Jun 4 Energy & Environment Black Lung Benefits Fund in Deepening Debt as Epidemic Surges A new study from the Government Accountability Office finds that the federal fund supporting coal miners with black lung disease could be in financial trouble without Congressional action. As NPR has reported, the GAO found that the fund’s debt could rise dramatically at the same time that black lung disease is surging. Most federal benefits […] By Benny Becker Jun 4 Energy & Environment Black Lung Benefits Fund in Deepening Debt as Epidemic Surges Benny Becker
Jun 1 Economy Taking Flight: Coalfield Students Have High Hopes For Drone Industry Jobs Student teams from across the coalfields of eastern Kentucky came together at the Knott County Sportsplex, bringing with them drones that they themselves had built. It was time for the climax of this year-long project. A basketball court had been separated with nets, and padded gates marked a circuit course for the little flying machines. […] By Benny Becker Jun 1 Economy Taking Flight: Coalfield Students Have High Hopes For Drone Industry Jobs Benny Becker
May 16 Energy & Environment Lung Transplants Rise Amid Region’s Black Lung Epidemic The Appalachian coalfields are in the midst of an epidemic of severe black lung disease. The debilitating and even deadly disease has recently begun to affect miners as young as 30. Dust from coal mines has scarred these miners’ lungs, so little of the air they breathe gets absorbed. In central Appalachia, researchers say, one […] By Benny Becker May 16 Energy & Environment Lung Transplants Rise Amid Region’s Black Lung Epidemic Benny Becker
Apr 6 Energy & Environment Radiologists Call For Repeal of Kentucky Black Lung Law The American College of Radiologists, a professional organization representing radiologists, is asking Kentucky to repeal a new law that changes how coal miners receive benefits for black lung disease. The law’s changes to Kentucky’s workers’ compensation system removed radiologists from the claims process, even though radiologists are specialists in reading in X-rays and are generally […] By Benny Becker Apr 6 Energy & Environment Radiologists Call For Repeal of Kentucky Black Lung Law Benny Becker
Apr 4 Economy Eastern Kentucky Prison Moves Forward As Opponents Consider Challenge The Bureau of Prisons has issued a record of decision signaling that it is moving ahead with plans to build a federal prison on the site of a former strip mine in the hills of Letcher County, Kentucky. But local opponents of the prison say they’re not giving up and are considering a legal challenge […] By Benny Becker Apr 4 Economy Eastern Kentucky Prison Moves Forward As Opponents Consider Challenge Benny Becker
Mar 28 Energy & Environment Amid Black Lung Surge, Kentucky Changes Benefits Process For Miners William McCool is a 64-year-old former coal miner from Letcher County, Kentucky, with an advanced form of black lung disease. Health experts say the condition is entirely preventable with dust control measures in mines. But today, more miners in Appalachia are being diagnosed with severe black lung than ever before. “I’ve worked all my life, […] By Benny Becker Mar 28 Energy & Environment Amid Black Lung Surge, Kentucky Changes Benefits Process For Miners Benny Becker
Mar 9 Energy & Environment Changing Course: Coal Country Students Working For A Power Switch Arlie Boggs Elementary sits between Kentucky’s two tallest mountains in a remote area that once had a booming coal economy. Ten years ago there were over a thousand coal miners employed here in Letcher county. Today, there are just 28. “We were left with many unemployed miners,” eighth-grader Nicholas Sturgill said as he and two […] By Benny Becker Mar 9 Energy & Environment Changing Course: Coal Country Students Working For A Power Switch Benny Becker
Feb 28 Health Help On Tap For Troubled Water System In Coal Country A water system in eastern Kentucky that was on the verge of collapse could soon get much needed improvements. Many Martin County, Kentucky, residents were without water for long periods this winter. The crisis drew attention amid a national discussion about infrastructure priorities, and put a spotlight on the sort of water woes that are […] By Benny Becker Feb 28 Health Help On Tap For Troubled Water System In Coal Country Benny Becker
Feb 9 Energy & Environment Living With Black Lung: Coal Miners Caught In A Surging Epidemic The central Appalachian coalfields are in the middle of an unprecedented epidemic of severe black lung disease. In a recent issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association federal researchers released the results of a study conducted at just three black lung clinics. The study confirmed 416 cases of the most severe form of […] By Benny Becker Feb 9 Energy & Environment Living With Black Lung: Coal Miners Caught In A Surging Epidemic Benny Becker
Jan 8 Economy Changing Course: Federal Grant Fills Gaps In Rural School Funding A group of students from South Floyd Middle School had seen the nearby elementary school suffer damage from floods year after year. When they joined the school’s newly formed engineering team, they came up with a low-cost solution. “We’ve designed portable flood levees,” team member Preston Crase explained. The plastic bins are filled with a […] By Benny Becker Jan 8 Economy Changing Course: Federal Grant Fills Gaps In Rural School Funding Benny Becker