Lake Wateree Contamination Investigation Preceded by Federal Lawsuit

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by JENN WOOD

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A group of property owners on Lake Wateree in the Midlands region of South Carolina filed a federal class-action lawsuit more than two years ago accusing Charlotte, N.C.-based Duke Energy of contaminating the lake through decades of mosquito-control practices.

These practices allegedly involved spraying oil mixtures containing toxic industrial chemicals across the lake’s shoreline for years on end.

The 2024 lawsuit (.pdf), filed in U.S. District Court in Columbia, alleges Duke and its predecessor entities intentionally released polychlorinated biphenyls — commonly known as PCBs — into Lake Wateree for years through a mosquito abatement program tied to operation of the utility’s hydroelectric reservoirs. Plaintiffs say that contamination remains in the lake today, affecting fish, sediment and shoreline property values.

News of the lake’s contamination was brought to light last week when state lawmakers demanded a new investigation into its “origins.”

News of the lawsuit was first reported by Sammy Fretwell of The (Columbia, S.C.) State newspaper in February 2024. Little else was written about the complaint at the time, however.

The federal filing was submitted by three Lake Wateree property owners — Clyde Marcus Jones II, Dennis Phillips and Deborah Phillips — on behalf of themselves and other waterfront homeowners who allegedly suffered diminished property value, loss of use and enjoyment of their land, and continuing environmental exposure tied to contamination in the lake.

At the center of the case is a claim that Duke’s long-running mosquito control program used transformer oil and motor oil on the water surface — materials plaintiffs allege contained PCB compounds later banned nationwide because of their toxicity and persistence in the environment.

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WHAT THE LAWSUIT ALLEGES

According to the complaint, Duke operated what plaintiffs describe as one of the oldest continuous mosquito-control programs run by a utility in the United States, beginning in the early twentieth century and continuing until 2016. Plaintiffs allege that during that program, Duke repeatedly spread oil mixtures over the shoreline and stagnant water areas around Lake Wateree to suppress mosquito breeding.

The suit alleges those applications continued even after PCB health risks became widely known and after federal regulators began restricting the chemicals.

PCBs were widely used in industrial equipment because they resist heat and electrical breakdown, but federal regulators later classified them as probable human carcinogens. Once released into water and sediment, they can persist for decades and accumulate in fish tissue.

Plaintiffs argue that contamination from those historical practices now interferes with waterfront owners’ riparian rights and has permanently affected the lake’s environmental condition.

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SWORN AFFIDAVITS DESCRIBE SPRAYING OPERATIONS

Supporting the lawsuit are sworn affidavits from two Kershaw County men who say they personally worked in Duke’s mosquito-control program as teenagers.

According to his affidavit (.pdf), William Beckham stated he was hired in 1965 and instructed to spread oil from two 55-gallon barrels loaded into an aluminum boat, focusing on stagnant shoreline areas across the lake. He said the barrels were stored on Duke-owned shoreline property and described the material as smelling like motor oil, brown to golden-brown in color, with thick dark sludge at times visible in the mixture. He estimated crews applied roughly 500 gallons per week during treatment periods.

His brother, Henry Beckham (.pdf), stated he worked summers from 1968 through 1973 and said supervisors specifically told workers the mixture included burned transformer oil along with motor oil. He described filling barrels from a larger storage container on Duke property and spraying shoreline areas weekly throughout the summer.

Neither affidavit independently established chemical composition through laboratory proof, but both are now being used by plaintiffs to support the lawsuit’s central historical allegations.

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RELATED | S.C. LAWMAKERS SEEK INVESTIGATION INTO LAKE WATEREE CONTAMINATION

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SCIENTIFIC STUDY SUPPORTS POSSIBLE SOURCE THEORY

Plaintiffs also attached a 2021 scientific study (.pdf) published in the Journal of South Carolina Water Resources examining PCB contamination patterns across South Carolina and North Carolina waterways.

That study identified the Catawba-Wateree basin as one of the state’s major PCB-affected regions and noted that Lake Wateree has long-standing fish consumption advisories involving multiple species, including largemouth bass, catfish, striped bass and black crappie.

Researchers suggested historical mosquito-control programs involving used transformer oil on hydroelectric reservoirs may explain contamination patterns in reservoirs where no clear industrial discharge source has been identified.

The paper specifically identified reservoirs in Duke’s Catawba-Wateree system as fitting that pattern.

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WHY THIS CASE MATTERS NOW

The lawsuit arrives as South Carolina lawmakers are also beginning to examine PCB contamination in Lake Wateree.

As FITSNews reported last week, freshman state senator Jeff Graham introduced legislation directing state environmental regulators to investigate the source of PCB contamination in the lake and determine whether Duke Energy or predecessor entities bear responsibility.

That proposed inquiry would require the S.C. Department of Environmental Services (SCDES) to examine historical contamination sources and report findings to state leaders later this year.

The federal lawsuit and the proposed legislative investigation now place the same core issue under parallel scrutiny:

How did PCB contamination become embedded in Lake Wateree — and who is responsible?

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WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

Despite being more than two years old, the federal case remains in its early stages.

Duke Energy has not been found liable for any contamination alleged in the complaint, and the litigation will now move through discovery, where both sides are expected to seek internal records, historical operational documents, expert testimony and environmental evidence tied to decades of lake management.

At the same time, the legal fight is unfolding alongside growing political pressure in Columbia, where lawmakers are now seeking a formal state investigation into the origin of PCB contamination in Lake Wateree and whether Duke Energy or its predecessor entities bear responsibility.

For residents who have lived along the lake for decades, the lawsuit raises questions that go well beyond courtroom filings — including whether contamination has affected property values, recreational use, fishing practices and long-term confidence in one of South Carolina’s most popular reservoirs.

FITSNews will be traveling to Lake Wateree in the coming days to speak directly with waterfront property owners, longtime residents, and community members about how the contamination issue has affected them — and what they believe should happen next.

That reporting will help shape the next phase of our coverage as both the federal lawsuit and state-level scrutiny move forward.

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THE FEDERAL COMPLAINT

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …

As a private investigator turned journalist, Jenn Wood brings a unique skill set to FITSNews as its research director. Known for her meticulous sourcing and victim-centered approach, she helps shape the newsroom’s most complex investigative stories while producing the FITSFiles and Cheer Incorporated podcasts. Jenn lives in South Carolina with her family, where her work continues to spotlight truth, accountability, and justice.

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