FRANKFORT, Ky. - Fourteen protesters camped out at Gov. Steve Beshear's office last weekend in a three-night sleepover protesting the practice of mountaintop removal. Hundreds more joined them Monday on the State Capitol steps for what's dubbed the "I Love Mountains" rally.

With chants including "Save our water" and "Old King Coal has got to go," the protesters demanded an end to the method of surface mining that environmentalists claim has buried more than 2,000 miles of Appalachian streams.

Slias House, a Kentucky author and playwright, says mountaintop removal is doing more than ruining the region's air and water.

"The bigger issue, I think, is that it's killing a culture. It's changing a people's way of life. We identify as mountain people, and when those are taken away, what do we have left?"

Grassroots activist Teri Blanton was among those who hunkered down for the weekend slumber party at Beshear's office. She's angered over politicians' rhetoric blasting the EPA for clamping down on the coal industry, and says the governor is way off track in protecting those she calls the polluters.

"Well, you know, the EPA is the Environmental Protection Agency, and he should be asking them for help. And he should be protecting the protectors, rather than pressuring the protectors."

Patty Wallace of Louisa, Ky., believes eastern Kentucky will be left in the dust if policymakers keep resisting a move toward sustainable green-energy jobs.

"We've got to save our mountains. And we're not here against coal mining as mining. We're for the miners, but we've got to start changing our jobs now, go to alternative energies, and it's obvious. "

Talks between the protesters and the governor came to a stalemate Friday afternoon. In House's eyes, protecting jobs and saving the environment are not the clashing interests some may think.

"We believe that you can have jobs, but also respect the land. You can have jobs that are responsible and respectful, and mountaintop removal is not. It's not respectful to the land or to the people."

Concerned citizens, church groups and activists also want Beshear to withdraw a lawsuit he filed against the EPA over what he called "arbitrary and unreasonable regulations" on the coal industry. U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth, D-Ky., who attended Monday's rally, is co-sponsor of the Clean Water Protection Act, which he says would effectively end mountaintop removal.


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A proposal to allow utility-scale solar operations for Washington Township in Delaware County is meeting with some setbacks and one nonpartisan group thinks it is time for more discussion.

Almost 200,000 Indiana homes are powered by solar energy, but the Delaware County Commission issued a moratorium on solar development last year. It created a study committee for further review and then, the unexpected death of a commissioner delayed creation of a new ordinance.

Linda Hanson, spokesperson for the League of Women Voters of Muncie-Delaware County, said the community needs to use the city's resources economically and responsibly.

"We believe that natural resources should be managed as interrelated parts of life-supporting ecosystems," Hanson explained. "We need to conserve and protect those resources for future availability."

The League backs ending the moratorium and passing an ordinance to approve solar installations in the Muncie area, based on a responsible review of each proposal on its individual merits. Another hearing is scheduled for Oct. 2.

Landowners in towns from Gaston to Matthews are voicing concerns about their property values potentially dropping if more solar farms are built. Some are also upset they were notified about a 2021 ordinance for another solar project, Meadow Forge, after it had been approved.

Hanson thinks the commissioners are leaning toward lifting the moratorium and allowing more solar development, with sufficient review.

"You try and look at how this can work responsibly, and that seems to be where we're getting pushback," Hanson observed. "When we track it, it seems to be coming from people who have investments in coal and petroleum."

Indiana is already home to the Mammoth Solar farm in Starke and Pulaski counties. The 13,000 acre facility is the country's largest. Built in 2021, the farm is expected to bring $1.5 billion in investment into the state over the next five years.


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New polling suggests most Americans support nationwide efforts to boost renewable energy capacity under the threat of climate change, and a local government leader from Wisconsin said municipalities are doing what they can, even with some challenges in their way.

The survey from the Pew Research Center found two-thirds of U.S. adults said America should prioritize developing sources such as wind and solar over fossil fuels.

Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway said at the local level, elected officials are becoming increasingly aware climate threats are no longer just a "future scenario" to deal with.

"We have to prepare for the impacts that we know are here and are coming and we have to reduce our emissions so that they don't get worse in the future," Rhodes-Conway urged. "And we have to do both of those things at the same time."

The mayor offered those comments in a panel discussion led by the Center for American Progress. She acknowledged federal policies, such as the bipartisan infrastructure law and the Inflation Reduction Act, are helping cities fund climate-friendly projects. But she added most local governments, especially in smaller towns, still lack key staffing to help carry out the work.

Still, Rhodes-Conway pointed out federal policies are sending a lot of direct funding support to cities, which helps if there are potential legislative constraints in various states. She noted the infrastructure law is giving Madison more flexibility to gain steam on certain projects.

"[It's helping] both our John Nolen Drive bridges to be safer, more pedestrian- and bike-friendly with better stormwater management," Rhodes-Conway explained. "We also just built a new pedestrian and bike bridge over a critical intersection."

As for other hurdles to clear, the mayor argued there is still room for improvement in getting the word out to local residents and businesses about tax incentives to make their own clean energy investments. Lingering supply-chain issues are another factor municipalities face in trying to get more of these projects off the ground.


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New Mexico wants more residents to drive electric vehicles, and is hosting a series of meetings to explain its advanced clean cars and trucks rules.

State rules require automakers to deliver an increasing percentage of new zero-emission cars and light-duty trucks for sale each year. The new rules are meant to improve air quality by reducing ground-level ozone and greenhouse-gas emissions.

Mona Blaber, communications director for the Rio Grande Chapter of the Sierra Club, said adoption of the new rules through 2035 would provide $44 billion in economic benefits, including cost savings to drivers, and prevention of unnecessary deaths and health incidents.

"They're more affordable than people think," Blaber explained. "But we need these kinds of policies to keep bringing the price down, bring them to cost parity and make sure that all the infrastructure gets installed that we need."

The new rules would ensure by 2032, more than 80% of cars delivered to the state are electric, and a smaller percentage of medium- and heavy-duty trucks are electric by 2035. The first of three meetings to take public comment is today at Santa Fe's Southside Library.

Geographically, New Mexico is the fifth-largest state in the nation, with many rural roads. Blaber noted a $38 million network of charging stations will support electric vehicle owners.

"New Mexico is using federal money to install charging stations every 50 miles along both interstates," Blaber pointed out. "The next phase of that grant would be rural roads, and roads on the Navajo Nation."

She added the rules and substantial tax credits also encourage the purchase of plug-in hybrids capable of running 30 to 50 miles on a charge, before they switch to gas when the battery runs low.

"If you're going on a long road trip, you don't have to worry about making sure there's a charging station somewhere along the way," Blaber emphasize. "But most people hardly ever need to buy gas with a plug-in hybrid because most of your daily driving is less than 30 miles."

An online meeting about the rules is set for Oct. 4. A second in-person meeting will be held at Albuquerque's International District Library on Oct 16.