and an evening route from I-85 to the staging and fuel area in Cheddar.
A parking site for staging has been prepared at the O’Dell Oil facility in Belton, where the trucks will fuel up each day before beginning their trips.
The trucks will leave from both O’Dell Oil and the plant in a timed manner to avoid congestion along the routes, Duke officials said.
Maps and information about the proposed truck routes into and out of the plant will be available at the open house.
There are six potential routes and public input into those routes is encouraged, said Mosier.
In addition to obtaining information on the coal ash removal project, residents can find out more about construction of a new facility at the site.
Duke Energy Carolinas plans to build and operate a 750-megawatt natural gas-fired combined-cycle plant at the existing W.S. Lee Steam Station.
Construction on the new facility will begin sometime this summer.
Site prep is currently underway for the facility that will house the two new combined cycle natural gas turbines, and energy production could begin as early as 2017.
The construction of the new plant is part of a comprehensive, long-term plan to add new generation, modernize the fleet, maintain a diverse fuel portfolio and manage customer costs.
Inbound route
• Leave W.S. Lee westbound on Lee Steam Plant Road (right turn from main entrance)
• Proceed northwest to Cannon Bottom Road (SR S-4-116), which becomes Hamilton Street through the town of Willamston
• Turn right onto Highway 20 (Greenville Drive)
• Continue north to Highway 8 (Main Street) and turn left at intersection heading west
• Continue on Highway 8 through the town of West Peltzer to I-85
• Turn left at intersection onto on-ramp heading southbound
Outbound route
• Leave W.S. Lee eastbound on Lee Steam Plant Road (left turn from main entrance)
• Proceed east to Highway 52 (Holland Ford Road/Beech Springs Road) and turn right
• Continue east on Highway 52 to Highway 247 (Belton Highway) and turn left at intersection going northbound
• Continue northeast on Highway 247 to Highway 25 and turn left at intersection
• Keep north on Highway 25 to Highway 86 and turn left at intersection
• Continue on Highway 86 through the town of Piedmont to I-85
• Turn left at intersection onto on-ramp heading southbound
Morning route:
From Staging and Fuel Area to W.S. Lee
• O’Dell Oil right on Sherrard Road
• Sherrard Road left on SC-20
• SC-20 right on Big Creek Road
• Big Creek Road right on Cannon Bottom Road
• Cannon Bottom Road right on Lee Steam Plant Road
• Lee Steam Plant Road right on Lee Steam Plant Access Road
Evening route:
From I-85
to Staging and Fuel Area
• I-85 right on SC-8
• SC 8 right on Midway Road
• Midway Road left on Cherokee Road
• Cherokee Road right onto Chippewa Lane
• To Beaverdam Road
• Beaverdam Road right on SC-20
• SC-20 right on Sherrard Road
