This week, some of the stories on our show inspired college student art — including a vivid image of a bear smashing a clarinet. Also, a Hare Krishna community in West Virginia serves vegetarian food made in three sacred kitchens. And, COVID-19 exposed the contempt society has for marginalized people. One author says, these folks are anything but passive.
Professionals and experts from Kentucky, West Virginia and Montana testified in Washington, D.C., today about a bill designed to diversify economies in coal regions.
The hearing focused on the Revitalizing the Economy of Coal Communities by Leveraging Local Activities and Investing More Act of 2017 – also known as the RECLAIM Act.
Questions ranged from how abandoned mine land funds are distributed and used now, to the potential economic impact of those funds becoming more readily accessible.
The U.S. House Natural Resources subcommittee heard from Fritz Boettner, of Morgantown-based environmental and economic consulting firm Downstream Strategies.
“The RECLAIM Act of 2017 is intended to do two things: accelerate reclamation of abandoned mine land by dispersing $1 billion of Abandoned Mine Land funds to states and tribes, and to leverage increased mine reclamation projects to increase long term economic business on reclaimed mines,” Boettner explained. He went on to say the bill needs adjustments to better incentivize economic growth.
The bill would speed up spending from a fund established decades ago to restore abandoned coal mining land. A $1 billion would be released over five years to spur economic diversification — especially in areas that have lost coal jobs.
Thursday’s decision came following a two-day hearing held in December at the DEP headquarters in Charleston where the citizen groups argued for the release of all redacted information in the site’s air quality permit application.
The "Do Not Drink" distinction means residents of the Town of Wayne can use their city water supply for all normal purposes except for cooking and drinking.
Blood is a key part of modern medical care, but keeping a regular supply relies on thousands of volunteers donating regularly. We learn about the importance of blood drives and how technology is making it easier than ever to roll up your sleeve.
Clean up continues after a transformer failure in Wyoming County released mineral oil onto the ground and into a nearby stream. This leak comes just over two weeks after vandals caused a separate leak from an Appalachian Power substation in Wayne County.