Appalachia’s biggest problem may lie below our feet. Throughout the booms and busts of the coal industry, landholding corporations have kept their grasp on the land which previously held coveted resources.
Blog Archives
Reckoning with land ownership as Central Appalachia moves away from coal
TAGS: absentee landownership Appalachian Land Study New Economy Network West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy Wise County
Virginia officials must begin planning for Wise County, other power plant closures
CONTACT: Chelsea Barnes, chelsea@appvoices.org, 614-205-6424 Cat McCue, cat@appvoices.org, 434-293-6373 Today, the Institute for Energy Economics and Analysis released a report shedding light on Dominion Energy’s costly coal-fired Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center in Wise Co, Va., and its likely early…
TAGS: Coal Dominion Energy ieefa Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis just transition southwest virginia Virginia Virginia City Wise County
Southwest Virginia schools, local governments urge fair access to solar
CONTACT: Chelsea Barnes, New Economy Program Manager Appalachian Voices chelsea@appvoices.org 276-207-9636 NORTON, VA. – Several school boards and counties in Southwest Virginia are calling on local leaders and Appalachian Power Company to allow fair access to solar energy for their…
A Pilot Program’s Uncertain Record
Some projects receiving federal funds for economic development near abandoned mines have strong community support; others, not so much.
TAGS: abandoned coal mines abandoned mine lands AML Pilot Congress economic development Virginia West Virginia Wise County
Wise County Solar Tour
Tour some of Wise County’s solar energy installations on Oct. 19 as part of the 24th Annual National Solar Tour.
Southwest Virginia group challenges surface mine proposed near UVA-Wise
The mining company’s executive is the former head of the corporation responsible for the 2004 mining accident that killed 3-year-old Jeremy Davidson.
Va. health advocates hold coal company accountable for water pollution
Contact: Matt Hepler, 276-679-1691, matt.hepler@appvoices.org Brian Willis, 202-675-2386, Brian.Willis@sierraclub.org Isak Howell, 540-998-7744, ihowell@appalmad.org WISE, Virginia – The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia has ruled in favor of the Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards and Sierra Club on…
TAGS: Coal Coal mining Mountaintop Removal Red River Selenium Southern Appalachian Mountain Virginia Water Pollution Wise County
Solarize Wise (Va.) running strong with Sigora Solar on board
Contact: Lydia Graves, Solarize Wise Program Coordinator, Lydia@appvoices.org, (276) 679-1691 NOTE TO EDITORS: These photos (here and here) are available to download and print. Caption: Solar thermal hot water system on the roof of the Duffield Regional Jail in Scott…
Connecting the economic dots in Southwest Virginia
More than 300 people turned out for the recent Southwest Virginia Economic Forum hosted by UVA-Wise — perhaps the largest gathering of people coming together to talk specifically and hopefully about solutions for the region’s economic future. A week later, the positive energy coming out of the forum is still palpable in the community, with some feeling it may have been the turning point for the region.
TAGS: distributed solar economic development Economic diversification power grants POWER initiative Power-Plus Solar Energy southwest virginia transition uva uva-wise Virginia Wise County
Crowdsourcing Southwest Virginia’s New Economy
Appalachian Voices is on the ground in southwest Virginia, holding community forums and engaging with citizens from all walks of life to gather their hopes and visions for creating a new economy in the region. You might think of it as old-fashioned crowdsourcing. Soon, we’ll have an online, modern-day crowdsourcing platform to gather more ideas and details to help make these visions become reality.
TAGS: economic development Economic diversification Economy Power southwest virginia transition Wise County
