Front Porch Blog
Updates from Appalachia
Coal Ash: It’s not just toxic, it’s radioactive!
This week, a study conducted by Duke University was published in “Environmental Science and Technology” which concluded that coal ash is more radioactive than its parent coal or soil, and that the radioactivity may exceed safe levels for human exposure.
Clean Water Laws Wrestle With Coal
From The Appalachian Voice: America’s environmental regulations have hampered the coal industry to varying degrees for decades, and though those rules can protect communities from pollution, the law alone is often not able to secure clean water. Here are some of the trouble spots.
VIDEO: “Contaminated, But Smart!”- Duke Energy’s New Coal Ash Assessment
On Monday evening, Duke Energy released the executive statement from its study assessing groundwater contamination at two of its largest coal ash sites in North Carolina. Unsurprisingly, Duke Energy’s findings suggest it is not responsible for the contamination found in the drinking water wells of over 200 households within 1,000 feet of the company’s coal ash dumps.
Action on climate heating up
President Obama’s announcement that day of first-ever regulations to limit carbon pollution from power plants in America — which has one of the largest carbon footprints in the world — marks an unprecedented milestone. Yet, as important as it is, it’s anything but certain how the story unfolds from here.
Peculiar Patriot Coal deal raises questions
What would a health care executive-turned-environmentalist want with the dying business of mining coal? That’s the question some are asking after the announcement that a Virginia environmentalist plans to acquire assets, and assume around $400 million in liabilities, from recently-bankrupt Patriot Coal.
