Energy & Environment

May 30, 2021 by Sean O'Leary
West Virginians Grapple with the Future of the State’s Energy Production

The Dominion Post - Mason Anderson is a 21-year-old contracted worker at Mobile Power Washing who works at the coal-fired Fort Martin power plant in Maidsville, West Virginia. Last year, he decided he wasn’t going to continue his education at West Virginia University in civil engineering. Instead, he decided to attend asynchronous courses at Salem…

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April 17, 2021 by WVCBP
Statehouse Beat: D-word Best Describes Past Session

Charleston Gazette-Mail - I was trying to find a word that sums up the 2021 legislative session, and after much consideration, it came to me: Despicable. Read the full article. Despicable, in that the Legislature committed acts of cruelty for no reason but the sheer pleasure they derived from doing so. They passed a despicable…

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April 7, 2021 by Sean O'Leary
Some Lawmakers Want to Change How West Virginia’s Natural Resources are Taxed — but it Would End Up Costing Local Governments

Mountain State Spotlight, Beckley Register-Herald - Two bills to change how West Virginia’s natural resources are valued for property tax purposes are moving through the Legislature. Proponents say the measures — which would probably lower  the taxes companies pay — are necessary to address statutory and constitutional requirements. But it could also reduce the tax…

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March 31, 2021 by WVCBP
ReImagine Appalachia Applauds the Pittsburgh Announcement of President Biden’s American Jobs Plan

For Immediate Release: March 31, 2021Contact: Renee Alves, 559-916-5939 Pittsburgh, PA – Today, March 31, President Biden came to Pittsburgh, PA, to deliver an address laying out his American Jobs Plan, a large-scale federal investment in American workers and infrastructure. ReImagine Appalachia, a broad coalition of organizations dedicated to bringing about a 21st century economy that works for all…

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March 25, 2021 by WVCBP
The Fracking Shill Local Newspapers Love to Publish

The New Republic - “If we hit our CO2 targets and every one of us are living in abject poverty, is that really how you really want to live?” Greg Kozera is making his pro-fracking case to me. Later in our phone call, he’ll argue that renewable energy depends on child labor in Congolese cobalt…

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February 25, 2021 by WVCBP
ReImagine Appalachia Climate Infrastructure Plan Would Create over 41,000 WV Jobs

For Immediate Release: February 25, 2021Contact: Dana Kuhnline, (304) 825 3262 Links to report and summaries: New PERI report (Link)ReImagine Appalachia summary of new PERI report (Link)Infographic summary of report findings Link to Zoom event recording:  Facebook Live Charleston, WV - The Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) released a report today showing that the ReImagine Appalachia (RA) blueprint could create…

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February 25, 2021 by WVCBP
New Report Predicts Power of Investments in Clean Energy Infrastructure in WV

Charleston Gazette-Mail - Visions of a more prosperous West Virginia abounded during a virtual news conference Thursday that focused on new findings from an economic and job impact study that made the case for sweeping investments in Appalachian infrastructure. Read the full article. It’ll take a lot of money and political willpower to make those visions a…

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February 8, 2021 by Kelly Allen
West Virginia Has Everyone’s Attention. What Does It Really Need?

The New York Times - The wisecrack about West Virginia is that it can now have whatever it wants: fancy new highways, a federal installation or two, maybe a few extra grand per capita in stimulus checks. Read the full article. Joe Manchin, the state’s senior senator and a centrist Democrat, has swiftly become one…

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December 9, 2020 by WVCBP
Capito, Manchin Among Bipartisan Group of Senators Pushing Legislation to Promote Carbon Capturing

Charleston Gazette-Mail - West Virginia’s two U.S. senators signaled support Tuesday for legislation that would build on a 2018 law designed to encourage technological innovation in carbon capture usage and storage. read the full article. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., and Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., were among the senators introducing the 45Q Carbon Capture Utilization…

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November 30, 2020 by WVCBP
Head of WV Coal Association to Retire after Decades of Influential Industry Leadership

Charleston Gazette-Mail, Logan Banner - The president and CEO of the West Virginia Coal Association is retiring after a half-century of service to the coal industry and an indelible impact on the state’s coal legislation. Read the full article. The West Virginia Coal Association announced Monday that Bill Raney would retire effective Jan. 1, 2021.…

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