The Appalachian Voice
4th Annual Week In Washington To Promote Clean Water Protection Act
Help Lobby Members of Congress to Pass an Anti-Mountaintop Removal Bill In mid-March, the Alliance for Appalachia will be sponsoring the fourth annual End Mountaintop Removal Week in Washington, a week of direct lobbying by Appalachian residents and others from across the United States. Participants get to join with other activists and impacted citizens, and…
Read MoreField Coordinator and Riverkeeper Canoe Into Tennessee Coal Sludge
Narrative by Sandra Diaz December 26th, 4:30pm – 4 days after the 1 billion gallon toxic coal ash spill in Harriman, TN. I’m on the phone with Donna Lisenby, the Upper Watauga Riverkeeper in North Carolina, who was planning to travel to the TVA coal ash spill and collect water samples along the Emory River.…
Read MoreWalk to a Waterfall in Southwest Virginia
By Joe Tennis Come spring, long before trees see leaves sprout again, the waters flow on Phillips Creek. Blasting, gushing, pouring down a stone embankment like a shower, the waterfall of the Phillips Creek Recreation Area feeds the rocky Phillips Creek as it courses its way beyond the remnants of a moonshine still, the memories…
Read MoreNew Books For Thru-Hikers
Reviews by Bill Kovarik How to hike the Appalachian Trail:The nitty-gritty details of a long-distance trek By Michelle Ray (Stackpole Books) “In a world full of mediated spaces and experiences,” writes Michelle Ray, “a trip to the back country allows an individual the sort of autonomy he or she craves.” As Henry D. Thoreau said,…
Read MoreThe Appalachian Trail
Story by Bill Kovarik This winter, as three million enthusiasts check their gear and prepare for spring on the Appalachian Trail, they’ll be happy to know that more protection and an expanded trail network are on the way. Also on the way is a better understanding of the trail’s problems through the AT Mega-Transect project.…
Read MoreFor the Birds: Christmas Count Is A Holiday Tradition
By Maureen Halsema The longest-running wildlife census—the Christmas Bird Count—will kick off its 110th year starting Dec. 14, 2009. The annual event is sponsored by the National Audubon Society and other collaborative organizations, and will run until Jan. 5, 2010. This massive event was started in 1900 by an ornithologist named Frank Chapman, who was…
Read MoreRuffed Grouse: Drummer of the Woods
By Maureen Halsema It sounds like a drum beat; starting slow, the tempo increases as the air compresses between his cupped wings flapping towards the side of his body. The ruffed grouse stands on his display log in early spring performing this theatrical display to advertise his territory, confuse predators or attract nearby females. The…
Read MoreHope in the Colombian Coalfields: A Lesson For Appalachia?
Story by Sandra Diaz This article is the last in a series about a trip organized by Witness for Peace to the coalfields of Colombia, South America for people in the Appalachian coalfields and other parts of the U.S. Last month, I wrote about the dangerous working conditions of the La Loma mine, and the…
Read MoreA Prayer for Peace in Appalachia
Amid Christmas hymns and Hannukah lights, we ask you to join us in a prayer for peace in Appalachia. No one who follows events would ask why we need this prayer. Clearly, the climate of political violence escalated in 2009 with these incidents: • A US Census worker murdered in Kentucky, the word “FED” scrawled…
Read MoreCommunity-Owned Electricity Gets A Breath of Fresh AIRE
By Jamie Goodman and Jeff Deal Why is there so little renewable energy in Central and Southern Appalachia? It was this question that launched the Appalachian Institute of Renewable Energy (AIRE), a grassroots organization working to promote and provide renewable and community-owned energy in Appalachia. One of AIRE’s primary programs is the Community Megawatt Initiative,…
Read More