Wednesday, February 15th, 2017 | Posted by Guest Contributor | No Comments
For all my life, the coal economy has ruled this region and its people," writes Ron Short of Danville, Va., in a letter supporting the Stream Protection Rule. "Now we are facing the demise of the coal industry, and we must save the valuable natural resources that we have left if we are ever to develop cultural tourism and eco-tourism as important parts of a new economy that works for everyone." [
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Tuesday, February 7th, 2017 | Posted by Erin Savage | No Comments
When Congress voted last week to overturn the Stream Protection Rule, people braced themselves for the coming impacts. But threats to public water from corporate and political interests are nothing new in Central Appalachia, nor is the problem unique to this area. In the face of these threats, communities fighting for clean water need our continued support. [
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Wednesday, January 4th, 2017 | Posted by Brian Sewell | No Comments
Gov. Roy Cooper has appointed Michael Regan as the next secretary of the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality. Regan pledged to develop greater transparency at the agency. That alone could signal a shift from the prior DEQ leadership’s approach to public engagement on environmental issues. [
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Tuesday, December 20th, 2016 | Posted by Erin Savage | No Comments
On Monday, the U.S. Department of the Interior released the Stream Protection Rule, which aims to protect streams from the impacts of surface and longwall mining. The final rule offers only modest improvements to protections for public waterways, but it is well worth defending from congressional attack. [
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Tuesday, November 15th, 2016 | Posted by Willie Dodson | No Comments
“God gave us the water so we can stay clean, and so we can drink it. I don’t want poison in the water.” Those are the words of 6-year-old Levi Marney, spoken to representatives of the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy at a public meeting about the proposed Doe Branch mountaintop removal mine in Haysi. [
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Thursday, October 20th, 2016 | Posted by Katie Kienbaum | No Comments
At the first-ever Boone Energy Stakeholder Meeting, Appalachian Voices and other stakeholders took an important first step toward identifying solutions that could help tackle the problem of energy waste for the Town of Boone. [
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Wednesday, October 19th, 2016 | Posted by Amy Adams | No Comments
Earlier this month, North Carolina was devastated by the impacts of Hurricane Matthew. Flooding occurred across much of the state, with the hardest impacts felt in the east and among communities that are least able to bounce back from such a catastrophic event. While the flood waters are still receding, we are learning about the impacts left in their wake. [
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Friday, September 9th, 2016 | Posted by Elizabeth E. Payne | No Comments
In a letter sent to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Sept. 1, the U.S. Forest Service voiced concerns that the proposed route for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline could threaten several streams in the George Washington National Forest. [
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Friday, August 26th, 2016 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | 1 Comment
Education is a key part of our work, and one way we are helping residents lower their energy costs is by creating and sharing some short videos with Do-It-Yourself energy efficiency tip. This video features John Kidda, founder and President of reNew Homes, Inc., in Boone, N.C., discusses programmable thermostats as a way to save on heating and cooling. [
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Thursday, August 11th, 2016 | Posted by Brian Sewell | 1 Comment
Where does the war of words over coal ash health advisories leave North Carolinians with contaminated drinking water? Exactly where they were before: as distrustful of DEQ and DHHS as they are of their water’s safety. But in the battle between state employees and the McCrory administration, residents are clear on who they trust. [
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Tuesday, August 2nd, 2016 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | 1 Comment
The rushed introduction, concurrence and signing of North Carolina House Bill 630 puts at risk many aspects of the progress that residents and environmental groups have made since the introduction of the Coal Ash Management Act in 2014. [
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Tuesday, July 12th, 2016 | Posted by Guest Contributor | No Comments
Daile Boulis, a resident of Loudondale, W.Va., lives just a few thousand feet from the KD#2 mountaintop removal mine in Kanawha County, W.Va. At a recent gathering of The Alliance for Appalachia, Daile shared the story of how she became involved in the fight against mountaintop removal coal mining. [
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