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Residents in Poplar, North Carolina, are fed up with an allegedly illegal mining operation they say has been polluting the riverbed and sending thick dust into the air for nearly a year as the mountain community still rebuilds from Hurricane Helene.

Outraged Western North Carolinians in the tight-knit community are traveling to Boone on Monday where a court hearing will determine whether the mine operated by Horizon 30, LLC, can be shut down or face civil or criminal penalties.

On Friday, the North Carolina Department of Labor (NCDOL) announced that it had determined the mining operation at Carter Quarry in Mitchell County was unauthorized and in violation of state mining laws.

The North Carolina Justice Department is se

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