Tennessee Legislators Dodge Vote on Mountaintop Removal Although a bill to protect Tennessee’s mountains received broad citizen and political support — and media attention from around the world — state legislators chose to deny public testimony on the measure and instead let the Scenic Vistas Protection Act die without a vote. Appalachian Voices Tennessee Director…

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Citizens Object to State of Kentucky’s Backroom Deal With Coal Company

Resources Citizens’ Objection Letter Agreed Order Click for full-sized image Appalachian Voices * Kentuckians For The Commonwealth * Kentucky Riverkeeper * Waterkeeper Alliance Contact: • Eric Chance, Appalachian Voices, 828-262-1500, eric@appvoices.org • Ted Withrow, Kentuckians For The Commonwealth, 606-782-0998, tfwithrow@windstream.net • Pat Banks, Kentucky Riverkeeper, 859-200-7442, kyriverkeeper@eku.edu • Peter Harrison, Waterkeeper Alliance, 828-582-0422, pharrison@waterkeeper.org Frankfort,…

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Bringing Polluters to Justice — One Court Case at a Time

By Eric Chance and Erin Savage On Oct 1., Appalachian Voices and a coalition of citizens’ groups reached a historic settlement in a Kentucky case involving some of the most far-reaching and astonishing violations of the Clean Water Act in its 40-year history. The agreement between the citizens’ groups, International Coal Group, Inc., and the…

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Keeping Up with the Fracking Frenzy

By Brian Sewell The debate surrounding the controversial method of hydraulic fracturing for natural gas shows no signs of slowing down. The N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources recently submitted a final report in its shale gas study to the state general assembly. The report highlights the importance of establishing a strong regulatory framework…

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Coalition Acts to Protect Virginia Rivers and Streams from Mining Pollution

For Immediate Release May 3, 2012 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – Contact: Tom Cormons, Appalachian Voices, 434-981-6506, tom@appvoices.org Sean Sarah, Sierra Club, 330 338-3740 sean.sarah@sierraclub.org Sam Broach, Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards, 276-523-1702, sbroach1@verizon.net – – – – – – – –…

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Too Big to Fail, But Not to Change

When “pink slime” hit the headlines in March, Americans were rightfully disgusted. The thought of being poisoned for profit by beef-product filler treated with ammonia sparked national outrage. Grocery stores and even mega-fast food restaurants such as McDonald’s and Taco Bell were quick to publicly shun the slimy substance. Over the course of just a…

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Yesterday and Today: Defending the Clean Water Act

By Jamie Goodman Forty years ago, it took a flaming river to spur our nation to protect its waterways. The river that played a prominent role in the creation of the Clean Water Act and the Environmental Protection Agency is thought to have erupted in flames on thirteen separate occasions in a one-hundred-year period, ending…

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SELC Releases Top Ten Endangered Places List, Shows Threats in Southeast

The Southern Environmental Law Center recently released its fourth-annual Top 10 Endangered Places list for 2012, highlighting the ecologically and culturally rich areas throughout the Southeast that are threatened by development, water issues and the environmental impacts of mountaintop removal and hydraulic fracturing. Southeastern states bordering Appalachia, North Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee, are each featured…

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Delayed Coal Ash Regulations Put Public Health at Risk

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTAINS TARGETED NORTH CAROLINA INFORMATION Contact: Sandra Diaz, Appalachian Voices, (828) 262-1500; sandra@appvoices.org Hartwell Carson, French Broad Riverkeeper, (828) 817-5358; hartwell@wnca.org Delayed Coal Ash Regulations Put Public Health at Risk Groups head to court to force issuance of important national safeguards Washington, D.C. – Environmental and public health groups announced their intent…

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Groups Challenge Public’s Exclusion From Secret Negotiations

An agreement negotiated in secret between the Beshear administration and a major polluter in eastern Kentucky does little to protect the public or prevent future violations, claimed several groups representing Kentucky citizens who use water polluted by the company’s coal mining operations.

The citizens’ groups filed a petition in Franklin Circuit Court on Thursday asking that the agreement between Nally & Hamilton Enterprises and the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet be vacated on the grounds that there is “no factual evidence in the record, much less substantial evidence, [that] supports a finding that the Agreed Order is a fair resolution of Nally’s thousands of [Clean Water Act] violations, or that it will be an effective deterrent of future violations.”

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