Kentucky Utilities to Pay Millions for Alleged Clean Air Act Violations
Kentucky Utilities will spend $57 million to install updated pollution control equipment and pay civil penalties under the terms of a proposed consent decree. The money will go to installing a sulfuric...
View ArticleElectric Vehicles Rolling Out
Lexington has just added an electric car to its fleet. Also receiving electric vehicles are Louisville, several state agencies and the University of Louisville. Lexington administrative officer Tracy...
View ArticleEnergy Trends Discussed
The mix of energy sources used in Kentucky is expected to diversify over the next decade. Still, an expert on America’s oil and gas industry argues green energy has its limits. Bernard Weinstein with...
View ArticleCoal and Natural Gas Side by Side in Pike
Kentucky’s largest county in geographic terms is also a top producer of coal and natural gas. Now, Pike county officials want to offer a natural gas service station for public and private motorists....
View ArticleEPA Ruling and How it Affects Coal Mines
Kentucky politicians havebeen lining up to praise a judge’s decision earlier this week to overturn the new way the Environmental Protection Agency has been evaluating coal mining permits. The EPA was...
View ArticlePreparation for a 'Green' Lab at UK
A new laboratory complex at the University of Kentucky is expected to earn a high grade for ‘energy efficiency.’ The Center for Applied Energy Research facility hopes to earn a ‘Leadership in Energy...
View ArticleNew Rules Require Mine Owners to Find, Fix Hazards
A new safety standard that took effect Monday is aimed at better protecting underground miners from the types of conditions that contributed to a deadly blast at a West Virginia mine in April 2010,...
View ArticleAlpha Natural Resources Reports Loss
Alpha Natural Resources--a coal company with mines in eastern Kentucky, as well as throughout Appalachia--reported its second quarter earnings yesterday and the news wasn't good. The company had a net...
View ArticleCoal vs. Girl Scouts in Owensboro
The New York Times has a story up today about a contentious mine in Owensboro, Kentucky. The Daviess County Fiscal Court voted earlier this month to allow a surface mine proposed by Western Kentucky...
View ArticleKentucky and India Partner on Coal Deal
A state official said Gov. Steve Beshear was set to announce a partnership on Wednesday which could reverberate throughout the coal industry in Kentucky. State Rep. W. Keith Hall told the News-Express...
View ArticleAnalyst Says India Contract Won't Save Appalachia
Nine million tons of Appalachian coal will be heading to India this year, after a new deal was announced yesterday between several Kentucky coal producers and an Indian company. This is good news for...
View ArticleIndia Coal Deal Bad News for Climate Change
A recent deal to send millions of tons of Appalachian coal to India could bring billions of dollars to Kentucky coal producers over the next twenty-five years. But it’s not very good news for climate...
View ArticleMSHA Reports Success in Protecting Whistleblowers
The federal Mine Safety and Health Administration is reporting increases in the number of miners who have filed discrimination complaints after reporting safety violations. Federal law protects miners...
View ArticleSierra Club to Hold Rally Against Coal at UK
The Sierra Club is planning a rally at noon today at the University of Kentucky to protest the ties between the school's athletic department and the coal industry. UK and the coal industry have a...
View ArticleSomerset Oil Refinery to Resume Production
Production is set to resume this fall at a decades-old oil refinery in Somerset that was largely offline the past few years because of a management dispute and bankruptcy. Demetrios Haseotes, a New...
View ArticleBig Box Stores Lead U.S. Companies in Solar Power Usage
According to a list released this morning, retail giant Walmart leads U.S. companies in solar power installations. Walmart has 144 solar systems installed in seven states; as the report notes, the...
View ArticleAnti-Mountaintop Removal Rally Draws Activists
Environmental activists are gathering in Washington D.C. today for an anti-mountaintop removal rally. For the past few months, non-profit Earthjustice has been naming “Mountain Heroes” on its...
View ArticleDecline in Coal Production Could Increase Employment
An analysis out from the West Virginia Center and Policy--a nonpartisan think tank in Charleston--predicts that even while coal production in Central Appalachia declines, employment will rise. This may...
View ArticleDetails Emerge About Possible Problems in India Coal Deal
The Indian media has been all over the recent scandal over the country’s coal allotments—the system where the state’s resources are divvied up among companies. And the various articles are of obvious...
View ArticleCoal Production Cuts Likely
Rising natural gas prices could mean good news for the country's coal industry...but there are still likely cuts to come in Central Appalachia. That's the gist of an article from SNL Finanacial....
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