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Evolution of a Cattle Farm
By Jessica Kennedy After nearly 30 years of practicing continuous grazing on his cattle farm in rural Virginia, Guille Yearwood transformed his farming style to better serve his cattle and the environment. Yearwood, owner of Ellett Valley Beef Co. in Christiansburg, Va., had settled into farming the way most land grant universities teach. He farmed…
Read MoreClean Water Warrior: Lessons from the Front Lines
By Molly Moore For Rick Handshoe, the trouble started in the mid-nineties, when coal mining began near his father and sister’s homes and his sister lost use of her well. Since then, six wells – including the one dug by his ancestors — have dried up or been contaminated with explosive levels of methane on…
Read MoreEnergy Efficiency in the 112th Congress
A number of bipartisan energy-efficiency bills have emerged or been reintroduced in the 112th Congress. The following four Senate and three House bills are representative of the suite of legislation that aims to incentivize energy-efficiency in homes and businesses. There many bills not listed here, including bills that would extend tax incentives for efficiency upgrades…
Read MoreStudy Weighs Risks, Benefits of Fracking in North Carolina
By Brian Sewell A series of public hearings in March concluded that, with proper regulation, hydraulic fracturing, the controversial natural gas drilling method can be done safely in North Carolina. The hearings, held in Sanford, Chapel Hill and Pittsboro, received public comment on a draft report of the state’s Department of Environment and Natural Resources’…
Read MoreThe Dirty Money Dozen
According to both the Center for Responsive Politics and Oil Change International, contributions from oil, gas and other energy industries skyrocketed in the past five years, with the coal industry alone contributing more than $8 million in 2009-2010 — more than twice what the industry had contributed in any previous election cycle. And during 2011,…
Read MoreA Golden Wing and a Prayer: Restoring Warbler Habitat
By Brian Sewell Appalachia’s favorite bird, the golden-winged warbler, has been selected as one of seven focus species by a new partnership between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that aims to reverse population decline through habitat restoration. The “Working Lands for Wildlife” program will collaborate with private landowners…
Read MoreThe Emerging Efficiency Lobby: Diverse Interests Find Common Ground
By Molly Moore Conversations about blowing up mountains for easier access to coal or risking offshore oil spills to boost a corporation’s bottom line spark passions in a way that those about financing energy efficiency retrofits don’t. But wherever national energy dialogue goes, talk of energy efficiency and minimizing our energy consumption is sure to…
Read MoreBreaking Down Job Barriers
By Paige Campbell Nearly three-quarters of a million jobs were lost in Appalachia between 2007 and 2009. All but 35 of the region’s 420 counties, as designated by the Appalachian Regional Commission, saw negative employment trends during that lowest low of the current recession, and the slow crawl back out has been slower here than…
Read MoreWest Virginia meets Los Angeles! An account on our West Coast Tour by Beverly Walkup
By Kate Finneran Appalachian Voices National Field Coordinator, 2011-12 This Spring I was honored to be asked to go to LA on the Appalachian Treasures Tour to speak on living with the effects of mountaintop removal coal mining. Upon arrival at LAX I was met at the airport by my speaking partner, Lenny Kohm, who…
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