Tuesday, June 2nd, 2015 | Posted by Guest Contributor | 2 Comments
"Kindness always lit up the face of Jean Ritchie," begins this remembrance by author Silas House of the Appalachian folk icon who died yesterday at 92. "She was a source of incredible pride for my people. Everyone I knew loved Jean Ritchie, and they especially loved the way she represented Appalachian people: with generosity and sweetness, yes. But also with defiance and strength." [ Read More ]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 ]Friday, May 22nd, 2015 | Posted by Adam Wells | No Comments
Last week's SOAR Summit provided a positive forum for people working to strengthen local economies in Appalachia. But, even with so many who care deeply about the region gathering in one place, there was disappointingly little time or space created for discussion amongst the people who are doing the lion's share of the groundwork in Appalachian communities. [ Read More ]Tuesday, May 5th, 2015 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | 1 Comment
Two species of crayfish native to Appalachia are in danger of becoming extinct after years of suffering habitat loss and water quality impacts attributable to mountaintop removal coal mining and other industrial activity. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agency is proposing the species be listed as endangered under federal law. Whether or not they are pushed past the point of no return depends largely on the outcome of a recent proposal by the agency to add them to the federal list of endangered species. [ Read More ]Tuesday, April 28th, 2015 | Posted by Brian Sewell | No Comments
Appalachian Voices is committed to creating a forum for citizens' stories and sharing the most up-to-date data available about the ongoing risks the practice poses to Appalachia. Today, we’re sharing a new web tool we developed to reveal how mining continues to encroach on communities and send a resounding message that ending mountaintop removal is a must if we hope to foster economic and environmental health in Appalachia. [ Read More ]Friday, April 10th, 2015 | Posted by Sarah Kellogg | 2 Comments
North Carolina Rep. Pricey Harrison introduced a bill today to phase out North Carolina’s use of mountaintop removal coal. The bill mirrors one that has been in the legislature before and that received bipartisan backing, with 75 legislators signing a letter of support. Rep. Harrison's bill also aims to help ratepayers during the economic recovery by placing a moratorium on new coal-fired power plants in the state.
[ Read More ]Tuesday, March 17th, 2015 | Posted by Eric Chance | 1 Comment
After we revealed thousands of water pollution violations at Frasure Creek Mining’s mountaintop removal coal mines in eastern Kentucky, state regulators (finally) took administrative action. Appalachian Voices and our partners are seeking to intervene in that process to ensure environmental protections are enforced, and we have filed our own lawsuit in federal court.
[ Read More ]Monday, February 23rd, 2015 | Posted by Eric Chance | 1 Comment
Friday, Appalachian Voices and our partners filed a motion to intervene in a case between the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet and Frasure Creek Mining to ensure clean water laws are being enforced in Kentucky. To anyone following our lawsuits in Kentucky, these recent developments will sound familiar. [ Read More ]Tuesday, February 3rd, 2015 | Posted by Brian Sewell | 3 Comments
The Obama administration’s 2016 budget calls for hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funds to be spent cleaning up abandoned strip mines, and to support economic development and workforce training in mining communities facing layoffs as coal is increasingly outcompeted in America’s energy mix. Read a statement from Appalachian Voices Legislative Associate Thom Kay on the proposals.
[ Read More ]Tuesday, January 20th, 2015 | Posted by Eric Chance | No Comments
Kentucky regulators recently filed an administrative complaint against Frasure Creek Mining for hundreds of violations of the Clean Water Act. As we wait to see if the state is going to take its responsibility to protect the people and water of Kentucky from pollution seriously, Appalachian Voices will continue to do whatever we can to ensure that Frasure Creek and other polluters are held accountable. [ Read More ]Thursday, January 8th, 2015 | Posted by Brian Sewell | No Comments
From The Appalachian Voice Online: "Secret Wisdom of the Earth," the debut novel by Christopher Scotton released this week, is a coming-of-age story that takes familiar themes — tragedy and the quest to find healing — and explores them with the backdrop of a Central Appalachian community beset by mountaintop removal coal mining. [ Read More ]Friday, December 5th, 2014 | Posted by Eric Chance | 1 Comment
The Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet's dismissive attitude toward the severity of mining pollution in the state is unsurprising after citizen cases against one coal company exposed the agency’s utter failure to enforce the Clean Water Act. But the jig is up. The Cabinet should stop trying to cover up its incompetence and actually do its job. [ Read More ]
