Posts Tagged ‘Kentuckians for the Commonwealth’
A week of action to stop zombie coal mines
This week, Appalachian Voices and 12 partner organizations are on Capitol Hill to tell Congress to protect our communities by making coal companies clean up their functionally abandoned coal mines, known as zombie mines.
Read MoreGuest post: Alabama electric cooperatives rank last in new regional scorecard
Scorecards rate rural electric cooperatives in Virginia
A scorecard released today by Appalachian Voices reveals that rural electric cooperatives in the Southeast need critical reform to ensure they are operating according to good governance standards and providing clean energy programs to their members. The new scorecards build on a previous project, and find that while Virginia’s electric co-ops have made some reforms and are leading the region, there is still room for improvement.
Read MoreScorecards rate rural electric cooperatives in Tennessee
Today, advocacy organizations across seven southeastern states released scorecards that examine the policies and programs of the region’s rural electric cooperatives across a number of areas, including governance, transparency, energy efficiency, member access to renewable energy and other factors. Though no co-op across seven states scored more than 65 out of 100 total points, co-ops in Tennessee achieved an average score of 28 points.
Read MoreScorecards rate rural electric cooperatives in North Carolina
Today, Appalachian Voices released scorecards examining how electric cooperatives in North Carolina measured up across a number of areas, including governance, transparency, energy efficiency, member access to clean energy and other factors. The results showed that the majority of the 26 co-ops in North Carolina impose significant barriers for customer-members to participate in the democratic governance of their co-ops, while only a few offer services or supportive policies to help members lower their electric bills.
Read MoreSoutheast Regional Scorecard release will grade rural electric cooperatives on democratic governance, clean energy policy and more
On Nov. 16, organizations from Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia will release scorecards examining how electric cooperatives in their states measured up across a number of areas.
Read MoreRegulators decide on Kentucky Power’s third rate hike in five years
Although the Kentucky Public Service Commission denied the utility’s original request for a 25 percent rate increase, the body approved a rate hike of 12.5 percent for residential customers.
Read MorePowering Up: Diversifying central Appalachia’s economy
From The Appalachian Voice: As coal production continues to decline, many citizens and groups in central Appalachia are working hard to find new avenues for economic diversification.
Read MoreAn end to Frasure Creek’s water violations in Kentucky — finally
Late Monday evening, Appalachian Voices and our partners finalized a historic settlement in our case against Frasure Creek Mining. The settlement follows a five-year-long legal battle to protect eastern Kentucky’s waterways and bring a coal company notorious for violating environmental laws to justice.
Read MoreStates Hold Strong on Clean Power Plan Positions
Appalachian states vary in their reactions to the Clean Power Plan: West Virginia, Georgia, North Carolina, Kentucky and Ohio have filed a lawsuit against the new regulations, while Virginia and Maryland are working to defend the plan.
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