Statement by Appalachian Voices on impact of Trump energy executive orders on rural Appalachia

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 21, 2025

CONTACT
Dan Radmacher, Media Specialist, (540) 798-6683, dan@appvoices.org 

One of the many executive orders issued by President Donald Trump on his first day in office, “Unleashing American Energy,” ironically would stymie renewable energy growth. The order pauses disbursement of funds authorized by the bipartisan infrastructure law of 2021 and the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. This could halt momentum on projects that are creating good jobs and ensuring rural and Appalachian communities benefit from the latest energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies. Many of these renewable energy and efficiency projects are locally driven and are making our communities more resilient to grid disruptions in the face of extreme weather, reducing power bills for community institutions and cutting pollution in addition to mitigating the severity of climate change.

Practically, this executive order will disrupt workers’ progress on vital community projects such as replacing lead pipes and removing contaminants like PFAS from drinking water, restoring abandoned mine lands, improving electricity reliability and protecting communities from leaking methane pipelines. 

Trump also issued an executive order that targets programs seeking to ensure that communities that have been left behind are given a fair shot at a thriving future. That order eliminates environmental justice programs as well as other positions and offices that serve underrepresented communities. Trump also rescinded an executive order issued by President Joe Biden that established new federal programs to support economic growth and environmental health and safety in coal mining and power plant communities and other disadvantaged communities.

Statement from Appalachian Voices Executive Director Tom Cormons:
“Across Appalachia, churches, schools, small towns and rural counties have pursued  the opportunity through these programs to save money by adopting newer, cleaner and more efficient energy technologies. This executive action disrupts common-sense investments that are boosting local economies; creating jobs in construction, clean energy, mine land cleanup and other fields; enhancing energy reliability; saving money for local institutions and cutting pollution in rural, low-income and other underserved communities.”