Duke case leaves it out in the coal.

• Author: Frank, Maggie
• Position: TAR HEEL TATTLER

It's not that Duke Energy Corp. would rather fight than switch when it comes to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rules. The Charlotte-based utility is switching--spending nearly $1.8 billion to install emissions-cleaning scrubbers on its largest coal-fired plants--but also fighting an emissions-related lawsuit filed by EPA in 2000.

Duke has won twice in federal court, but companies with similar cases have lost. EPA didn't appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, but environmental groups that joined the suit pressed on. The high court heard arguments in November and should decide by June.

Duke's opponents say the utility made changes that allowed it to run coal-fired plants more often and boost annual pollution levels impermissibly high. Duke argues that the emissions should be measured on an hourly, not annual, basis and that EPA changed its standards after the utility had begun work on the plants. Opponents say Duke merely ignored the standards all along.

Though it is installing scrubbers at its largest coal-fired plants to comply with the 2002 North Carolina Smokestacks Act, as well as with EPA regulations passed in 2006, Duke doesn't want to do that in all of its coal-powered...