RockingChair

Front Porch Blog

Updates from Appalachia

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Nothing to see here

KY_Cabinet_cartoonThe Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet’s dismissive attitude toward the severity of mining pollution in the state is unsurprising after citizen cases against one coal company exposed the agency’s utter failure to enforce the Clean Water Act. But the jig is up. The Cabinet should stop trying to cover up its incompetence and actually do its job.

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What will Obama’s legacy be on mountaintop removal?

GRreport After six years of the Obama presidency, mountaintop removal coal mining continues to put Appalachian communities at risk, leading many to wonder what his legacy on the issue will be. The Alliance for Appalachia just released a Grassroots Progress Report examining the administration’s successes and shortfalls in dealing with mountaintop removal.

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Kentucky court sides with citizens and environment

Last week, Appalachian Voices and our partners won a major victory in the Kentucky courts when a judge overturned two slap-on-the-wrist settlements that the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet had reached with Frasure Creek Mining a few years ago.

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DENR deserves an environmental leader to replace John Skvarla

johnSkvarlaLargeAfter a tumultuous two years as secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, John Skvarla is stepping over to lead the state’s Commerce Department. No word from Gov. Pat McCrory on who will replace Skvarla yet, but here’s to hoping his successor is the environmental leader DENR deserves and North Carolina desperately needs.

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Virginia utilities expand their menus with new energy-saving offerings

EENPODAdvocates for energy efficiency often call it “the first fuel,” and Virginia is now creeping ahead toward gains in this lowest-cost power source. The state’s largest utilities are promoting new programs to help their customers invest in energy-saving home improvements, which can help Virginians save money while reducing energy consumption and pollution.

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