Asheville’s North Fork Reservoir will get another turbidity-reducing mineral treatment next week, as the lake’s murkiness continues to decline.
At Friday’s daily Tropical Storm Helene briefing, Asheville Water Resources spokesperson Clay Chandler said the key turbidity level dropped again since Wednesday, falling below 17 Nephelometric Turbidity Units (NTUs) by Friday morning, about a 1 point drop from Wednesday. Also, the amount of lake water the city is able to push into the system for filtration rose from 17 million gallons to 19 million, also a good sign as the city slowly heads toward providing potable water again.
The ultimate goal is to get turbidity down to 1.5-2.0 NTU, which would allow for optimal filtration.
Helene devastated the city’s water system Sept. 27, knocking out transmission lines from North Fork, which provides 80 percent of the city’s drinking water, and leaving the 350-acre lake a murky mess. Chandler said North Fork’s output capacity hovered between 17 million and 19 million gallons Thursday, until a 16-inch water line on Patton Avenue broke in the afternoon.
“And if you were anywhere in the area of Patton Avenue yesterday afternoon, you saw water on the street, but that’s been fixed,” Chandler said. “So that’s a good example that our ability to push treated water into the system is going to depend, obviously, on turbidity continuing to fall and no major breaks in the system.”
The city is pursuing a two-pronged approach to restoring potable water: reducing the reservoir’s turbidity through the installation of turbidity curtains to still the water, coupled with a four-day application next week of aluminum sulfate and caustic soda; and pursuing the installation of an Army Corps of Engineers mobile treatment facility at North Fork to treat high-turbidity water.
“They have verbally awarded the contract to a contractor for that project,” Chandler said of the Army Corps of Engineers. “That contractor will be on site early next week for a site visit, and the build-out will begin shortly after that.”
The timeline for that project’s completion remains late November or early December. Chandler explained that while the equipment, which allows filtration of high-turbidity water, will come in on trucks and is considered mobile, it still requires some construction, as well as determinations on what size of equipment is most appropriate.
“There is a lot of piping that’s going to have to be installed,” Chandler said. “Just right now, our estimate is that the piping is probably going to take up most of the build-out time. It’s not just a few feet — it could be as much as a couple of thousand feet.”
Additionally, the units have to be laser-leveled when set into place, as even a small amount of unevenness could cause problems or even damage.
Asheville Watchdog asked Chandler why the city initially said it could not process North Fork water until the turbidity level had dropped to 1.5 to 2 NTU but is now filtering 19 million gallons a day of water with 17 NTUs.
“We’re able to push treated water into the system due to the change not only in the overall level of turbidity, but also in the density of the turbidity-causing material,” Chandler said after the briefing. “Initially, the turbidity was thick mud, which would obviously wreak havoc on our filters. Since then, the overall level has lowered and the particles have ‘slimmed up,’ so to speak, so they can be washed out of the filters.”
By comparison, the water in the city’s Bee Tree Reservoir in Swannanoa remains a thick mud with a turbidity in the 140 NTUs range, down from more than 200 initially, he said.
The city needs North Fork to reach 27 million gallons of water per day being treated and sent out to fully pressurize and flush the system. That flushing and repressuring could take two to three weeks, Chandler has said previously, so a return to potable water could still not come until mid-December.
Chandler also noted that North Fork’s 20,000-plus acre watershed sustained “significant tree loss” during Helene, including from a possible tornado that twisted off trees half-way up.
“We don’t expect the quality of the water to decline,” Chandler said. “The tributaries that are pushing water into the North Fork Reservoir now are crystal clear.”
Starting next week, a contractor will begin the city’s third application of aluminum sulfate and caustic soda at North Fork. The materials help clay particles coagulate and sink, leaving clearer water to filter.
Asheville Watchdog is a nonprofit news team producing stories that matter to Asheville and Buncombe County. John Boyle has been covering Asheville and surrounding communities since the 20th century. You can reach him at (828) 337-0941, or via email at jboyle@avlwatchdog.org. The Watchdog’s local reporting during this crisis is made possible by donations from the community. To show your support for this vital public service go toavlwatchdog.org/support-our-publication/.
www.thecentersquare.com – By David Beasley | The Center Square contributor – (The Center Square – ) 2025-04-30 21:25:00
(The Center Square) – Authorization of sports agents to sign North Carolina’s collegiate athletes for “name, image, and likeness” contracts used in product endorsements is in legislation approved Wednesday by a committee of the state Senate.
Authorize NIL Agency Contracts, known also as Senate Bill 229, is headed to the Rules Committee after gaining favor in the Judiciary Committee. It would likely next get a full floor vote.
Last year the NCAA approved NIL contracts for players.
Sen. Amy S. Galey, R-Alamance
NCLeg.gov
“Athletes can benefit from NIL by endorsing products, signing sponsorship deals, engaging in commercial opportunities and monetizing their social media presence, among other avenues,” the NCAA says on its website. “The NCAA fully supports these opportunities for student-athletes across all three divisions.”
SB229 spells out the information that the agent’s contract with the athlete must include, and requires a warning to the athlete that they could lose their eligibility if they do not notify the school’s athletic director within 72 hours of signing the contract.
“Consult with your institution of higher education prior to entering into any NIL contract,” the says the warning that would be required by the legislation. “Entering into an NIL contract that conflicts with state law or your institution’s policies may have negative consequences such as loss of athletic eligibility. You may cancel this NIL agency contract with 14 days after signing it.”
The legislation also exempts the NIL contracts from being disclosed under the state’s Open Records Act when public universities review them. The state’s two ACC members from the UNC System, Carolina and N.C. State, requested the exemption.
“They are concerned about disclosure of the student-athlete contracts when private universities don’t have to disclose the student-athlete contracts,” Sen. Amy Galey, R-Alamance, told the committee. “I feel very strongly that a state university should not be put at a disadvantage at recruitment or in program management because they have disclosure requirements through state law.”
Duke and Wake Forest are the other ACC members, each a private institution.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Centrist
The article primarily reports on the legislative development regarding NIL (name, image, and likeness) contracts for collegiate athletes in North Carolina. It presents facts about the bill, committee actions, and includes statements from a state senator without using loaded or emotionally charged language. The piece neutrally covers the issue by explaining both the bill’s purpose and the concerns it addresses, such as eligibility warnings and disclosure exemptions. Overall, the article maintains a factual and informative tone without advocating for or against the legislation, reflecting a centrist, unbiased approach.
SUMMARY: Donald van der Vaart, a former North Carolina environmental secretary and climate skeptic, has been appointed to the North Carolina Utilities Commission by Republican Treasurer Brad Briner. Van der Vaart, who previously supported offshore drilling and fracking, would oversee the state’s transition to renewable energy while regulating utility services. His appointment, which requires approval from the state House and Senate, has drawn opposition from environmental groups. Critics argue that his views contradict clean energy progress. The appointment follows a controversial bill passed by the legislature, granting the treasurer appointment power to the commission.
www.thecentersquare.com – By Alan Wooten | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-04-30 14:47:00
(The Center Square) – Called “crypto-friendly legislation” by the leader of the chamber, a proposal on digital assets on Wednesday afternoon passed the North Carolina House of Representatives.
Passage was 71-44 mostly along party lines.
The NC Digital Assets Investments Act, known also as House Bill 92, has investment requirements, caps and management, and clear definitions and standards aimed at making sure only qualified digital assets are included. House Speaker Destin Hall, R-Caldwell, said the state would potentially join more than a dozen others with “crypto-friendly legislation.”
With him in sponsorship are Reps. Stephen Ross, R-Alamance, Mark Brody, R-Union, and Mike Schietzelt, R-Wake.
Nationally last year, the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act – known as FIT21 – passed through the U.S. House in May and in September was parked in the Senate’s Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.
Dan Spuller, cochairman of the North Carolina Blockchain Initiative, said the state has proven a leader on digital asset policy. That includes the Money Transmitters Act of 2016, the North Carolina Regulatory Sandbox Act of 2021, and last year’s No Centrl Bank Digital Currency Pmts to State. The latter was strongly opposed by Gov. Roy Cooper, so much so that passage votes of 109-4 in the House and 39-5 in the Senate slipped back to override votes, respectively, of 73-41 and 27-17.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Centrist
The article presents a factual report on the passage of the NC Digital Assets Investments Act, highlighting the legislative process, party-line votes, and related legislative measures. It does not adopt a clear ideological stance or frame the legislation in a way that suggests bias. Instead, it provides neutral information on the bill, its sponsors, and relevant background on state legislative activity in digital asset policy. The tone and language remain objective, focusing on legislative facts rather than promoting a particular viewpoint.
