The Appalachian Voice
Happy Birthday, Clean Water Act!
The Clean Water Act celebrated 40 years of protecting America’s waterways on Oct. 18. Appalachian Voices’ Red, White and Water campaign celebrated the success of this landmark legislation with the report, “The Clean Water Act at 40: Real People, Real Successes, Real Threats.” The report highlights examples from around the Southeast that show how Clean…
Read MoreThey’re Here: Alien Species in Appalachia
By Matt Grimley Anything that costs $120 billion every year to control can’t be good. That’s just one estimate of the costs of invasive species in the United States, courtesy of the Rocky Mountain Research Station. In Appalachia, the everyday costs are more apparent: the smear of house sparrow droppings on your windshield, the garlic…
Read MoreFinding a Common Language
By Matt Grimley Lucy Hoffman hears her cell phone buzzing at all hours. At Avery Amigos, a nonprofit dedicated to bridging the gap for the Latino community in northwest North Carolina, she assists Hispanic women and their families with a little bit of everything, including hospital bills, apartment leases, reliable transportation and English-learning classes. The…
Read MoreShowing Off Your Mussels: Powell River Restocks Declining Populations and other shorts
This fall, more than 7,000 juvenile mussels were released into the Powell River, the largest number of endangered mussels planted in the history of the river’s restoration project. The release was coordinated through a partnership between Virginia Tech, Lincoln Memorial University, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 6,086 oyster…
Read MoreA Clean(er) World
By Molly Moore No country is an energy island. In the face of a European Union sanction that bans steel imports, Iran is using roundabout trading methods to secure metallurgical coal, used in steel manufacturing, from Ukraine. A state-backed firm in Abu Dhabi plans to invest in Saudi Arabia’s growing renewable energy efforts. And in…
Read MoreExtracting Insight
By Paige Campbell Half a million people live on the hundreds of specks in the wide-open Pacific that form the Solomon Islands. Most live simply, subsisting as small-plot farmers and fishermen. Land is owned collectively by villages and tribes. The economy is tiny, the natural resources vast. Eight thousand miles away in the mountains of…
Read MoreKindred in Song
By Brian Sewell “Greetings from North Carolina.” Doc Watson’s rich, syrupy baritone voice is instantly recognizable in a 1976 recording from Tokyo, Japan, where he took the stage with his son, Merle. “We’ve come to try to spread a little goodwill from our people to your people.” After an extended, solo-filled showcase of “Roll in…
Read MoreA Double-Edged Sword
By Jesse Wood The expansion of global markets and its effect on Appalachia has been a lopsided, double-edged sword, particularly for the furniture and lumber industries. While exposure to foreign markets has checked inflation and opened the door to an array of new customers, it has crippled the Appalachian furniture manufacturing workforce because of cheaper…
Read MoreWorld Market
By Molly Moore Appalachian farms are many things: bucolic, rugged, diverse and productive. But rarely does the word “large” apply. Historically, farm size was not always an indicator of farm success. But today, small farmers aren’t just competing with their neighbors; they’re competing with large multinational conglomerates for space on consumers’ grocery lists. Allison Perrett,…
Read MoreAppalachia’s Political Landscape
The Battle is Over — Has the “War” Just Begun? By Brian Sewell Less than a month after the Nov. 6 elections, Republican Rep. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia announced that in 2014 she would seek the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Democratic Senator Jay Rockefeller. Although Rockefeller has not yet announced if…
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