Written by Dan Radmacher
Dan Radmacher
Dan is Appalachian Voice's Media Specialist. Previously, he worked as an opinion journalist for newspapers in Illinois, West Virginia, Florida and Virginia, and then as a communications consultant for a number of environmental nonprofit organizations.
Russell County passes resolution supporting black lung benefit increases
Last night, Russell County supervisors passed a resolution urging U.S. Rep. Morgan Griffith and U.S. Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner to support legislation increasing black lung benefits.
CANCELED: Justice family coal company must explain to regulators why mountaintop removal mining permit should not be revoked
A coal company owned and operated by the family of U.S. Sen. Jim Justice, R-W.Va., will need to explain why its permit for a large mountaintop removal mining operation known as the Poca mine shouldn’t be revoked.
Appalachian Voices applauds Senate Appropriations Committee for pushing back against cuts for black lung and miner safety programs
Today, the Senate Appropriations Committee voted to advance its Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Fiscal Year 2026 funding bill. The package includes funding for mine safety and black lung programs.
Statement on introduction of important pipeline safety bill
Yesterday, Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., and Edward Markey D-Mass. and Reps. Scott Peters, D-Calif., and Troy Carter, Sr. D-La., introduced the Gas Pipeline Leak Detection and Repair Act of 2025.
Statement on Trump administration’s intent to rollback greenhouse gas endangerment finding
Today, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin announced that the EPA will propose a rule to repeal the 2009 endangerment finding that has been crucial for regulating greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change.
Experts say Dominion fails to prove reliability need for Chesterfield gas plant
On behalf of Appalachian Voices, Mothers Out Front, and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the Southern Environmental Law Center filed testimony from Telos Energy before the Virginia State Corporation Commission showing that Dominion’s proposed Chesterfield gas plant is not necessary to ensure reliable power.
EPA Plans to Roll Back Air and Water Protections
Last spring, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced its intention to roll back dozens of vital environmental health protections, calling it the “biggest deregulatory action in U.S. history.”
Gas Buildout Continues Across Southeast
A massive buildout of methane gas infrastructure in Virginia, North Carolina and Tennessee is taking place across the Southeast.
EPA moves to weaken long overdue coal ash protections
Yesterday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that it will delay deadlines to require utilities to inspect coal ash contamination and begin to clean up coal ash impoundments with a draft extension rule and companion proposal.
Trump administration rubber stamps bankrupt coal company’s encroachment into Monongahela National Forest
Today, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement determined that a bankrupt coal company with a long history of regulatory violations has the right to haul coal through the Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia.
