NC scrapping controversial plan to clean Jordan Lake

Thursday, May 5, 2016
SolarBees plan suspended
Eyewitness video (Ian Slack)

DURHAM (WTVD) -- After two years, North Carolina is scrapping a controversial plan to clean the water in Jordan Lake.

The head of the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality said the "SolarBees," giant solar devices designed to cut down on algae, haven't worked.

After a 21-month trial, DEQ reports no significant improvement in water quality.

"I appreciate the work our staff has done over the last two years to evaluate the potential of the SolarBee technology to improve water quality at Jordan Lake," said Donald R. van der Vaart, secretary of the state environmental agency. "I'm discontinuing the SolarBee project after reviewing nearly two years of scientific data that show it will not yield the intended results."

That means the state will have to find a new way to improve the water in Jordan Lake, which supplies water to some 300,000 people in the Triangle.

READ MORE: Jordan Lake's SolarBees get stung in report

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