Written by Hannah Wiegard

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Hannah Wiegard

Hannah is a life-long Virginian and serves as the campaign coordinator for Appalachian Voices' Virginia program.

Charlottesville Joins National Day of Climate Action

From Anchorage to Miami, and South Portland to San Diego, thousands of people came out for the National Day of Climate Action this month. In Charlottesville, Appalachian Voices helped turn out perhaps the largest, most diverse environmental justice crowd ever assembled here.

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Reaching for Virginia’s clean power potential

If Virginia takes a pragmatic approach to the Clean Power Plan, it can incentivize energy efficiency programs and drive growth in solar power — two ways to ensure a more secure grid and shrink bills for electric customers. But there are possible pitfalls too. That’s why it’s critical for Virginians to engage throughout the process, pressing state officials to advance a vision of safe, affordable and reliable energy.

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Virginians’ electric bills could shrink under Clean Power Plan

A report by Public Citizen’s Climate Program details how the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s soon-to-be finalized standards on carbon pollution could lower Virginians’ power bills. The strategy for achieving this benefit is simple: invest in cost-effective energy efficiency programs first.

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A time of transition: APCo’s latest Virginia generation plan

It’s like Christmas in July, at least for those of us who get excited about energy news. On Wednesday Virginia’s utilities released their long-term plans to meet demand. Here we unwrap that bright shiny package for a look at what Appalachian Power is pursuing between now and 2029.

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Groups Call on Va Utilities to Expand Clean Energy in Long-Range Plans

Contacts: Cale Jaffe, 434-977-4090, cjaffe@selcva.org, Southern Environmental Law…

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A summer of clean energy progress ahead in Virginia

solarize2015Summer is upon us, which means a season of hot sun, blockbusters at the movies, and developments at the state and federal levels that could spell significant progress toward a clean energy system. Here are snapshots of a few of the policies and programs we’re watching in Virginia.

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Residents in Mountain Valley path pipe up at hearing

Turnout was tremendous at the first of two public hearings where Virginians had a chance to share their stories and environmental concerns about the proposed Mountain Valley Pipeline with federal energy regulators.

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Yes, Virginia, there was a silver lining to the General Assembly

1506880_545692232232755_7519825862257630233_nFor 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….

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Virginia lawmakers act on energy bills

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.

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Update from the Virginia General Assembly

Richmond_Virginia_CapitolVirginia’s legislative session may be brief, but many bills with major implications for our future energy mix have already been acted on. Two weeks into this year’s session, here is a look at where our top issues stand.

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