-
A bill stopping NC governments from banning natural gas heads to governor’s desk
By: Adam Wagner, Raleigh News & Observer November 30, 2021 The North Carolina General Assembly passed legislation Monday that would prevent local governments from banning the use of energy sources, like natural gas, in new construction or renovations. House Bill 220 will now head to Gov. Roy Cooper’s desk. If he signs the bill, North Carolina would join 20 other states in passing similar legislation. No local governments in North Carolina have moved to ban the use of natural gas in construction, and environmental groups called for Cooper to veto the legislation moments after the House voted to concur. Supporters of the legislation…
Continue reading -
Celebrating EJ Victories! New ‘Clean Currents’ Newsletter!
“Clean Currents” is our organization’s quarterly newsletter featuring our current campaign work, drinking water news and opportunities to get involved!
Continue reading -
The Most Detailed Map of Cancer-Causing Industrial Air Pollution in the U.S.
By: Al Shaw and Lylla Younes, ProPublicaNovember 2, 2021 It’s not a secret that industrial facilities emit hazardous air pollution. A new ProPublica analysis shows for the first time just how much toxic air pollution they emit — and how much the chemicals they unleash could be elevating cancer risk in their communities. ProPublica’s analysis of five years of modeled EPA data identified more than 1,000 toxic hot spots across the country and found that an estimated 250,000 people living in them may be exposed to levels of excess cancer…
Continue reading -
MVP Southgate & Continued Resistance
This article is by CWFNC volunteer James Lopez Residents throughout the Appalachian states of Virginia, West Virginia, and North Carolina have united in protest against Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) and the proposed MVP Southgate extension. MVP is a proposed natural gas pipeline that, if constructed, will be built through West Virginia and Virginia, with the Southgate extension cutting through southern Virginia and Rockingham and Alamance counties in North Carolina. The MVP pipeline was first announced in 2014, with construction expected to be complete by 2019. The coronavirus pandemic, loss of required…
Continue reading -
Environmental lawsuit challenges NC biogas production from hog waste
By: Arturo Pineda, Carolina Public PressOctober 22, 2021 A complaint about pollutants from hog farms filed last month with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency alleges that the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality’s issuing of biogas permits to four hog farms will have a disproportionate impact on communities of color in the surrounding area. North Carolina environmental and civil rights advocacy groups argue that if the biogas operations are allowed to operate, pollutants from the operations will affect the communities of color surrounding the hog farms. Biogas production is…
Continue reading -
Powerless In The Pandemic: After Bailouts, Electric Utilities Chose Profits Over People
By: Bailout WatchSeptember 30, 2021 WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity and BailoutWatch today released Powerless in the Pandemic, a report showing some of the nation’s top electric utilities received a collective $1.25 billion from last year’s government bailouts while shutting off families’ electric service nearly 1 million times. Utilities wielded political power to secure beneficial tax-code changes in the CARES Act, but defied calls to grant their own customers temporary relief. Instead, 16 utilities suspended or canceled electric service to nearly 1 million households between February 2020 and June 2021, leaving people without…
Continue reading -
“Critical Infrastructure” Anti-Protest Legislation Targets Pipeline Protestors
This article has been contributed by CWFNC volunteer Hannah Budds All images in this post are from the 7 Directions of Service Water Walk along the proposed MVP Southgate route. On May 2, small teams walked, paddled, or biked the entire proposed Mountain Valley Southgate route. 7 Directions of Service, which led the Water Walk, collaborated with the Pittsylvania County, Virginia NAACP Environmental Justice Committee to begin the day near the proposed site of the Lambert Compressor Station which plans to connect the MVP Southgate to the MVP main line…
Continue reading -
Indigenous Tribes Facing Displacement in Alaska and Louisiana Say the U.S. Is Ignoring Climate Threats
By Dalia Faheid, Inside Climate NewsSeptember 13, 2021 WASHINGTON—About 31 Native Alaskan communities face imminent climate displacement from flooding and erosion, which could lead cultures to disappear and ways of life to transform, with four tribes already in the process of relocating from their quickly disappearing villages. The Kivalina, Shishmaref, Shaktoolik and Newtok, along with coastal Louisiana tribes, are among the most at risk of displacement due to climate change. But their efforts to move, according to tribal leaders, have been impeded by a lack of federal programs to assist in their…
Continue reading