Ash County moves to dismiss water-permit appeal and seek court order to issue asphalt-plant permit after Supreme Court ruling

The Ash County Board of Commissioners voted April 20 to withdraw its appeal of a water permit related to a proposed asphalt plant and to instruct county counsel to ask a superior court to order issuance of the plant’s county permit if the other party does not do so.

The action followed a report from the county attorney that, as he described it, the North Carolina Supreme Court had concluded the county was obligated to issue the permit and that coordinating the timing of the water-permit dismissal and the county permit issuance would avoid additional delays.

Why it matters: The proposed plant has drawn sustained opposition from local residents and an organized group that says the facility would harm air and water quality near Glendale Springs. The legal steps taken by the county…