Energy Report
A digest of regional energy news
Contested Mine Next to Kanawha State Forest Continues Operations
An effort by West Virginians to stop mountaintop removal mining near a state forest failed even as the mine amassed a series of violations.
Roanoke Electric Receives $6 Million Loan for Energy Efficiency
In October, the North Carolina-based Roanoke Electric Cooperative became one of the first recipients of a loan through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Loan Program.
Legal Battles Flare Up Regarding Atlantic Coast Natural Gas Pipeline
The proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline would deliver natural gas produced in Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia to power plants and other industrial customers in the Southeast, and is already stirring controversy along the proposed route.
Proposed N.C. Fracking Rules Move Forward
North Carolina’s Mining and Energy Commission approved proposed changes to state rules on hydraulic fracturing this November. Citizens and environmental groups submitted nearly 220,000 public comments on the rules governing fracking safety standards, but the commission made few significant changes the public proposed.
Court Upholds EPA Revocation of Mine Permit
A federal judge acknowledged the environmental damage caused by mountaintop removal this September when she ruled to uphold a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency veto of a permit for one of the largest surface mines ever proposed in Appalachia.
