BLOGGER INDEX
Monday, March 3rd, 2014 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | 1 Comment
For generations, coal-mining communities in Appalachia have raised questions about local health problems, wondering whether or not they may be linked to pollution from nearby coal mines. A recent study conducted by a group of West Virginia University researchers has confirmed that suspicion, reporting that potentially dangerous air pollution levels are more likely in areas surrounding mountaintop removal coal mines than in mine-free communities. [ Read More ]Thursday, November 14th, 2013 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | No Comments
By Rachel Ellen Simon — Editorial Communications Intern, Fall 2013
A graduate student in Appalachian Studies, Rachel was a frequent contributor to The Appalachian Voice and worked as our Editorial Communications intern for Fall 2013.
From L to R: The Lost Sea of Sweetwater, Tenn.; Burke’s Gardens; Pocahontas Exhibition Mine.
When my editor first asked me to compile a list of “Historical Hidden Treasures,” I imagined my words guiding readers to ancient, geological wonders; down fossil-riddled hiking trails through former sea basins; deep into old growth forests squirming with endemic salamanders and a host of yet-undiscovered species. My brave readers would venture into the unknown to chart the unseen, name the unnamed, describe the unsung – all while practicing “leave no trace” trail ethics!
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Wednesday, June 12th, 2013 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | No Comments
By Chelsey Fisher
Editorial assistant, Summer 2013
North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory recently deemed June “Solar Energy Month,” despite attempts by the General Assembly to repeal the state’s renewable portfolio standard.
On the heels of Republican-led legislative threats to environmental protection and renewable energy in North Carolina, Republican Governor Pat McCrory deemed June “Solar Energy Month” at a solar farm in Wake County on June 4.
This acknowledgment is definitely deserved, considering North Carolina ranked fourth in the nation for new clean energy projects and jobs during the beginning months of 2013. Clean energy has grown tremendously in the state over the past five years and has saved 8.2 million megawatt-hours, according to a study by Research Triangle Institute.
“We think the energy business, alongside with agriculture, will help North Carolina get out of this recession,” McCrory said at the declaration, according to the News & Observer.
Strata Solar CEO Markus Wilhelm, who owns one of the largest solar companies in the country, said to the News & Observer that he considered McCrory to be a “friend” of the solar industry.
Wilhelm also said that the growth in solar power usage in North Carolina is due to the state’s support of renewable energy.
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Wednesday, May 15th, 2013 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | No Comments
By Davis Wax
Editorial assistant, Spring/Summer 2013
A new report shows the EPA's rules, especially on air pollution, are saving money and lives.
During their push to abolish, obstruct and stymie the Environmental Protection Agency over the past few years, House Republicans have beleaguered the agency for regulatory measures they consider “job-killing” or “anti-industry,” hoping to revert federal environmental regulation to state control or make protections obsolete altogether.
Those in favor of federal rules have argued that national standards allow for the most effective and consistent protections and, as a result, will lead to reduced costs in health care directly associated with air and water pollution.
A new report from the White House’s Office of Management and Budget makes a clear case for why the country needs the EPA. The report includes an analysis of the costs and benefits of a number of federal regulations over the past decade and shows EPA rules, especially those pertaining to air protection, to be the most costly among all the rules evaluated but also the most beneficial.
The budget office estimates that the EPA’s rules account for 58 to 80 percent of the monetized benefits of all federal rules, but 44 to 54 percent of the total costs. Out of these benefits, close to 99 percent come from rules that seek to improve air quality. The report claims that the large estimated benefits of the EPA rules following the arrival of the Clean Air Act stem mostly from the reduction of a single air pollutant: fine particulate matter.
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Monday, May 6th, 2013 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | No Comments
By Davis Wax
Editorial assistant, Spring/Summer 2013
Scary things are going on in the NC Legislative Building in Raleigh. Photo by Yassie
Among the scary legislation developing in the North Carolina assembly, there are two bills — one a monster of bad environmental reform and the other back from the dead in order to snuff out the state’s renewable energy — which stand out from the creepy pack. These bills are not exactly the slow and shambling kind of creatures from old 50s horror movies, though, and are moving quickly through the state legislature.
The first, the newly-drafted Senate Bill 612, or Regulatory Reform Act, could have many wide-sweeping and detrimental consequences for environmental regulations in North Carolina. The legislation, which passed through the state Senate last Thursday, would limit how local governments can produce and control regulations to protect the environment. Among other measures to weaken environmental protections, the bill would:
The first point, fewer requirements for cleaning up pollution in groundwater, is hugely concerning. This provision would increase compliance boundaries to a facility’s property line, allowing coal-fired power plants and other industrial facilities to pollute groundwater farther away from their sites.
Second on the list, demolition debris can contain anything from lead paint to asbestos to PCBs, all of which are more likely to pollute water sources if not adequately buried. The provision does not clarify how coal ash waste applies to “demolition debris” and thus the bill could help power plants avoid certain aspects of the permitting process for coal ash ponds.
Another worrisome aspect of the bill is that it would require state environmental agencies and commissions to identify and repeal any existing rules that are stricter than similar federal rules and likewise would not allow local governments to produce rules stronger than state or federal rules. (more…)
Read More ...Wednesday, April 24th, 2013 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | 1 Comment
By Davis Wax
Editorial assistant, Spring/Summer 2013
Shine On: Clean energy in North Carolina will continue to create jobs and yield benefits after a bill to repeal the state's renewable standard failed in committee today. Image licensed under Creative Commons.
A bill in the N.C. House that would repeal the state’s Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (REPS) failed today in the House Committee on Public Utilities and Energy by a vote of 18-13.
According to the N.C. Sustainable Energy Association talk of insufficient votes in the Environment Committee prompted Rep. Mike Hager to withdraw the “Affordable and Reliable Electricity Act” from the committee’s scheduled hearing in order to attempt to push it through the Public Utilities Committee, which he chairs.
“If the only way a business can move forward is with a subsidy, then maybe we need to rethink the business,” said Hager, a former Duke Energy employee and the bill’s primary sponsor. Fellow lawmakers responded by saying that Duke Energy has an effective subsidy through its huge monopoly on electricity distribution in the state and that subsidies have been used to help up-and-coming industries for decades.
Even after Hager agreed to keep the 12.5 percent commitment to renewable energy from retail sales of state utilities in the bill in order to make it more appealing, a bipartisan majority including several key Republicans in the Utilities Committee still killed the legislation. In the most recent version Hager pushed through, the bill would still allow companies like Duke Energy to let their renewable energy contracts run out without expecting them to pursue any further commitments to wind, solar, biomass, or other industries.
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Friday, April 19th, 2013 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | No Comments
By Davis Wax
Editorial assistant, Spring/Summer 2013
North Carolina is number five in solar, but that huge success is under attack in Raleigh. Photo by SEIA.
Despite job creation directly linked to North Carolina’s burgeoning clean energy industry, the state’s modest renewable energy standard continues to be targeted by lawmakers.
The “Affordable and Reliable Energy Act,” which narrowly passed the House Commerce Committee, would warp the state renewable energy portfolio standard into a shadow of the law created with bipartisan support and the backing of the state’s largest electric utilities in 2007.
According to a study by RTI International and La Capra Associates, the state’s renewable standard has led to a net gain of over 20,000 clean energy jobs even while more than 100,000 jobs were lost in the N.C. economy during the same five years. The state’s clean energy investment has created a net revenue of $113 million since 2007, while the total economic benefit of clean energy over the past five years was $1.7 billion.
Investors are listening up and jumping on board, too, as clean energy investment has grown 13-fold over the past five years in North Carolina, resulting in an estimated 8.2 million megawatt-hours being saved through renewable energy and energy efficiency projects. Additionally, it is estimated that state government energy efficiency programs have saved $427 million in taxpayer money.
Solar energy has soared in North Carolina due to the REPS. The state is fifth in the nation in solar installed and is projected to reach number four by this year, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association. Out of the 30 utility-scale solar projects in the Southeast in 2012, 21 were in North Carolina.
Those benefits could be cut short if the tunnel vision that has taken over North Carolina politics prevails.
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Wednesday, February 20th, 2013 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | No Comments
By Davis Wax
Editorial assistant, Spring/Summer 2013
Watch N.C. Rep. Pricey Harrison testify before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Environment and Economy.
What should the role of the states be in protecting human health and the environment?
Last Friday, the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment and Economy held a hearing to untangle that complex question. North Carolina Rep. Pricey Harrison testified to the committee on the need for increased oversight and regulatory enforcement by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
“The question is not whether states or the federal government have a role in environmental protection,” she told subcommittee members, “but whether each is playing its appropriate role under current law.”
Harrison highlighted the growing concerns of North Carolinians’ surrounding coal ash pollution from disposal ponds owned by Duke Energy as an example of how states are failing to protect citizens. The state began requiring more extensive groundwater monitoring a few years ago. But even now, with known instances of groundwater standards violations, no action has been taken by the state to get Duke Energy to address the contamination.
Another emerging issue is the reckless push to bring hydraulic fracturing to the state. State Senate Bill 76 would allow fracking in the state in two years, no matter the status of the state’s regulatory development, resources or staffing.
Read More ...Friday, February 8th, 2013 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | No Comments
By Davis Wax
Editorial assistant, Spring/Summer 2013
Over the past few weeks there has been a spurt of environmental and energy news in North Carolina and its capital, Raleigh. The developing issues include departing Charlotte-based Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers being considered for the President’s cabinet, a new bill looking to end state environmental and health rules, and the governor’s endorsement of offshore wind power.
Jim Rogers in Energy Spotlight, Mixed Record and All
With Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu officially resigned, who will become the DOE’s new chief? The business world has speculated that Jim Rogers, the outgoing CEO of Duke Energy, is a likely candidate.
Duke Energy, the company Rogers is leaving, opened three new N.C. plants in December.
GreenTech Media cited his experience with coal, gas and nuclear industries and Bloomberg Businessweek highlighted his solar and wind experience as well as his potential to bring an energy policy that “sharply reduces carbon emissions”. Rogers’ role in bringing the Democratic National Convention to Charlotte last year may also improve his chances of becoming President Obama’s head adviser on energy.
While Rogers has repeatedly stated his disinterest in joining the president’s cabinet, John Downey at the Charlotte Business Journal has pointed to Rogers’ recent Bloomberg Television interview as a sign that the out-the-door CEO has considered what he would do in such a position. When asked what he would bring to the DOE job, writes Downey, Rogers cited his years of experience in the energy sector and being able to get “the balance right between cheap, affordable energy and meeting our environmental goals.”
Under Rogers, however, Duke Energy has had a mixed reputation in supporting renewable energy in North Carolina. The company is still a paying member of the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC, which creates model state laws that frequently roll back health and environmental protections in favor of promoting industry.
Read More ...Wednesday, February 6th, 2013 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | 1 Comment
By Davis Wax
Editorial assistant, Spring/Summer 2013
Update: In about 48 hours, with almost no chance for public input, the North Carolina state Senate passed a poorly designed bill to fire all current members from several N.C. advisory boards and commissions, including the Utilities Commission and Environmental Management Commission. Give your state Rep. a call today and ask that they oppose this legislative overstep and actually govern. [https://www.ncleg.net/representation/WhoRepresentsMe.aspx]
An unprecedented power grab is in the works in North Carolina, where Republican majority leaders are looking to cut and replace environmental and other key decision-makers on the party’s own terms.
State Sen. Bill Rabon introduced SB 10 aimed at removing environmental experts from state committees. Photo credit to ncleg.net.
The N.C. Senate Rules Committee met on Feb. 5 concerning Senate Bill 10, the “Government Reorganization and Efficiency Act,” legislation that seeks to remove 131 members of eight influential state boards and commissions before their terms are up. This action would see the effective gutting of environmental experts from the state’s decision-making process and the likely appointment of new, pro-industry members.
If there were ever a time to send a message to your North Carolina state senator, it would be now. Call them or email them today!
Among the committees being affected are the Coastal Resources Commission, the Environmental Management Commission, the Industrial Commission, and the Wildlife Resources Commission. Most importantly, the bill would allow the General Assembly and the governor to hand-pick replacements.
The number of environmentally-focused boards possibly being stripped of their membership could spell disaster for ongoing projects concerned with regulating pollution and protecting the environment. The new commission members would not have the level of expertise or the familiarity with the projects of current members, thus ensuring the degradation of the state’s progress toward proper environmental protection.
That’s not the whole story, though, as further steps are being taken to weaken the influence of environmentally-conscious voices in the legislature.
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Thursday, June 14th, 2012 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | No Comments
By Jessica Kennedy
Editorial assistant, Summer 2012
Just a week from today, Appalachian Voices will present a night of music, speakers and inspiration featuring leading environmental activist Jeff Goodell and Grammy-award winner Kathy Mattea.
Artists for Appalachia celebrates Appalachian Voices’ 15th anniversary working to save the mountains of Appalachia. The event will be held in the Jefferson Theater in Charlottesville, Va., Thursday, June 21. Doors open at 7 p.m., and the program starts at 8 p.m.
Read More ...Tuesday, June 12th, 2012 | Posted by AV's Intern Team | 7 Comments
Donna Branham recently joined other Appalachian women in West Virginia in shaving her head in an act of mourning and protest against the destruction of the mountains. (Photo by Jamie Goodman)
By Jessica Kennedy
Editorial assistant, Summer 2012
I’ve never seen mountaintop removal. I’ve seen it in pictures, books, movies. I’ve seen it in dreams and reconstructed it in my head. I’ve pictured its destruction settling in my mountains – the giant hills that make Boone the town it is. I am thankful mountaintop removal has not made its home in North Carolina.
One day, I hope I will see it up close so that I can begin to feel the magnitude of it. But after last week, I have seen so much more than stripped mountains. At The Alliance for Appalachia’s 7th annual End Mountaintop Removal Week In Washington, I met people whose lives have been altered, whose health has been damaged, whose homes have been destroyed – all because of mountaintop removal. Seeing the damage to these innocent people was perhaps more powerful than seeing the stripped remains of the mountains themselves.
One Appalachian resident said witnessing mountaintop removal is like seeing someone you love die. (more…)
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