Posts Tagged ‘TVA’
Knoxville Homes Get an Energy Makeover
The Knoxville Extreme Energy Makeover project is working to weatherize 1,278 homes by September 2017. They aim to reduce energy spending by at least 25 percent for each home weatherized.
Read MoreWeatherizing Tennessee homes gets results
TVA is delivering millions of dollars in grants to communities in East Tennessee to start programs to help families weatherize their homes so they can stay warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer while saving money on their electric bill. People like Dorothy Ware of Knoxville.
Read MoreTVA 20-year Plan Heavy on Natural Gas, Nuclear
The Tennessee Valley Authority announced in March that it will not need to build a new power plant for at least 20 years. The utility, which covers all of Tennessee and parts of neighboring states, plans to address future power demand by increasing nuclear power output, retrofitting coal-fired power plants to burn natural gas, and…
Read MoreAn Unforgettable Lesson, Forgotten
Just after midnight, a thunderous swell of sound peeled apart the silence that had settled onto Harriman, Tenn. A mountain of black coal ash — the waste byproduct of burning coal — descended upon the surrounding neighborhood, snapping trees and ripping three homes from their foundations.
Read MoreTennessee Valley Authority Announces Major Coal Cutbacks
By Brian Sewell After more than 50 years of supplying most of its power plants with coal, the Tennessee Valley Authority announced it will idle 3,308 megawatts of capacity at eight coal units in Kentucky and Alabama — approximately half of its coal-based generation. Citing market factors, declining demand and stricter environmental rules, board members…
Read MoreAlmost Always Sunny in Appalachia
Whether through a power plant or from the home, solar energy’s future is bright By Matt Grimley In a meeting earlier this year with U.S. Department of Energy employees, the secretary of energy was blunt about solar power. “I would argue that the scale and time frame of the impact of solar technology is underestimated,”…
Read MoreOrganizational Roundup
Fighting Tennessee Valley Assumptions Appalachian Voices recently joined forces with the Sierra Club and Tennessee Clean Water Network to call on the Tennessee Valley Authority to not overhaul its aging Gallatin Fossil Plant without fully considering cleaner and cheaper options. TVA unveiled a draft Environmental Assessment for plans to sink over $1 billion into the…
Read MoreMercury Proposal Receives Support, Opposition
This spring, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed a rule that would reduce mercury, particulate matter and sulfur dioxide emissions from coal plants. According to the agency, the proposed rule would save an estimated 17,000 American lives a year beginning in 2015 and prevent 120,000 cases of childhood asthma. A campaign motivated by environmental organizations…
Read MoreTennessee Crud: Appalachia plays host to yet another environmental disaster
Story by Bill Kovarik At first, when a 55-foot wall of coal fly ash sludge broke loose from an earthen dam early Dec. 22 near Kingston, TN, the nation barely paid attention. Initial reports from the Associated Press said there had been an isolated spill of “inert material not harmful to the environment,” according to…
Read MoreHow TVA Could Lead Utilities Into the Future
Story by Bill Kovark Old fashioned utilities used to make money by selling electric power. In a bygone era, making money by NOT selling electric power seemed unthinkable. A few weeks ago, Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine stood the old logic on its ear by saying that “it just makes no sense” not to conserve. “Under…
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