One of the largest utilities in the United States, Duke Energy, has been in the news following the ruling on its decade long litigation with the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency concerning the former’s unclean operations. The charges against the utilities company began when it acquired Cinergy’s Gallagher plant in 2006.

Allegedly, it violated the Clean Air Act during the upgradation of six power plants in Indiana and Ohio sans the required permits while simultaneously avoiding the installation of modern pollution- control equipment in its Gallagher plant resulting in adding 40 tons of noxious Sulphur-di-oxide into the atmosphere.

The court ruled that Duke convert those units to natural gas or install equipment to remove all sulphur dioxide pollution. Marc Manly, Duke Energy's Chief Legal Officer is quite pleased with the settlement at the end of 10 years.

The company’s cleanup operations now entail a total expenditure of about $93 million which will include $5 million to upgrade and expand the power output of its 81-megawatt Markland Dam hydroelectric power plant, $1.75 million civil penalty to resolve violations of federal clean air laws and $6.25 million on environmental mitigation projects.

Additionally, it will also spend $85 million to cut sulphur dioxide emissions at its Gallagher plant near New Albany, Ind., by nearly 35,000 tons per year.