The proposed agreement, which is subject to the approval of the court, comes even as the federal prosecutors have charged Duke Energy for violating the Clean Water Act.
The investigation was prompted by coal-ash waste release into the Dan River in Rockingham County, North Carolina, from a storm water pipe under a coal ash basin at the retired Duke Energy-owned Dan River Steam Station in February 2014.
The deal also addresses illegal discharges at Dan River Steam Station in Eden; maintenance issues at Cape Fear Steam Electric Plant in Moncure; and unauthorized discharges at Riverbend Steam Station in Mt. Holly, H.F. Lee Steam Electric Plant in Goldsboro and the Asheville Steam Electric Generating Plant.
Each of the issues is being addressed by the company through facility improvements or new permitting, the company said.
Duke has also agreed for a five-year probationary period with a court-appointed monitor to ensure compliance with provisions.
Duke Energy president and CEO Lynn Good said: "We are accountable for what happened at Dan River and have learned from this event."
