Kentucky’s Competing Energy Futures?: Coal-Reliant Kentucky Takes First Steps to Solve Energy Dilemma...

Maria Gallucci has a piece on SolveClimate that looks at the competing visions of Kentucky's energy future.  The two trends, one towards support for renewable energy and energy efficiency, the other towards legislating sanctuaries for coal and removing federal oversight of mining, have both appeared in this year's legislative session, though the Clean Energy Opportunity Act has not yet been heard. Gallucci interviewed several Kentucky policy advocates, including MACED's Jason Bailey and Kentucky Environmental Foundation's Elizabeth Crowe. Gallucci's piece in full: Kentucky's EPA-bashing is overshadowing its efforts to pursue cleaner energy, in the face of its almost complete reliance on coal By Maria Gallucci Feb 24, 2011    Image: Cindy Seigle Kentucky is heading toward its energy future paddling in opposite directions. Some lawmakers want to boost the use of alternative energies, especially biomass, to diversify its fuel mix. But coal remains the backbone of its manufacturing-driven economy, and others are determined to keep it that way. The political dynamic playing out in Kentucky offers a local window into the larger national energy dilemma. The state is seeking the benefits of a clean economy, but coal is still the source of 92 percent of its electricity and brings in $3.5 billion in export revenue. Currently, state legislators are deliberating three bills to spur economic growth and rein in soaring electricity rates. One would foster clean energy development. The others would shelter the coal industry from Obama administration regulations on greenhouse gases that opponents say would kill industrial jobs. While...

Know a Young Entrepreneur Who Could Use $40,000?

An announcement came our way–please spread the word to anyone you think might be interested. Hitachi Foundation’s Yoshiyama Young Entrepreneurs Program The Hitachi Foundation’s Yoshiyama Young Entrepreneurs Program seeks to identify up to five entrepreneurs who are operating viable businesses that help to improve the lives of low-wealth individuals in America. This is a business competition in which selected entrepreneurs receive $40,000 over two years and have access to additional technical resources to strengthen their business.    Eligible applicants must currently be at least 18 years old and no more than 29 years old when they launched their business. Businesses must be 1-5 years old, and have been generating revenue for at least the past 12 months. The award is open to businesses organized as either for profit or nonprofit, with an earned-income revenue model. Enterprises must create jobs, supply goods or services, or use internal management practices that offer low-wealth individuals in America an opportunity to improve their economic mobility. The first round application deadline is March 14, 2011.             Click here to access the guidelines and application.  For questions, please email . About Kristin TraczKristin Tracz served MACED’s Research and Policy team from 2009-2012 working on clean energy policy, energy efficiency programs and the Appalachian Transition Initiative. She joined MACED after finishing her Master of Environmental Management degree at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies. She now lives and works in Washington,...

The More You Know: Atlas of Rural and Small-Town America has Demographic, Economic and Agricultural Data...

Our colleagues at the Rural Blog have a piece on USDA's Atlas of Rural and Small-Town America tool.  Like the Census maps generated by the New York Times, this tool helps communities like those in Appalachia understand more about themselves–which can be helpful for planning what they want to be in the future. The story from the Jon Hale, at the Rural Blog: Atlas of Rural and Small-Town America has demographic, economic and agricultural data Population change, 2000-2009 (click on map for larger image) The U.S. Department of Agriculture has unveiled a new rural mapping tool aimed at making county-level demographic, economic and agricultural data more easily available. The tool, labeled the Atlas of Rural and Small-Town America, encompasses more than 60 statistical indicators, which USDA hopes rural communities can use to spur economic development, Lynda Waddington of the Iowa Independent reports. "The new atlas will … help policy makers pinpoint the needs of particular regions, recognize their diversity and build on their assets," said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, who noted that the project is a part of a "broad USDA initiative to make relevant data easily accessible" to the public, researchers, journalists, public officials and other professionals. The data is grouped into four categories: people, jobs, agriculture and county typologies. The "people" category encompasses county demographic profiles such as age, race/ethnicity, education, family composition, population change, migration and immigration. The "jobs" category displays "conditions and trends affecting the labor force, such as employment change, unemployment, industry and occupational structure," Waddington...

Calling for Just Transition in the Coalfields

The group that became the “Frankfort Fourteen” entered Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear’s office on Friday with three requests they wished to ask of Gov. Beshear in person.  The first was reiterating a long-standing invitation to witness the impacts of destructive mining practices on communities and lands in eastern Kentucky; the second was to withdraw from the coal industry’s lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency.  It is the third request, that Gov. Beshear “foster a sincere, public discussion about the urgent need for a sustainable economic transition for coal workers and mountain communities” that struck a chord with the goals of ATI. When Friday’s conversation with Governor Beshear did not yield acceptable outcomes on the second or third points (though the Governor did agree to support a more civil, less-inflammatory debate from all sides), fourteen Kentuckians (and two courageous student journalists from the Kentucky Kernel) settled in for the weekend in the Governor’s office.  The group represented many walks of life in Kentucky; in their own words, they were: All of the protesters are from Kentucky.  Those remaining in the governor’s office include Wendell Berry, 76, the acclaimed writer who has been a leader in environmental issues for the past fifty years; Beverly May, 52, a nurse practitioner who was the subject of Deep Down, a documentary about MTR that was shown on PBS; Mickey McCoy, 55, former educator and mayor from Martin County, where more than 300 million gallons of toxic sludge were released into the water supply in...

Cut to Home Heating Program Would Hurt Appalachia

President Obama’s new budget includes a proposed 50 percent cut in the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). LIHEAP helps low-income families pay their utility bills and avoid getting their power shut off. Obama budget director Jacob Lew explained the rationale for the cut to CNN: “It's a program that's done an enormous amount of good to help people pay their bills. But in 2008, the reason it doubled from $2.5 [billion] to $5 billion was because of a rapid spike in energy prices and it was a way of addressing the fact that energy prices had gone up to a very, very high level,” Lew said.“Energy prices now are much more in line with where they were in 2008 before that price increase. And you know, we looked at the budget and we said we can't just level off at the new funding level,” he added. Huh? Here in Kentucky, many people use electricity for heat, and residential electricity rates are up 21 percent since 2008 according to the Energy Information Administration. A budget plan that proposes to increase investment in some areas can’t also shaft the poor in other areas. About Kristin TraczKristin Tracz served MACED’s Research and Policy team from 2009-2012 working on clean energy policy, energy efficiency programs and the Appalachian Transition Initiative. She joined MACED after finishing her Master of Environmental Management degree at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies. She now lives and works in Washington,...

Roadmaps to New Power: Interview With Rory McIlmoil, ‘Tesla of the Coalfields’ on Green Jobs...

Check out this interview with ATI partner Rory McIlmoil, of Downstream Strategies—coming on the heels of Rory’s presentation at the Good Jobs, Green Jobs National Conference earlier this week, we’re glad to see Rory’s work getting media attention. First Posted on Huffington Post 2/10 by Jeff Biggers "Roadmaps to New Power" is a series of interviews with activists, residents, entrepreneurs and industry analysts about current plans and visions for a just transition to clean energy and sustainable economic development in coalfield communities around the nation. Is the EPA destroying the coalfield economies? Will good green jobs come to the coalfields? Ask Rory. Or, as GOP members of the US House Commerce and Energy and their Big Coal-bankrolled colleagues continue their wildly misinformed banter this week on the economic impact of the EPA’s enforcement of the Clean Water Act, coalfield residents from Alaska to Appalachia are turning to Rory McIlmoil, the "Tesla of the coalfields," for another question: Will the central Appalachian coalfields — and their fellow coal mining communities in the heartland, the Powder River Basin and in 24 states — be part of President Obama’s challenge to the nation to produce 80 percent of America’s electricity from clean-energy sources by 2035? While there is a lot of well-meaning discussion about a just transition to a sustainable clean energy economy in the coalfields, McIlmoil is one of the few economists and energy analysts who has crunched the numbers and begun the process of laying out a roadmap. Two years...

400 Solar Power Users Paid For Electricity In Tennessee—We Want What They’re Having!...

More on TVA’s Generation Partners program, that we’ve discussed before. A bill has been introduced in Kentucky’s legislature that would expand this type of program, currently available in TVA’s service region—which includes parts of southeastern Kentucky—throughout the Commonwealth. More information on Clean Energy Opportunity Act, introduced by Rep. Mary Lou Marzian, is available on the Kentucky Sustainable Energy Alliance (KySEA) website. Kentucky’s Clean Energy Lobby Day will be tomorrow, 2/10, in Frankfort! This story was reported by the Associated Press, posted on Huffington Post: NASHVILLE, Tenn. — More than 400 property owners who use solar power to generate electricity at their homes or businesses are getting paid for it with the help of the Tennessee Valley Authority and local power distributors. Some residents have large enough arrays of solar electric generation panels that they get rolling credits on their electricity bill or year-end checks. Most are in Tennessee and The Tennessean reports another 200 projects are in the pipeline. The Generation Partners program allows property owners to feed electricity into the grid and some distributors, like the Nashville Electric Service, pay more than double what the utility charges for power. The program has grown increasingly popular. NES now has 63 customers generating power and 15 others about to begin. In Ashland City, Carly and Ed Wansing have a $100 credit on their most recent home electricity bill. They installed their panels in 2007 and are leaving the credit to make up for other months when they might use more...

Week in Washington: Registration and Scholarship Applications Now Open!...

For more information, visit the Alliance for Appalachia’s website or the ILoveMountains online resources for the Week in Washington. Scholarship applications due Feb 17! From Ilovemountains.org: Week in Washington is an annual event organized by the Alliance for Appalachia, bringing together over 100 citizens from the Appalachian Coalfields and across the nation who care deeply about mountains, clean water and social justice. During the week you will get to meet with members of Congress and their staff about ending mountaintop removal, and make many new friendships with like-minded, amazing people like you! Click here to apply! A limited number of scholarships are available to assist participants with travel and lodging needs, and some meals are provided. Please let us know if you will need assistance, especially if it will determine whether or not you can attend. The deadline to apply for a scholarship ends February 17th. Space is limited so apply early! Registration ends Friday February 25th. General Schedule Saturday 4/2 – TRAVEL Sunday 4/3 – LOBBY TRAINING Monday 4/4 – LOBBY Tuesday 4/5 – LOBBY Wednesday 4/6 – LOBBY/TRAVEL Check out last years schedule. Learn more Visit our Frequently Asked Questions page. You can see more photos from 2009 in our Flickr album. Not sure you can attend? Can’t come? No problem! Donate here to support the 6th Annual End Mountaintop Removal Week in Washington or to sponsor an attendee scholarship. The End Mountaintop Removal Week in Washington is produced and sponsored by the Alliance for Appalachia. Learn...