Thursday, June 4th, 2015 | Posted by Sandra Diaz | No Comments
Friday, May 29th, 2015 | Posted by Tom Cormons | 2 Comments
Our goal with Communities at Risk is to ramp up the pressure on the White House to end mountaintop removal. As citizens have argued for years, cracking down on the continuing devastation of Appalachian mountains and streams is critical to moving the region forward. It’s incumbent on the Obama administration to help revive Appalachian communities, which have powered the nation’s economic ascendancy for generations. [ Read More ]Thursday, March 19th, 2015 | Posted by Hannah Wiegard | No Comments
For Appalachian Voices and our partners, it was a mostly defensive game this year in the Virginia legislature as we fought a slew of bad bills by industry-backed and climate-denying politicians. We succeeded in squelching the worst of them, but a lot of policy that could have moved the commonwealth toward cleaner energy and a stronger economy fell by the wayside. There’s always next year…. [ Read More ]Monday, February 23rd, 2015 | Posted by Hannah Wiegard | No Comments
As the Virginia General Assembly enters the final days of its 2015 session, we can look back on five action-packed weeks. Among the many issues our lawmakers labored over, a few — including changes to state energy policy — were explosive enough to consistently make headlines. Here’s a recap of the drama, along with a few important policies that received less fanfare. [ Read More ]Friday, February 20th, 2015 | Posted by Brian Sewell | 8 Comments
The U.S. Department of Justice has filed criminal charges against Duke Energy for violating the federal Clean Water Act at coal ash sites across North Carolina. The company announced today that it has reached a plea agreement with federal prosecutors to resolve the charges that includes $102.2 million for fines and mitigation. [ Read More ]Monday, February 9th, 2015 | Posted by Amy Adams | No Comments
In the wake of the Dan River coal ash spill, which spewed 39,000 tons of the toxic waste into the scenic river, much attention has been given to the problems of leaky, unlined coal ash pits across North Carolina. What hasn't received adequate attention is another menacing threat just upstream from the site of last year's spill. [ Read More ]Tuesday, February 3rd, 2015 | Posted by Cat McCue | No Comments
A bi-partisan poll released today shows solid support among Virginia voters for the state to develop a plan to cut carbon pollution and shift to cleaner sources of energy. Meanwhile, in Richmond, the General Assembly is heading in the opposite direction, casting votes in favor of dirty fossil fuels. [ Read More ]Thursday, January 15th, 2015 | Posted by Thom Kay | 5 Comments
It was only a matter of time before the new Congress would commence with its anti-environmental, anti-science agenda. But 24 hours? That we weren't expecting. [ Read More ]Thursday, January 8th, 2015 | Posted by Amy Adams | 4 Comments
The long-awaited, first-ever federal rule for regulating toxic coal ash--the second largest waste stream in the U.S.-- was released before the holidays. Appalachian Voices dives into the 700+-page rule and finds, yes, a number of problems, but lo ... some bright spots, too. [ Read More ]Friday, December 19th, 2014 | Posted by Brian Sewell | 1 Comment
The day we've been waiting for has finally come. No, not Friday -- the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to release its long-awaited coal ash rule. But, as expected, the EPA's new rule does not go far enough to truly fix the major pollution problems associated with coal ash including contamination of waterways and drinking water supplies.
[ Read More ]Friday, December 5th, 2014 | Posted by Sarah Kellogg | 1 Comment
As the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency puts the final touches on the first-ever federal regulation of coal ash, North Carolina's response to the Dan River spill is still hotly contested and new controversies about the best ways to clean up coal ash are beginning to emerge. [ Read More ]Wednesday, December 3rd, 2014 | Posted by Thom Kay | No Comments
After six years of the Obama presidency, mountaintop removal coal mining continues to put Appalachian communities at risk, leading many to wonder what his legacy on the issue will be. The Alliance for Appalachia just released a Grassroots Progress Report examining the administration’s successes and shortfalls in dealing with mountaintop removal. [ Read More ]
