Thursday, March 23rd, 2023 | Posted by Chelsea Barnes | No Comments
For years, the Abandoned Mine Land Economic Revitalization program has been one of the only federal grant programs specifically targeted at revitalizing coal mining communities. This vital program is now being funded at its highest level to date and is getting a spruce-up from the federal agency that administers it. [
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Friday, March 10th, 2023 | Posted by Matt Wasson | 4 Comments
Harvard Ayers, founder of Appalachian Voices, passed away on March 9, 2023. Ayers was a true visionary and leaves behind a powerful legacy for the people and environment of Appalachia. [
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Friday, March 10th, 2023 | Posted by Jessica Sims | 4 Comments
Nine years after the Mountain Valley Pipeline project was announced, it remains unnecessary and dangerous to the communities, water resources, lands and habitats through which it is routed. [
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Friday, March 3rd, 2023 | Posted by Dan Radmacher | 2 Comments
Even with the short session, Appalachian Voices’ capitol team had a lot to keep track of, with a number of bills we were hoping to convince legislators to support — and quite a few we were hoping to convince them to vote down. [
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Wednesday, February 22nd, 2023 | Posted by Guest Contributor | No Comments
Explosives and heavy equipment: the perfect combination for mine owners to extract coal from a pristine Appalachian landscape. Too bad this process, known as mountaintop removal mining, is terrible if you live near the mined mountain, or in a watershed downstream, or on a planet faced with the imminent threat of ever-increasing temperatures brought about by greenhouse-gas emissions. [
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Tuesday, February 21st, 2023 | Posted by Willie Dodson | No Comments
Surface mining of this scale is bad news for the environment even if it is conducted within the confines of the law, but South Fork Coal Company’s history of regulatory infractions is almost as egregious as Greenbrier County is beautiful. [
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Thursday, February 16th, 2023 | Posted by Willie Dodson | 1 Comment
PM 2.5 is a lethal combination of metals, organic matter, acids and other substances so tiny that they can be inhaled and delivered directly into the bloodstream. These airborne pollutants are emitted by tailpipes, power plants and numerous other industries. In our region,
coal mine dust is an additional source of this pollutant. [
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Wednesday, February 15th, 2023 | Posted by Brianna Knisley | 1 Comment
TVA is currently ignoring federal climate goals for a 100% carbon-free energy sector by 2035 to push forward a plan for the second-largest fossil fuel buildout of any utility in the country. These plans will line the pockets of two mega gas corporations, fuel climate change and devastate southeastern habitat and public health. [
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Monday, February 13th, 2023 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | 1 Comment
Imagine a landscape that, 10 years ago, was a moonscape mountaintop removal coal mine and is now carefully managed as a large-scale working forest growing trees to capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and combat climate change. Appalachian Voices is exploring making this vision a reality in the years to come through a reforestation project that engages with the emerging carbon offset market. [
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Friday, February 10th, 2023 | Posted by Maddy Koch | No Comments
The argument for methane gas relies heavily on outdated models that inflate the cost-effectiveness of the fuel. Replacing coal with renewable energy is now cheaper than replacing coal with continued fossil fuel use. [
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Wednesday, February 8th, 2023 | Posted by Maddy Koch | No Comments
While many organizations, including
Appalachian Voices, released initial statements when the Carbon Plan was finalized, there is a lot to unpack in the 137-page document. Specifically, its release is riding on the coattails of Duke Energy’s proposed rate increases and rolling blackouts due to the failures of fossil fuels. [
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Tuesday, February 7th, 2023 | Posted by Guest Contributor | No Comments
If you haven’t heard, Energy Alabama has released an updated
scorecard evaluating the performance of Alabama’s rural electric cooperatives in areas such as democratic governance, member services, and access to clean energy, to name a few. [
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