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Solar’s Here to Stay at the YMCA!
Earlier this spring, community members and solar experts gathered to celebrate the opening of the Tazewell Four Seasons YMCA’s new solar array, which was made possible in part by federal clean energy tax credits that are now at risk.
Read MoreSouthwest Virginia’s Solar Summit for Rural Appalachia
This year, the Solar Workgroup of Southwest Virginia decided to take on a new challenge: hosting the region’s first-ever solar summit! Inspired by the 2017 Wise Solar Fair, the Southwest Virginia Economic Forum and various summits hosted in Richmond, Virginia, the SWVA Solar Summit will take place at the University of Virginia’s College at Wise’s…
Read MorePutting faces to the floodwaters: The need for disaster preparedness in one rural community
There is something particularly heartbreaking about pulling a baby’s sock from the muddy banks of the Powell River while the current administration dismantles funding for community-led efforts to better prepare for floods like this one. On Feb. 25, several Appalachian Voices employees visited the town of Pennington Gap to offer help removing flood debris from…
Read MorePresidential orders to prop up coal companies would increase pollution, damage public lands and raise power bills
President Trump signed four executive orders aimed at propping up declining coal-fired power plants and reducing environmental protections for communities impacted by coal plants and mining.
Read MoreCommunity improvement projects proceed in Pound as some funding remains uncertain
Community projects in the town of Pound, Virginia are moving forward, as the federal funding that has helped to make some of them possible faces an uncertain future.
Read MorePound Buildings Report
The town of Pound, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, West Virginia University BAD (Brownfields, Abandoned, Dilapidated) Buildings program and Appalachian Voices have been partnering since late 2023 on an initiative to provide a community-led inventory of dilapidated buildings. Over a months-long process that has included multiple community inventory field days, project prioritization meetings and deep…
Read MoreAdvocates call on Congress to make sure coal companies don’t skip out on black lung responsibilities
“Congress needs to get serious about preventing black lung disease, improving benefits for miners with the disease, and ensuring the solvency of the trust fund instead of bending over backwards for the companies that have caused the black lung epidemic,” said Rebecca Shelton, Director of Policy at Appalachian Citizens’ Law Center.
Read MoreEndangered species listing could help save Eastern hellbenders in Appalachian streams
On Dec. 12, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued a proposal to classify the Eastern hellbender, the largest aquatic salamander in North America, as endangered.
Read MoreCommunity-based Indigenous organization acquires property on proposed federal prison site as part of grassroots effort to create a different future for Eastern Kentucky
The Appalachian Rekindling Project held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to commemorate its recent purchase of a 63-acre plot of land within the currently designated boundaries of a federal prison proposed for construction in Letcher County, Kentucky.
Read MoreThe importance of sustained investment in our Appalachian communities
Appalachian communities have been putting funding from two major federal laws to good use, adopting more sustainable and resilient forms of energy. Read about how recent executive orders and proposals from Congress could impact these popular programs.
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