I have only seen a bald eagle in the wild once. It was during an otherwise uneventful excursion on Lake James near Morganton, N.C. It soared silently overhead, and in a matter of seconds I felt my stomach tighten, the…
Blog Archives
Dirty Congressional Coal Ash Proposal Smothered in Negotiations
Congressional Research Service Report Shows Little Change in State Programs if Congress Had Its Way By Erin Burks Red, White and Water intern, Summer 2012 Transportation bill negotiations between the House and Senate came to a close on June 29…
The EPA’s New Carbon Rule, Getting Serious About Climate Change
So we’re a little late to the punch on this one. Let’s take a moment to catch up. Last Tuesday, March 27, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released the first-ever rules regulating carbon pollution from power plants. For those who…
TN Legislators Miss Another Opportunity to Protect State’s Mountains
House Subcommittee Kills Mountaintop Removal Ban With Delay Tactic In yet another act of political cowardice on the issue of mountaintop removal coal mining, a Tennessee House subcommittee voted to kill the Scenic Vistas Protection Act and for the second…
TAGS: Coal Mountaintop Removal Politics Tennessee Tennessee Scenic Vistas Protection Act Tennessee State legislature
Close Calls as Congress Defeats Rollbacks to EPA Boiler Rule and Speed-up of Keystone XL Pipeline
Get ready, because a hostile hive of lobbyists echoing industry cries that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is no more than big government, job-killing, mean, green machine may have just been shaken up again. On Thurs., March 8, Congress narrowly…
Senator Manchin Should Listen to Himself
It’s rare to get this upset over someone making a valid statement, but the other day Sen. Manchin (D-WV) said something that I completely agree with, and it’s driving me nuts. When discussing the future of coal in a hearing…
Subcommittee Hearing A “Dog and Pony Show” With Your Ringmaster, Rep. Bill Johnson
I’ll admit, this morning’s Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources hearing had my head spinning. Similar to the committee’s previous hearings on the stream buffer zone rule, statements made by the Republican majority committee members could cause concerns as to…
TAGS: Appalachian Voices Clean Water Act Congress Economy Environment Health Matt Wasson Mountaintop Removal Office of Surface Mining Politics Water Pollution
Bad Bill of the Week
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) has just introduced a bill that has the sole purpose of making it easier for coal companies to pollute water. S.2122, the “Defense of Environment and Property Act” neither defends the environment nor private property. While…
Scenic Vistas Efforts Becoming Headline News
Tennessee Coal Industry Front Group Falsifies Information In Attacking Church-goers Motives As the Tennessee General Assembly kicked off yesterday, 100s of supporters of our Appalachian Mountains gathered in congregations, gymnasiums, and homes across the state to complete 40 Days of…
Time to Stop the Denial
Let’s talk about losing touch. According to a 2011 study by the Pew Research Center, fewer Americans believe in global warming than did five years ago. Politicians treat climate change as a non-issue and wage war on the U.S. Environmental…
