Environment
Hazardous dams in Kentucky will now be required to have emergency plans, thanks to new law
FRANKFORT — Kentucky dam safety officials faced a potentially dire situation last year: A sinkhole was rapidly growing in the slope of a dam in Crittenden County. A failure could have sent 180 million gallons of water cascading toward private developments and the local hospital.? And there was no emergency plan. That’s because until last […]
Why Kentucky is dead last for wind and solar production
This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, independent news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. It is republished with permission. Sign up for their newsletter here.? LOUISVILLE, Ky.—Andy McDonald recalls a decade-old Kentucky legislative hearing on an energy diversification bill with the same sense of frustration that he felt back […]
Officials say water supply is safe as barges remain stuck at Ohio River dam near Louisville
Federal and state officials say a salvage team won’t be able to remove barges pinned against an Ohio River dam in a “navigation accident,” one of them carrying about 1,400 tons of the industrial chemical methanol, until the river levels drop.? Several barges were set loose in the early morning hours Tuesday, leading to three […]
Loose barges, one carrying tons of methanol, pinned against Ohio River dam in Louisville
LOUISVILLE — Officials from multiple state and federal agencies are trying to recover barges that remain pinned against an Ohio River dam near Louisville, with one carrying about 1,400 tons of the industrial chemical methanol, according to a state agency. Officials said there has not been any evidence of a chemical leak.? A release earlier […]
Bill aiming to preserve Kentucky’s coal-fired power plants becomes law without Beshear’s signature
A bill that would make it harder for Kentucky’s utility regulator to allow utilities to retire coal plants on the state’s electricity grid became law Friday without Gov. Andy Beshear’s signature.? Senate Bill 4, primarily sponsored by Sen. Robby Mills, R-Henderson, would create a series of prerequisites on the Kentucky Public Service Commission before it […]
Beshear vetoes solar decommissioning bill, saying it weakens local control
Renewable energy developers have surged into Kentucky in recent years, seeking to establish large-scale solar installations covering thousands of acres with panels to harvest energy from the sun. It’s what happens to these large-scale projects at the end of their lives decades from now that Republican lawmakers have tried to address with a bill that […]
Bill making it harder to retire Kentucky coal plants heads to governor’s desk
FRANKFORT — A bill backed by Kentucky’s coal industry that would make it harder for utilities to retire fossil fuel-fired power plants received final passage Thursday in the Kentucky House of Representatives, sending the legislation for Gov. Andy Beshear’s consideration.? Senate Bill 4, primarily sponsored by Sen. Robby Mills, R-Henderson, would impose a series of […]
Kentuckians angered by Forest Service plan to log mature trees in Daniel Boone National Forest
This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, independent news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. It is republished with permission. Sign up for their newsletter here. ?The story is part of Deforestation Inc., a global investigation by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. WILLIAMSBURG — Brandon Bowlin learned of the […]
Senate approves bill to preserve coal-fired power generation in Kentucky
FRANKFORT —The Senate on Thursday approved a bill to keep coal-fired power plants operating in Kentucky, as supporters of the measure railed against federal overreach and the few opponents warned the bill could result in costly state overregulation of utilities. Senate Bill 4 is opposed by the state’s investor-owned utilities, who say it would prevent […]
Kentucky lawmakers advance bill to keep coal on the power grid, cite reliability concerns
FRANKFORT — Kentucky lawmakers are advancing a bill to try to keep coal-fired power plants on the state’s electric grid “for the foreseeable future,” pointing to concerns over rolling blackouts that some utilities implemented when arctic temperatures swept through in December. Senate Bill 4, sponsored by Sen. Robby Mills, R-Henderson, would prevent the Kentucky Public […]
Racialized notions of ‘beauty’ hazardous to health
This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, independent news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. It is republished with permission. Sign up for their newsletter here. ATLANTA — Perched in a stylist’s chair at Yaya’s Natural Hair Boutique, Akeyla Peele-Tembong teared up as she recalled how, when she was a […]
Invader threatens Kentucky woodlands
From late fall to early spring, volunteers fan out across Kentucky woodlands to battle an aggressive invader they know they can’t defeat but hope to hold at bay: Lonicera maackii aka Amur honeysuckle aka?bush honeysuckle. They pull it, dig it, spray it and cut it (then spray again) in an effort to protect ecosystems that […]