Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2017 - 20

mountain report

Boone (N.C.) Town Council Calls for 100
Percent Clean Energy

And rural electric co-ops in two states have launched solar projects
to help prevent carbon pollution.
by Cathryn McCue

The South Mountain Game Lands visible in the distance, beyond a cornfield above the headwaters of Cane Creek, are part of a tract
now permanently protected by Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina.

arouNd ThE rEgioN

NorTh CaroliNa

TENNEssEE

Two rural electric co-ops
in the Appalachian region
have launched solar
energy projects to save
money for their members
and reduce harm to the
environment. In Virginia,
BARC Electric's solar farm
has 1,750 panels, and in
Tennessee, Appalachia
Electric Cooperative's has
9,471. Customers in the
co-ops' service areas can
subscribe to be part of
the program and receive
a portion of their energy
from the sun. Combined,
the two solar farms will
prevent roughly 30,000
metric tons of carbon pollution over 20 years.
appvoices.
org/2016/12/14/electriccooperatives-initiatecommunity-solarprojects

A $5.9 million settlement
between federal regulators and Southern Coal
and 26 affiliated mining
companies in December
will ultimately eliminate
5 million pounds of coal
pollution from reaching rivers and streams
throughout Central
Appalachia. The government says that among
other violations, the
companies illegally discharged iron, aluminum
and other contaminants
for five years. Southern
and the companies must
implement a companywide, federally approved
environmental management system, monitor
water sampling and compliance, and make other
improvements. thecoal
fieldprogress.com

In a historic vote in
December, the Boone
Town Council passed a
resolution calling for 100
percent clean energy in
North Carolina and the
U.S. by 2050 - the first
municipality to do so. The
move was inspired by the
Solutions Project, which
advocates for 100 percent
clean renewable energy
to address the impacts
of climate change. Also
in Boone, Appalachian
State University ranked
#1 among master's
institutions in the 2016
Sustainable Campus Index; it ranked #2 in 2015.
The 649-institution index
is based on self-reporting
in 17 areas of sustainability performance.
appalachian magazine.
org/stories/id/683

The Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina has
acquired a 93-acre tract
in McDowell County,
permanently protecting
drinking water sources
and a piece of Revolutionary War history. The
Melton tract is within the
Cane Creek Battlefield,
where a 1780 skirmish
took place, and will
be nominated for the
National Register of Historic Places. The property
features headwaters of
Cane Creek, Broad River
and Catawba River. Its
protection was made
possible by a generous
contribution of $350,000
from Fred and Alice Stanback and a $13,000 grant
from the Conservation
Trust for North Carolina.
foothillsconservancy.org

The U.S. Dept. of Interior
in December banned
mountaintop-removal
coal mining from more
than 500 miles of ridges,
or 75,000 acres in the
Cumberland Mountains.
Conservationists had
pushed for the ban, and
the state petitioned the
agency in 2010, saying that mining would
harm cultural, historical
and ecological assets.
Said Interior Secretary
Sally Jewell: "This is
great news for hunters, anglers, hikers and
birders . . . I applaud
the state for their . .
. help [to]strengthen
the local economy and
help protect a critical
watershed." osmre.gov/
resources/newsroom/
news/2016/120716.pdf

20 BlueRidgeCountry.com

http://appvoices.org/2016/12/14/electric-cooperatives-initiate-community-solar-projects http://osmre.gov/resources/newsroom/news/2016/120716.pdf http://www.thecoalfieldprogress.com http://appalachianmagazine.org/stories/id/683 http://www.foothillsconservancy.org http://www.BlueRidgeCountry.com

Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2017

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