Writing for News
Petition: Listing Atlantic Horseshoe Crab as an Endangered Species
Originally published for A Rocha USA, February 2024
“A recent petition, led by The Center for Biological Diversity with 22 partner organizations, seeks to list the Atlantic horseshoe crab as an endangered species under NOAA Fisheries’ Endangered Species Act.
In their research on the Atlantic horseshoe crab, A Rocha’s Conservation Project team in Florida has identified present threats to the species, including the detrimental impact of beach development on their habitat and overharvesting for use as bait or in medical testing.”
Luthiery school opens manufacturing facility to provide economic opportunity
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, December 2019
“People from around the world come to the Appalachian School of Luthiery in Hindman, Ky., to learn the craft of instrument-building. The school is part of the Appalachian Artisan Center, a nonprofit organization that helps develop the region’s art economy.
The school’s head luthier, Doug Naselroad, recently co-founded Troublesome Creek Stringed Instrument Company. The nonprofit company plans to become commercially sustainable by manufacturing high-end custom guitars, mandolins and mountain dulcimers while helping local people earn a livelihood through luthiery skills.
In February 2019, the federal Appalachian Regional Commission announced a $12 million investment for addiction recovery and workforce development in Kentucky’s Appalachian counties, including more than $867,000 for Troublesome Creek.”
Study Shows Wood Pellet Electricity Harmful to Climate
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, October 2019
“A recent analysis of three Southeast wood pellet mills and the United Kingdom power plants that burn their pellets reveals that burning trees for electricity, even from sustainably managed forests, would increase carbon pollution for more than four decades as compared to the status quo. This exceeds the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s timeframe for critical carbon reduction.
Research firm Spatial Informatics Group conducted the study for the nonprofit Southern Environmental Law Center.
The three mills in the report are located in Louisiana and Mississippi and, combined, produce up to 1.5 million metric tons of wood pellets per year. This is sourced mainly from non-industrial pine plantations. The biomass is burned in the U.K., where mill owner Drax Biomass has converted four coal-fired units using government subsidies.”
Audit Finds Mine Safety Penalties Ineffective
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, October 2019
“A federal audit of the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration, released in August 2019, found no evidence to support a correlation between payment of mine safety penalties and the safety of mine operations over 18 years.
Wes Addington, executive director of the nonprofit Appalachian Citizens Law Center, told National Public Radio that “penalties just aren’t high enough to deter bad behavior.”
The auditors looked at coal, metal and nonmetal mines together.”
States Sue Over New EPA Carbon Rule
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, October 2019
“In August, 22 states and seven cities, including Virginia and North Carolina, sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over the Affordable Clean Energy rule, which loosens Obama-era restrictions on coal-fired power plants. The states behind the lawsuit all have Democratic attorney generals who claim the rule violates the federal Clean Air Act by undercutting efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the carbon footprint of power plants. West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey calls the lawsuit a “power grab,” according to WOWK-TV.”
Trump Administration Charged with Weakening Endangered Species Protections to Favor Coal
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, August 2019
“On May 10, environmental groups issued a formal notice of intent to sue the U.S. Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the state of West Virginia for violations of the federal Endangered Species Act. At press time, no action had occurred.
According to the Center for Biological Diversity, the conservation group leading the lawsuit, records obtained through the Freedom of Information Act reveal West Virginia officials appealed to the Trump administration to weaken protections for the endangered Guyandotte River and Big Sandy crayfish. The officials claimed regulations to protect the species were harming the coal industry.
Interference from a high-level U.S. Department of Interior official led to West Virginia issuing mining permits in crayfish habitat, thus allowing the risk of mine sediment and pollution in violation of the Endangered Species Act.”
W.V. Landowners Win Case Against Fracking Company
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, August 2019
“On June 3, the West Virginia Supreme Court unanimously ruled that mineral companies must obtain express permission from the surface owners to use their land to reach gas reserves under neighboring properties.
The decision upheld a 2017 Doddridge County Circuit Court ruling against EQT Corporation siding with two Doddridge County residents, Beth Crowder and David Wentz, who had sued the gas company over trespassing on their property to drill. The residents were awarded $190,000 in damages.”
Fracking Company to Pay Millions for WV Clean Water Act Violations
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, April 2019
“On Feb. 12, fracking company Antero Resources was ordered to pay $3.15 million for violations of the federal Clean Water Act and the West Virginia Pollution Control Act.
The company’s settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection follows multiple violations at 32 sites.
While extracting natural gas, Antero discharged unauthorized pollutants, including dredged and fill material, into streams and wetlands in Harrison, Doddridge and Tyler counties.”
NC Governor Proposes Wind Energy Study
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, April 2019
“On March 6, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) proposed a $25 billion budget for the 2019 to 21 fiscal years. Included in the budget was a one-year, $300,000 study that would analyze the state’s potential for offshore wind energy, if approved by state legislators.
Similar studies conducted in Mid-Atlantic and New England states have led to those states starting to corner the U.S. offshore wind market, Katharine Kollins, the president of the advocacy group Southeastern Wind Coalition, told Energy News Network.”
Proposed Mine Causes Concern in Birmingham
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, April 2019
“A Birmingham, Ala., water utility and a local conservation group, the Black Warrior Riverkeeper, have teamed up against a coal mine proposed by Mays Mining, Inc., citing concerns over permit deficiencies and potential drinking water contamination.
The proposed Alabama Surface Mining Commission permit would authorize surface coal mining at a former industrial site with contaminated groundwater just 5.5 miles upstream of Birmingham’s major drinking water intakes, which service 200,000 people. According to Black Warrior Riverkeeper, the permit does not adequately address the existing contamination at the site or how mining could safely occur.”
Reinterpretation of Migratory Bird Law Favors Energy Companies
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, April 2019
“On Sept. 5, eight states joined environmental groups in federal lawsuits against the U.S. Department of the Interior’s December 2017 reinterpretation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918. The act prohibits killing certain bird species, but the Trump administration’s legal opinion states that the act only applies to the intentional, as opposed to incidental, killing of migratory birds.
In April 2018, DTE Midstream Appalachia, a natural gas pipeline company, took advantage of this reinterpretation when the agency granted their request to clear trees during birds’ nesting season for the Birdsboro Pipeline Project in Pennsylvania, according to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
Since the 1970s, the federal government has used this act to threaten the energy industry with fines and prosecution for activities that kill migratory birds.
U.S. Sees Growth in Clean Energy Jobs
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, April 2019
“Clean energy jobs in the United States saw a growth rate of 3.6 percent, a total of 110,000 net new jobs in 2018, according to a March report released by Environmental Entrepreneurs, a national business group.
At the end of 2018, nearly 3.3 million Americans worked in clean energy, which outnumbers fossil fuels jobs nearly three to one. Clean energy employers anticipate a 6 percent increase in job growth in 2019. Wind technicians and solar installers are predicted to be the top two fastest-growing jobs over the next seven years.”
States Tackle Environmental and Energy Issues
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, February 2019
“Across the region, state legislators and governors are tackling energy and environmental issues that can have a profound impact on each state’s land, water and people. Here are a few of the bills and topics to follow in 2019.”
Mistreated Tennessee Workers Seek Resolution
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, February 2019
“On Dec. 22, 2008, a dike burst at Tennessee Valley Authority’s Kingston plant near Harriman, Tenn., spilling 7.3 million tons of coal ash across 300 acres of land. Nine hundred laborers, including some TVA employees, worked to clear the site over seven years and many were sickened from exposure to the toxic ash.
On Jan. 11, a federal judge ordered mediation between the workers and Jacobs Engineering. This follows the court’s Nov. 7 ruling in favor of the workers against Jacobs Engineering, the TVA contractor that managed the cleanup.. The verdict entitles them to seek money to cover medical treatment for themselves and their families – many of whom were harmed by exposure to the coal ash that workers carried home.”
Blair Mountain Returns to National Register of Historic Places
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, August 2018
“On June 29, the site of the Blair Mountain labor conflict in southern West Virginia was placed back on the National Register of Historic Places after years of legal action led by environmental and historic preservation advocates.
The 1,600-acre battlefield was originally listed on the register in 2009, but was delisted nine months later due to successful lobbying efforts from Alpha Natural Resources and Arch Coal. In 2016, a federal judge declared the removal to be unlawful.”
New Studies Document Rise of Black Lung Disease
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, June 2018
“In a study published in March, University of Illinois at Chicago researchers found more than 4,000 cases of severe black lung, also known as progressive massive fibrosis, over the last 50 years. More than half of the cases were found in the last 16 years, with the frequency of the fatal disease increasing from year to year. As much as 30 percent of cases occurred in the coal-mining states of Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia.”
Managing GenX Contamination
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, June 2018
“On May 17, North Carolina House Democrats and House and Senate Republicans filed separate legislation to address the emerging contaminant GenX. The proposals differ in funding allocated to the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality.
House Bill 968 offers the NCDEQ over $14 million, while Senate Bill 724 proposes more than $1.3 million for the agency. Both bills would address the department’s permitting backlogs.”
WV Study Connects Acid Rain to Global Temperature
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, June 2018
“Joe Carrara, a biology Ph.D. candidate at West Virginia University, has found a way to improve climate change predictions using Appalachian forests.
To do this, Carrara studied the impact of increased levels of acid rain — caused when pollution mixes with atmospheric water — on forest ecosystems at the Fernow Experimental Forest in Parsons, W.Va. Due to its long history of coal-fired power plants, West Virginia has experienced some of the highest rates of acid rain in the United States.
Carrara found that increased acid rain causes decreased decomposition of carbon in the soil, which ultimately affects the rate that carbon dioxide is returned to the atmosphere.”
Health Improves in Allegheny County, Pa., After Shenango Coke Plant Closes
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, June 2018
“On May 8, the DTE Energy-owned Shenango Coke Works facility on Pennsylvania’s Neville Island was demolished. The Pittsburgh-area plant, which baked coal to produce coke for steelmaking for 54 years, was closed in January 2016 following years of community protest and multiple air and water violations.
The plant, which was named one of Allegheny County’s largest polluters, paid more than $2 million in penalties for pollution violations between 1980 and 2012.
An Allegheny County Health Department study presented in March found a reduction in certain emergency room visits in the year following the plant’s closure. Visits for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease dropped 37.9 percent, and 26.5 percent for cardiovascular diseases including heart attacks and strokes.”
N.C. Struggles to Resolve GenX Contamination
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, April 2018
“North Carolina legislature adjourned until May 16 without resolving the debate between the House of Representatives and Senate over House Bill 189, which seeks to address concerns surrounding Wilmington area drinking water contaminated by the potentially cancer-causing chemical GenX.
The original House bill would have appropriated $1.3 million to the state Department of Environmental Quality to purchase equipment to detect GenX and other potentially harmful chemicals, and would have hired five scientists. It was unanimously approved by the House on Jan. 10, but Senate leader Phil Berger wouldn’t allow a Senate vote.”
Cash for Carbon: Working Woodlands Program Grows in Appalachia
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, April 2018
“Over 25,000 acres will remain undeveloped in Tennessee, Virginia and Eastern Kentucky through a $4.9 million grant awarded to The Nature Conservancy of Kentucky in December 2017 from the National Resources Conservation Service.
The funds will implement a program called Working Woodlands, which works with landowners to create a 10-year sustainable forest land management plan and Forest Stewardship Council certification, which opens the door to a wider timber market. This is at no upfront cost to the owner.”
Review of Mountaintop Removal’s Health Impact Terminated
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, April 2018
“In January, the U.S. Department of Interior’s Office of Surface Mining, Reclamation and Enforcement officially terminated a study that would review the human health impacts of living near mountaintop removal coal mining and released the study’s committee members.
The National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine’s project began in 2016, after the review of existing studies was requested by citizens and the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection Agency and the Office of Surface Mining committed at least $1 million.”
Changes for Blue Ridge Parkway in 2018
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, April 2018
“The Blue Ridge Parkway is 469 miles long and reaches from Shenandoah National Park in Virginia to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina. Each year, the National Park Service identifies projects for the upcoming season. Included below are some of the projects occurring in 2018.”
Proposed Changes to WNC Hunting Seasons
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, February 2018
“In December, the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission proposed changes to hunting seasons for bear and white-tailed deer in the Western North Carolina mountains. The changes, which can be viewed on the NCWRC website, would allow bear and deer hunting seasons to overlap and allow longer periods of hunting with guns.”
By the Numbers: New Public Lands
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, February 2018
“In late 2017 and early 2018, these parks gained new territory thanks to land trust organizations and other donors.
956: Acres to be transferred to Justin P. Wilson Cumberland Trail State Park in Tennessee through a partnership with the nonprofit organization Tennessee Parks and Greenways Foundation. The land, located on the biologically rich Cumberland Plateau, is home to eight caves and several rare species.”
Debate Over ATV Access to West Virginia Wildlife Areas
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, February 2018
“The Big Game Hunting Association of West Virginia seeks to change current state rules regarding the use of all-terrain vehicles in West Virginia’s Wildlife Management Areas, claiming it excludes some hunters, according to MetroNews.”
Meadows Development in Abingdon Breaks Ground
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, February 2018
“On Jan. 3, rock blasting began at the Meadows in Abingdon, Va., where a commercial center and public sports complex are being developed, despite persistent local opposition. The Meadows is a 70-acre historic property near Interstate 81 and is adjacent to the Virginia Creeper Trail, a 34.3-mile rail trail that is used by hikers, bikers, runners and horseback riders.”
Battery Company to Invest in Kentucky
Originally published for The Appalachian Voice, February 2018
“In December 2017, power technology producer EnerBlu announced plans to open a $372 million battery manufacturing plant in Pikeville, Ky., in 2020.
The Eastern Kentucky economy, which has faced a sharp decline in coal jobs, would benefit from the economic diversification the plant would bring, according to state Sen. Ray Jones..”