Appalachian Rails Have Strong Ties to Fossil Fuels

By Elizabeth E. Payne For more than 100 years, railroads have roared through the Appalachian mountains, connecting the region to the rest of the country, and moving resources and people in and out of the region. Trains first entered Appalachia in 1851, when the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company extended one of its lines to…

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Formidable Costs

Coal Company Conducts Business as Usual Near Kanawha State Forest By Tarence Ray Seven miles south of Charleston, W.Va., sits a 9,300-acre expanse of trails, streams and wildlife known as the Kanawha State Forest. The forest’s diverse wildflower and bird species attract naturalists from all over the region, and trails and fully-equipped campgrounds bring in…

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Water Privatization

The troubles of an investor-owned, private water utility in West Virginia illustrate some of the hazards of private water ownership. Nationally, the number of Americans relying on public water utilities is growing, and for-profit water companies face a tougher market.

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Clean Water Laws Wrestle With Coal

America’s environmental regulations have hampered the coal industry to varying degrees for decades, and though those rules can protect communities from pollution, the law alone is often not able to secure clean water. Here are some of the trouble spots.

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