People Power in Action: Task Force Report Revealed, SSEP-Watch Needs You, and Solidarity Is Coming
What's new this week: We're back with the full breakdown of the Governor's Energy Policy Task Force report we previewed last week, an expanded look at how easy it is to join our SSEP-Watch monitoring efforts, and a reminder that the Army Corps deadline is still looming.
Plus: don't miss Communities Over Corporate Profit on March 8th in Durham!
What’s Next With the SSEP?
Visit nossep.org & stopmvpsouthgate.com to stay up to date with community resilience efforts against the Southeast Supply Enhancement Project, Mountain Valley Pipeline, and other fossil fuel projects in the Southeast. Communities Over Pipelines!
Haw River Assembly’s concerns on the open-cut, dry ditch methods Transco-Williams plans to use during the construction of the SSEP still stand. These methods will be used for the vast majority of the route, including the buffer areas of Jordan Lake and Randleman Lake. This causes great concern for sedimentation pollution and additional impact on local ecosystems.
We need volunteers to join our SSEP-Watch!
Haw River Assembly is providing essential support by aiding in and conducting initial water testing. This is necessary to have baseline data to compare potential construction violations to.
Interested in taking part in these efforts? Are you a landowner along the Right-of-Way (ROW) or near the route who can allow members of our SSEP-Watch to go on your property to take photos and samples? Please fill out this form to demonstrate your interest: https://forms.gle/s1Q36vp5MyT3xCmd7
It doesn’t take much to help, and you don’t need to be in the field! We need volunteers to submit data, amplify stories, and track violations. And if you do wanna be out in the field, it’s not as overwhelming as you think! We’ll equip you with the proper tools, a partner (monitoring never occurs alone), and you gotta snap a picture and take a quick pH test. We give you all the training and tools you need!
Make Your Voice Heard From Wherever You Are
Want more info on how to get involved? Need a different way to voice your frustration and disappointment? Another essential area of our continued fight is to put pressure on NC state representatives and local elected officials. This focus will be great for those who are further away from the ROW/can't commit to on-the-ground monitoring. Email me at aidan@hawriver.org, and I can provide more information, help you with a letter to the editor, and/or send comments to local elected officials.
I greatly admire the strength and resilience of our community in the face of all these pressures. Thank you for being a part of the fight up to now.
Governor Stein's Energy Policy Task Force: What is it?
The Governor's Energy Policy Task Force has released its first report on the state of energy policy in North Carolina. Read the release here and review the one-pager below to learn about the Task Force, its purpose, and its structure.
The Task Force’s report warns that rapid electricity demand growth - projected at 16% to nearly 60% by 2040 driven by data centers - threatens affordability and reliability. The report outlines the following nine key recommendations:
Develop options for large-load tariffs
Develop options for “bring your own capacity” and alternative capacity procurement methods
Develop options to encourage load flexibility
Explore reforms to large-load and generation interconnection processes
Assess the dollar and strategic value of existing sales and use tax exemptions for data centers
Explore evaluation process for advanced transmission technologies and grid-enhancing technologies
Explore residential and small business incentives for energy efficiency improvements
Explore development of a third-party load forecasting process
Explore energy and water usage reporting for data centers
Check out this article from NC Newsline by Caroline Hansley: Duke is stymieing progress in NC. Stand up for affordability for a deeper analysis.
Climate Resiliency Curriculum
How do we equip individuals with the tools, knowledge, and resources to build resilient communities in the face of climate change?
The Haw River Assembly is excited to offer a hands-on training program designed to build climate resilience through education, research, and action. Research and education must be paired with action and advocacy. By the end of our Climate Resiliency Curriculum, students will be prepared to engage directly in their community on a local issue.
This two-to-three-day lesson plan supports students in:
1. Determining and clearly articulating their climate advocacy goals and concerns
2. Learning how to research climate change effectively and identify credible resources
3. Taking direct action by engaging with local systems of power to achieve actionable change
Do you know a student in high school or college feeling overwhelmed or powerless in the face of the climate crisis? Are you a teacher/professor with students curious about how to make an effective change in our community? Email aidan@hawriver.org to learn more and register.
Mark your calendars: Learn about Organizing Victories Across our State!
Communities Over Corporate Profit: How We Win
This is an event focused on:
sharing the collective successes of our movements in the past year,
celebrating the communities who are building power in NC,
equipping people to replicate ongoing initiatives in their own communities!
Here’s what you need to know:
When: March 8 2026, 12-3pm
Where Durham Central Park Pavilion, 501 Foster Street , Durham, NC 27701
What: music, art with Paperhand Puppet Project, participatory group activities, keynote speakers, networking opportunities, and so much more! Family friendly / kid friendly art welcomed and encouraged!
Background:
This event is part two of the collaborative Communities Over Corporate Profit campaign. Last October, over 20 NC organizations and advocacy groups came together to throw an event highlighting the importance of prioritizing our communities over corporate greed. The event, which also generated signatures for a list of demands to Governor Stein, was a success! Folks at the event were eager for more opportunities to engage on the issues we raised of low wages, high energy bills, AI data centers, and heat causing dangerous working conditions. On Sunday March 8th, join us, learn and get inspired, then go forth in your community and mobilize! No registration required.
We are facing challenging times as a country. Together, in our corner of the world, we will fight to protect our Haw River and our Haw River community by standing in solidarity efforts for justice for the water and justice for the people. As always, this is Aidan wishing community care, light, and love.
Take care of yourselves and each other,
~ Aidan Loretz (she/her, they/them)