May 14 Infrastructure With Infrastructure Funding On Horizon, Beleaguered Martin County Looks To Raise Water Rates Again In December, Kathy Fletcher, a lifelong Martin County, Kentucky, resident and mother, found her water was shut off. When it came back on, something was wrong with it. Fletcher remembers that after she showered, her skin and nails felt completely dried out. The water smelled acrid, like chemicals. For years, Fletcher has been frustrated by […] By Katie Myers May 14 Infrastructure With Infrastructure Funding On Horizon, Beleaguered Martin County Looks To Raise Water Rates Again Katie Myers
Mar 17 Energy & Environment Slow Recovery: Repeated Floods And Storms Strain East Kentucky’s Aging Infrastructure Katrina Bostrin had never seen the lake come up that quickly before. She’d lived in Jackson, the county seat of Breathitt County, Kentucky, on and off since she was a child. It had come up to the garage before, but never inside her home. As she spoke, a volunteer crew from a local church ripped […] By Katie Myers and Corinne Boyer Mar 17 Energy & Environment Slow Recovery: Repeated Floods And Storms Strain East Kentucky’s Aging Infrastructure Katie Myers and Corinne Boyer
Jan 22 Coronavirus Biden Has An Ambitious Agenda. What Will It Mean For The Ohio Valley? After an extraordinary inauguration ceremony marked by heightened security and coronavirus safety measures, President Joe Biden started his first day in office signing executive actions on climate change, immigration, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Even before taking the oath of office, Biden was already addressing the nation about his ambitious plans to fight the twin crises […] By Jeff Young , Liam Niemeyer and Alana Watson Jan 22 Coronavirus Biden Has An Ambitious Agenda. What Will It Mean For The Ohio Valley? Jeff Young, Liam Niemeyer and Alana Watson
Jul 2 Economy RECLAIM Act To Boost Coal Communities Passes House As Part Of Infrastructure Bill The House of Representatives Wednesday passed a $1.5 trillion infrastructure bill that includes two provisions that would specifically help coal-reliant communities in the Ohio Valley. The bill, called the Moving Forward Act, includes funding for roads and bridges, rural broadband, drinking water system repairs, renewable energy, and affordable housing, all of which Democrats say would […] By Sydney Boles Jul 2 Economy RECLAIM Act To Boost Coal Communities Passes House As Part Of Infrastructure Bill Sydney Boles
Mar 1 Energy & Environment Clean Water Wanted: Contaminated Wells And The Legacy Of Fossil Fuel Extraction “You seen that one with the tombstone up there?” seven-year-old Timothy Easterling asks, looking toward the grass just uphill from his home. “That’s my papaw.” Timothy’s grandfather Chet Blankenship died in 2016, at age 69. Blankenship lived on land he and his family have long owned at the end of a road atop Bradshaw Mountain […] By Benny Becker Mar 1 Energy & Environment Clean Water Wanted: Contaminated Wells And The Legacy Of Fossil Fuel Extraction Benny Becker
Jan 22 Energy & Environment New Testing Reveals ‘Forever Chemicals’ In More Water Systems Across OH, PA, U.S. New testing by the Environmental Working Group has identified the presence of toxic fluorinated chemicals, broadly known as PFAS, in the tap water of dozens of cities across the U.S. where contamination was not previously known. EWG, an advocacy organization that tracks environmental pollutants in consumer products, sampled water in 44 places between May and […] By Brittany Patterson Jan 22 Energy & Environment New Testing Reveals ‘Forever Chemicals’ In More Water Systems Across OH, PA, U.S. Brittany Patterson
Nov 25 Infrastructure Rural Water Loss Investigation Reveals Widespread Financial Challenges Kentucky’s Public Service Commission released results of a months-long investigation into high rates of water loss in certain rural water districts. The findings point to systematic financial and managerial challenges facing rural districts, and solutions would likely require sweeping legislative change. The PSC launched its investigation in March after 11 rural districts, most of them […] By Sydney Boles Nov 25 Infrastructure Rural Water Loss Investigation Reveals Widespread Financial Challenges Sydney Boles
Nov 22 Energy & Environment ‘Dark Waters’ Puts PFAS Saga On Big Screen As Ohio Valley Contamination Comes To Light The new film “Dark Waters” depicts the real-life story of the 20-year battle waged by attorney Rob Bilott against chemical giant DuPont. We meet Bilott, played by Mark Ruffalo, as a young corporate defense lawyer living in Cincinnati. His grandmother, who lives in Parkersburg, West Virginia, gives his phone number to local farmer, Earl Tennant. […] By Brittany Patterson Nov 22 Energy & Environment ‘Dark Waters’ Puts PFAS Saga On Big Screen As Ohio Valley Contamination Comes To Light Brittany Patterson
Nov 18 Energy & Environment Ohio Valley Residents Among Millions In America Lacking Access To Clean Water, Sanitation Communities across the Ohio Valley are among an estimated 2 million Americans that do not have consistent access to clean drinking water and basic indoor plumbing, according to a report published Monday by two nonprofits, DigDeep and the US Water Alliance. The report titled, “Closing the Water Access Gap in the United States,” synthesized data […] By Brittany Patterson Nov 18 Energy & Environment Ohio Valley Residents Among Millions In America Lacking Access To Clean Water, Sanitation Brittany Patterson
Oct 23 Energy & Environment Advocacy Group Finds Trace Contamination In Many Regional Water Systems Tap water delivered by more than 2,000 water systems across the Ohio Valley contain pollutants, many harmful to human health, even though they mostly meet federal drinking water standards. That’s according to a newly-updated database released by the Environmental Working Group, an advocacy organization. Millions of residents in Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia are being […] By Brittany Patterson Oct 23 Energy & Environment Advocacy Group Finds Trace Contamination In Many Regional Water Systems Brittany Patterson