Press Releases
Congress includes one-year extension of black lung excise tax in omnibus spending bill
A one-year extension of the excise tax that funds the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund is included in the 2021 omnibus spending bill. This is the second year in a row that a one-year extension has been included in the spending bill on the brink of expiration. CONTACT: Rebecca Shelton, Appalachian Citizens’ Law Center, 859-893-0543,…
Read MorePresident-elect to tap NC’s Michael Regan for EPA
President-elect Joe Biden is expected to announce the selection of Michael Regan to head up the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Regan is currently Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality, a position he has held since 2017. During his tenure, he oversaw the historic settlement with Duke Energy for a full cleanup of…
Read MoreVirginia officials must begin planning for Wise County, other power plant closures
CONTACT: Chelsea Barnes, chelsea@appvoices.org, 614-205-6424 Cat McCue, cat@appvoices.org, 434-293-6373 Today, the Institute for Energy Economics and Analysis released a report shedding light on Dominion Energy’s costly coal-fired Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center in Wise Co, Va., and its likely early closure. The report, entitled Virginia Coal Plant’s Future Isn’t Bright: Preparation for Transition Should Commence…
Read MoreTrump administration rams through final Forest Service analysis of controversial Mountain Valley Pipeline
After almost 8,000 people called on the U.S. Forest Service this fall to prevent the fracked-gas Mountain Valley Pipeline from cutting through public land in Virginia, the agency today issued a final report supporting changes to its own environmental standards to accommodate the project. The agency’s Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement confirms its plan to…
Read MoreSettlement forces W.Va. coal mine to reduce pollution
Charleston, WV — The West Virginia Highlands Conservancy, Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition (OVEC), Appalachian Voices, and the Sierra Club today filed a settlement with Bluestone Coal Company that will hold the company responsible for releasing illegal levels of toxic selenium pollution into the Tug River from its Red Fox coal mine located in McDowell County,…
Read MoreScorecard shows lack of transparency, high fixed charges at Tenn’s electric co-ops
Fewer than half of Tennessee’s electric cooperatives allow their member-owners to attend board meetings, and only three offer community solar programs. These are two of the findings in a new report released today by Appalachian Voices and two rural community groups evaluating the performance of Tennessee’s electric co-ops on a number of issues, from governance…
Read MoreFunding to assist NC families with rent, utilities during Covid runs out today
CONTACT: Rory McIlmoil, Appalachian Voices, rory@appvoices.org, (423) 433-9415 Jovita Lee, Center for Biological Diversity, jlee@biologicaldiversity.org, (919) 925-2486 As of 6 pm today, the roughly $175 million allocated for Governor Roy Cooper’s HOPE program — which has provided financial relief for renters unable to pay their rent or utility bills — will have run out after…
Read MoreNew Economy Network looking to 2021 at November meeting
CONTACT: Austin Counts, New Economy Field Coordinator, austin@appvoices.org, (276) 219-2751 Southwest Virginia — The New Economy Network will host a virtual meeting on November 18th, from 6 – 8 p.m., to discuss the network’s goals for 2021. All are invited to join the discussion of ideas and insights for supporting a transitioning economy in Southwest…
Read MoreAlmost 8,000 call on federal agency to not allow the Mountain Valley Pipeline to cut through public forest land in Virginia
CONTACT: Russell Chisholm, Protect Our Water, Heritage, Rights Coalition, russell.powhr@gmail.com, 540-404-2727 Jessica Sims, Appalachian Voices, jessica@appvoices.org, 804-356-1228 With the close of a public comment period yesterday, the U.S. Forest Service has received more than 1,800 personal comments and approximately 6,000 comments through organizational petitions from groups urging the agency to drop its plans to allow…
Read MoreConservation groups applaud court’s suspension of Mountain Valley Pipeline construction
CONTACT: Cat McCue 434-293-6373 cat@appvoices.org The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals today sided with conservation groups and issued an immediate stay of Mountain Valley Pipeline’s stream and wetland crossing permits in southern West Virginia and Virginia. The groups, noting the company’s stated rush to resume construction and the serious environmental harms likely to result, had…
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