Agriculture Deputy Secretary Merrigan Announces Microloan Funding to Boost Business Lending and Job Creation...

News Release from USDA LEXINGTON, Ky. – Oct. 28, 2010 – Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan today announced that USDA has selected recipients in 36 states to receive funds to make loans to boost small business development, create jobs, and strengthen rural communities. The Deputy Secretary made the announcement in Lexington, Kentucky, with one of the recipients. The funding is being provided through the Rural Microentreprenuer Assistance Program (RMAP), which was authorized by the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (Farm Bill). “This program provides direct support for small business formation and offers technical assistance and training to small rural businesses,” Merrigan said. “This initiative continues the effort of the Obama Administration to rebuild and revitalize rural communities. In many cases, an entrepreneur needs only a small amount of money, a microloan, to get started. This program creates opportunities for small businesses to prosper by giving them access to capital and it also helps to create new off-farm income opportunities that help to support owners of small and mid-sized farm operations. In Lexington, Community Ventures Corporation was selected to receive a $500,000 loan and a $105,000 grant to provide financial and technical assistance and training to rural microentrepreneurs. The organization serves rural businesses in 10 counties that have been designated as Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) communities, which are characterized by high unemployment rates, poverty and low per capita income. The Kentucky Highlands Investment Corporation in London, Ky. was selected to receive a $500,000 loan and a $100,000 grant...

Walmart and the End of the Local Food Movement

Originally posted on Huffington Post on 10/26/10 by Anthony Flaccavento, Abingdon, Virginia-based organic farmer I had just come in from picking bell peppers when I read the news of Walmart’s pledge to buy at least nine percent locally-raised foods by the year 2015. Perhaps I should have been heartened, since this represents potentially hundreds of millions of dollars in market for local farmers around the nation and world. Instead, the announcement sent me back to the pepper patch, shaking my head and wondering if this wasn’t the beginning of the end of the local food movement. The organic produce we raise — on what used to be a tobacco farm here in Appalachian Virginia — goes to our local farmers market, to a handful of restaurants, and to independent supermarkets in Virginia, Tennessee and neighboring states. While we’re one of the biggest producers at the Abingdon farmers market, our farm’s sales are but a small part of the produce and eggs reaching the shelves of several hundred supermarkets through a farmer-based network called Appalachian Harvest. Developed as a partnership with these regionally-based grocers, Appalachian Harvest has helped small growers reach large markets while securing a pretty good price for their peppers, tomatoes and other items. Sometimes referred to as value chains, other times called “food hubs,” coordinated, cooperative networks of farmers closely linked to regional markets are emerging in many parts of the country. The farmers in these networks are typically small to medium scale, often employing organic or...

Montana Wind Power Now Cheaper than Coal

From the Public News Service: Energy Awareness Month: MT Wind Now Cheaper than Coal HELENA, Mont. – October has been designated “Energy Awareness Month” by presidential proclamation and a new energy fact being touted in Montana is that wind power purchased to meet the state’s renewable energy standard is now cheaper than the traditional mix of coal and hydro. Ben Brouwer, renewable energy and conservation program manager with Alternative Energy Resources Organization (AERO) in Helena says wind power prices have also been more stable, although he doesn’t think that news is common knowledge yet. “Right now, there’s a misconception floating around that renewable energy is high-cost energy, and that just really isn’t true.” Wind power costs were about a third less than coal and hydro over the past year, according to filings by NorthWestern Energy. Peggy Beltrone with Exergy Integrated Systems, a wind power developer, says Montana is still sitting on huge potential for more wind turbines and other renewables, such as solar and biomass. She wants local companies and the state to get going on development…or she warns that out-of-state or foreign companies are going to scoop up the opportunities. “These sources are going to be developed. I’m a Montanan. I want to see those benefits in our communities.” Montana passed a renewable energy standard in 2005, which requires the state’s two investor-owned utilities to get 15 percent of their total electricity sales from renewable resources by 2015. Copyright © 2010 Public News Service About Kristin TraczKristin Tracz...

USDA Rural Development funding benefits Central Appalachia

A recent report from USDA Rural Development describes how the agency has used funding provided by the Recovery Act to work toward meeting its goal of ensuring that rural areas are creating wealth and thriving economically. USDA Rural Development received over $21 billion in Recovery Act funding. According to the report, its total Recovery Act investments created or saved more than 300,000 jobs for rural residents as of September 30, 2010. Following is a break-down of state-by-state awards of USDA Rural Development Recovery Act funding in Central Appalachia. Kentucky: $770,039,979North Carolina: $1,305,007,257Ohio: $554,041,941Virginia: $660,430,335West Virginia: $297,734,215 The report also highlights some of Rural Development’s efforts under the Recovery Act to modernize, renew, and rebuild rural communities across the country. Here is an excerpt from a story focusing on efforts in Tennessee. Rural Tennesseans Benefit from Computer and Workforce Training The modern day job search is increasingly an online effort, which puts those without access to the Internet at a substantial disadvantage. For many older adults looking for employment, the barrier is even greater if they lack access to the Internet and the computer skills. Thanks to a Recovery Act-funded grant awarded to the Northwest Tennessee Human Resources Agency (NWTHRA) in the little town of Dresden, older adults and displaced workers now have access to a computer center and a work force training curriculum designed especially for them. The idea for developing a computer lab for seniors came to NWTHRA staff when an older client found a good job opportunity...

Economic Development Forum on Renewable Energy in Kentucky: Registration Now Open...

Economic Development Forum on Renewable Energy in Kentucky Join us on November 17th to see how Kentucky can attract investments and create “green jobs” by developing comprehensive energy and funding strategies that will prepare its infrastructure and workforce to be ready for this global transition. November 17, 2010 9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. ET Berea College Alumni Building Activities RoomBerea, KY 40404 Renewable energy is emerging as an industry in its own right – one that will provide a wide variety of jobs and investment opportunities as the industry grows. How can Kentucky benefit economically from a rapidly expanding clean energy economy? The Forum will explore: Economic drivers for renewable energy Opportunities to develop Kentucky’s workforce to meet the industry’s current and future employment needs Funding and investment opportunities that a clean energy economy might provide Challenges for businesses, utilities and energy consumers Speakers Berea College President Dr. Larry Shinn will provide opening remarks at the forum, followed by speakers from Kentucky’s Department for Energy Development and Independence, the Kentucky Workforce Investment Board, the USDA Rural Development Division and speakers from renewable energy businesses and Kentucky utility companies. Fee Workshop cost is $15 per person*. Fee includes continental breakfast and lunch. (Payable by Visa, MasterCard or check. All payments must be paid by the workshop date. Please remit check to KPPC, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40292, Attn: Economic Development Forum.) *If you are interested in attending but need assistance with the $15 fee, please contact KPPC for scholarship...

Perspective on “Appalachia and Wales: Coal and After Coal”...

Sylvia Ryerson shared her experience at the Appalachia and Wales conference with the Rural Blog yesterday. She writes: Scholars, community organizers, activists and students gathered at Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C., over the weekend for a three-day symposium, “Appalachia and Wales: Coal and After Coal.” The event focused on the historical ties and parallel trends in production between coal-mining regions in Appalachia and Wales over the last century. Like Central Appalachia, Wales has a long history of coal mining. Yet most of the mines in Wales shut down in the 1980s, forcing former mining regions to find alternative ways to sustain their communities. And now, coal production in Central Appalachia is declining, and market experts expect the trend to continue – and perhaps accelerate, depending on the regulatory environment for the industry. “Given the issues going on around the Appalachian coalfields right now, we need to look at what has happened in Wales since the closing of the mines from about 1986 on,” said Pat Beaver, director of the Center for Appalachian Studies at ASU and co-organizer of the event. “The experience of Wales could inform how we think about the future of Appalachia and a sense of urgency about thinking about the future in Appalachia.” Author Jeff Biggers delivered the keynote address on Thursday evening, discussing the importance of developing an economically responsible plan to decrease the nation’s dependence on coal, oil and other fossil fuels, coupled with a plan to bring new renewable energy jobs to...

Hope for the American Chestnut

There’s an interesting piece in today’s Washington Post on the potential for a comeback of the American chestnut tree, a former mainstay of Appalachian forests. As the author, Juliet Eilperin, writes, “The American chestnut served as an economic engine for Appalachia. Families fattened livestock with its nuts and used its wood for fuel, railroad ties, fence posts, musical instruments and furniture. It was a fixture along East Coast and Appalachian streets and highways, where its display of fingery white flowers was a springtime delight.” The American chestnut virtually disappeared after a foreign blight in the last century. However, efforts to interbreed the American with its Chinese cousin to create an American chestnut with some resistance to Asian blight have shown signs of promise. Eilperin continues, “If the hybrid plantings thrive, some envision huge tracts of strip-mined Appalachia one day being restored with lovely chestnut forests…now that they’ve got trees with a shot at survival, volunteers have joined federal officials to begin reforestation. They’ve planted 20,000 to 25,000 chestnuts, and some of the most promising work is being done on land decimated by strip mining that must be restored under federal law.” We’d love to hear your thoughts on this subject: the role the American chestnut may have played in your family history, whether there are efforts in your community to introduce hybrid plantings or treat affected trees, and what hopes or misgivings you may have about reforestation efforts. About Kristin TraczKristin Tracz served MACED’s Research and Policy team from...

Can Rural Communities Harness “Smart Growth”?

The good folks at Daily Yonder have a great piece on the EPA's new report about "Smart Growth" in rural areas — an excerpt is available here, but be sure to see the full piece for more information. What does “smart growth” mean to rural communities? The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently released a report titled Putting Smart Growth to Work in Rural Communities. It was written by EPA staffers and people with the International City/County Management Association. And it was meant to give smaller communities an idea of how smart growth principles can work in their towns and counties. You can find a full copy of the report here. The report is aimed at all rural places, whether they are growing or shrinking. Most of the report consists of concrete suggestions. The recommendations are gathered under three goals. 1. Support the rural landscape by creating an economic climate that enhances the viability of working lands and conserves natural lands; 2. Help existing places thrive by taking care of assets and investments such as downtowns, Main Streets, existing infrastructure, and places that the community values; and 3. Create great new places by building vibrant, enduring neighborhoods and communities that people, especially young people, don’t want to leave. We’ve pulled some of the recommendations listed under each goal. We’ll begin excerpts from the report with the first goal. Natural Resources Conservations Service The Environmental Protection Agency has released a study showing how the principles of "smart growth" can be...