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.
Seneca Rogers
Mountain Valley Pipeline Southgate’s original route would have plowed straight through the cemetery of Seneca Rogers’ church. Although they shifted the route, Rogers’ opposition to the pipeline is unchanged.
Marvin Winstead
Atlantic Coast Pipeline developers first expressed interest in cutting through Marvin Winstead’s farm in 2014 — but he has managed to hold them at bay.
Neal Laferriere
Last September, Mountain Valley Pipeline contractors dropping anti-erosion pellets by air missed the site by a half-mile, pelting Neal Laferriere and his children and irreparably damaging their farm.
Legal Troubles Escalate for Atlantic Coast and Mountain Valley Pipelines
Construction on the Mountain Valley Pipeline continues in places, despite continued legal challenges. Atlantic Coast Pipeline construction is halted in all three states as projected costs balloon and legal troubles escalate.
Ashby Berkley
Ashby Berkley is involved in several legal disputes to stop Mountain Valley Pipeline developers from cutting his riverside property in two, but that has not stopped them from felling several trees.
Petrochemical Plants Advance
Ohio issued an air permit for a petrochemical plant in Belmont County as construction continues on Royal Dutch Shell’s ethane cracker in western Pennsylvania.
Legal Action and Protests Against Pipelines
Numerous lawsuits have led to a complete halt to construction on the Atlantic Coast Pipeline and at Mountain Valley Pipeline water crossings as protests against pipelines continue to spring up.
Power to the People
In Appalachia and across the country, people are reclaiming their power from electricity monopolies that weren’t serving their needs.
Keeping Eyes on Coal’s Impact
Citizen scientists surveil water quality near active and former coal mines to hold companies accountable to the law.
Banding Together for Better Power Options
An Ohio state law has allowed hundreds of communities to choose a more affordable power supplier.
