Duke Energy will soon begin making alterations to its L.V. Sutton Plant, both above and below ground.

The utility announced Tuesday that it is ready to start two initiatives that represent a move away from the New Hanover County plant’s coal-dependent past. In December 2013, Duke Energy brought a new natural gas-fired unit into service at Sutton and began decommissioning the site’s original coal-fired units, which had operated since plant operations started in 1954.

The first initiative involves removing the plant’s two iconic smokestacks, a prominent feature of the local skyline but no longer needed for the gas-powered plant. The second initiative consists of removing the coal ash stored underground in unlined pits, as ordered by the state.

Demolition of the smokestacks should start in the next few weeks, according to the company’s news release, which detailed the complex process. First, using a helicopter, a contractor will place steel equipment on each stack to make it easier to remove the inner lining of the structures. Once that is complete, the contractor will attach a “doughnut-shaped device” to the top of each stack.

“Over the next few months, the equipment will descend the height of the 550-foot stacks, methodically removing sections of concrete at a rate of approximately five to 10 feet per week,” the release stated.

The second initiative – removal of the coal ash and storage in lined pits elsewhere in the state – has taken a step forward with the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) issuance of draft wastewater and stormwater permits earlier this month.

A final version of these permits is necessary for the company to begin drying and excavating coal ash from the site and moving it to fully lined, permanent storage locations, Duke officials stated in the release. Now the drafts enter a public comment period and subsequently will be finalized by the state.

The drafts reflect increased state regulatory oversight and a “major modification” to the plant’s current National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit, according to the information DENR included in its July 2 announcement of the draft permits’ availability for public review and comment.

“In accordance with the Coal Ash Management Act of 2014, Duke Energy Progress is required to close its Sutton Plant coal ash ponds by August 1, 2019,” the DENR release stated. “The permit modification includes effluent limitations and monitoring that must be implemented as the ash ponds are dewatered, a necessary step before ash can be removed to a separate storage location.”

DENR will host a public hearing on the draft permits Aug. 6 at Cape Fear Community College’s Union Station auditorium. Registration for those who wish to speak begins at 5 p.m., DENR’s release stated.