Front Porch Blog
Part two: Why Dominion Energy’s bad track record on energy efficiency matters for its proposed Chesterfield gas plant
This is the second of two blogs on the proposed methane gas power plant in Chesterfield, which Dominion Energy calls the Chesterfield Energy Reliability Center or CERC. Here we’ll look at Dominion Energy’s failure to meet their energy efficiency requirements and why that’s important, and we’ll show that there is a cleaner and more affordable way for Dominion to produce electricity.
Read MoreWest Virginia issues new round of violations against South Fork Coal Company
Bankrupt company’s idled mines continue to cause problems for the Cherry River South Fork Coal Company may be gone (more or less) from the Cherry River watershed, but the mess it left behind is only getting worse. As we learned in August, the company’s management had so badly overextended its finances and personnel that it…
Read MoreY’all don’t hear us
Miners express frustration with Congress on black lung as courts and regulators delay implementation of dust regulations “Y’all don’t hear us. We’re just the peons,” said Roosevelt Neal, of Beckley, in a meeting of the Fayette County Black Lung Association on the evening of August 19. Neal worked 27 years mining coal for 27 years.…
Read MoreCoal hauling through the Monongahela National Forest has ceased… for now.
Our collective efforts to defend the Monongahela National Forest and the Cherry River from the abuses of South Fork Coal Company are having an impact.
Read MorePart one: The $3 billion health costs of Dominion Energy’s proposed Chesterfield gas power plant
This is the first of two blogs looking at how Dominion Energy’s plans for a new methane gas power plant in Chesterfield would affect the local community and everyone in Virginia who gets power from the state’s biggest power company. We’ll dive into the latter in part two!
Read More‘Take your pipe and shove it’: How one Tennessee community fought back a major fossil fuel project — and isn’t done yet
Residents of Cheatham County, Tennessee, united to push back against the Tennessee Valley Authority’s plan for a methane gas power plant on 286 acres of rolling farmland.
Read MoreMapping the decline of coal production
The decline of coal production in Appalachia has been ongoing for decades. We thought it would be useful to develop a way to visualize these trends across the region.
Read MoreThe state of coal community protections 48 years after landmark mining law
On Aug. 3, 1977, President Jimmy Carter signed the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act into law. This anniversary presents a good opportunity to discuss SMCRA’s intent, where it’s fallen short over the years and how the Trump administration is undermining SMCRA’s protections.
Read MoreSWVA leaders advocate for community resilience projects in D.C.
On an extraordinarily hot, humid day in July, three Southwest Virginia community leaders climbed their way around Capitol Hill. Leabern Kennedy, Vice Mayor of Pound, Linda Kiser of Dante and Melissa Gillenwater of Dungannon had endured the eight-hour drive from the other end of the state the previous day and were now making their way…
Read MoreMiners continue long fight for adequate black lung benefits
This is a meeting of the Southwest Virginia Black Lung Association Chapter II, and they have a lot to talk about.
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