Written by Kevin Ridder
Kevin Ridder
Born in Arizona and raised in Tennessee, Kevin’s love of the mountains drove him to move even further east to Boone, N.C., where he serves as The Appalachian Voice's Associate Editor and a communications associate for the organization.
A Quest to Protect At-Risk Bats
Researchers and conservationists found and saved the land where a colony of endangered Virginia big-eared bats roost.
Eastern Kentucky Community Groups Pursue Solar
Four community-led organizations in Letcher County, Ky., plan to install solar arrays to combat rising electricity costs.
Building a Better Economy
Communities across Appalachia are striving to build a more resilient and sustainable economy.
Duke and Dominion Energy’s Contributions to NC Legislature
The two monopoly utilities contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to North Carolina legislative campaigns in 2018.
Gov. Jim Justice’s Barren Mine Lands and Unpaid Taxes
West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice made nearly $2 billion off Appalachia’s coalfields, but his family’s mines owe back taxes in multiple states. They have also accrued hundreds of environmental violations, and many idled mines are still unreclaimed.
People in the Path of Pipelines
Residents along the path of major new and proposed interstate fracked-gas pipelines share their stories.
MVP Southgate Met with Staunch Resistance
Local governments, residents in the path of the pipeline, a state agency and more have spoken out against this proposed 73-mile extension of the fracked-gas Mountain Valley Pipeline.
Virginia Approves Controversial Compressor Station
The Virginia Air Pollution Control Board approved Dominion Energy’s air pollution permit for the Buckingham compressor station despite fervent local opposition — but community members say the fight isn’t over yet.
Katie Whitehead
Katie Whitehead already has four pipelines running through her land – and Mountain Valley Pipeline Southgate developers want to cut down three acres of her tree farm to add a fifth.
Elizabeth Ore and Peter Cowan
Mountain Valley Pipeline’s Southgate extension would cut straight through this couple’s yard if approved, potentially damaging their well and septic tank.
