BOONE, North Carolina, Dec. 19 -- Appalachian Voices issued the following statement on Dec. 18: * * * President-elect Joe Biden is expected to announce the selection of Michael Regan to head up the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Regan is currently Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality, a position he has held since 2017. During his tenure, he oversaw the historic settlement with Duke Energy for a full cleanup of all the utility's coal ash impoundments, as we  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 16 -- The Trust for Public Land issued the following joint letter 203 organizations: To: Dear President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris, On behalf of the over 200 undersigned organizations representing millions of Americans, we urge you to include an emergency investment of $500 million for local parks in any stimulus or economic recovery package your Administration should put forward. During the coronavirus pandemic, the outdoors have taken on a whole new import  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 17 -- The Trust for Public Land issued the following statement on Dec. 16: * * * Diane Regas, President and CEO of The Trust for Public Land, today released the following statement on a letter sent to President-Elect Biden and Vice President-Elect Harris calling for a one-time investment for local parks in an upcoming economic stimulus package. The letter has been signed by over 200 non-profit and community groups across the country. The letter and its signers can be viewed be  more

SANFORD, North Carolina, Dec. 18 -- Central Carolina Community College issued the following news on Dec. 17: Dr. Brian S. Merritt has served in various positions at Central Carolina Community College. He's been Distance Education Counselor; Director of Grants, Sponsored Programs, & Alumni Relations; Dean of Student Learning, and most recently as Vice President of Student Learning and Chief Academic Officer. To say that he has left his mark at CCCC would be an understatement. "Dr. Brian Merritt  more

FRANKFORT, Kentucky, Dec. 18 -- Gov. Andy Beshear, D-Kentucky, issued the following news on Dec. 17: Gov. Andy Beshear announced today $450,000 from the Appalachian Regional Commission's (ARC) Distressed County Infrastructure Program to upgrade the wastewater system in Middlesboro. "Strong, reliable infrastructure is crucial for all Kentucky communities as we emerge from the coronavirus threat in 2021 ready to embrace new economic opportunities," said Gov. Beshear. "Safe drinking water is a hu  more

FRANKFORT, Kentucky, Dec. 18 -- Gov. Andy Beshear, D-Kentucky, issued the following news on Dec. 17: On Thursday, Gov. Andy Beshear updated Kentuckians on COVID-19 and said while new cases continue to plateau and the state's positivity rate declines, the commonwealth set a record of newly reported deaths - a result of the state's previous spike in cases. "Our death report today is by far the most people that we've lost, and remember, that's a reflection of where this virus was about three week  more

MILLIGAN, Tennessee, Dec. 18 (TNSPer) -- Milligan College issued the following news release: Milligan University President Bill Greer announced last week the forthcoming retirement of longtime administrator Mark Fox, effective August 1, 2021. Fox has served as vice president for student development and athletics since 1998. "Mark has a deep love for our students and has always been passionate about their personal, physical and spiritual development," said Greer. "Under his leadership, the stud  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 17 (TNSRep) -- The National Endowment for the Humanities issued the following news release on Dec. 16: The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) today announced $32.8 million in grants to support 213 humanities projects in 44 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. These grants will safeguard extensive collections on Appalachian history at Kentucky's Appalshop archives, enable production of an interactive timeline of African-American music at Carnegie Hall, and  more

PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania, Dec. 16 (TNSRes) -- The U.S. Department of Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory issued the following news: NETL-supported research at Virginia Tech has been recognized by the American Energy Society (AES) as one of the top energy and technology developments of the year for its game-changing economic potential to supply the United States with a steady domestic source of vitally important rare earth elements (REE). The project, titled "Development of a Cost-Ef  more

RALEIGH, North Carolina, Dec. 18 -- North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences issued the following commentary by Naturalist Center Curator Greg Skupien: In 2016, Raleigh hosted a week-long conference devoted to wildlife research, management, and conservation. During a break, I went for a walk in the woods with a few friends including a visiting scientist from Australia. As we walked, we paused to look under rocks and rotten logs for salamanders. After a few tries, we found a White-spotted Slimy  more

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Dec. 17 (TNSJou) -- Ohio State University issued the following news: A new study offers strong evidence that kids who use e-cigarettes are more likely to take up smoking or smokeless tobacco, researchers say. Teen boys who vaped were almost three times as likely to start smoking as other teen boys with similar risk profiles and more than two times as likely to try smokeless tobacco, the study from The Ohio State University found. The research was published online this week in t  more

GRANTSVILLE, West Virginia, Dec. 15 -- Rep. Alex Mooney, R-West Virginia, issued the following news release on Dec. 14: Today Congressman Alex X. Mooney WV-02) announced a $135,000 grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) to the Calhoun County Commission for the Calhoun County Infrastructure Assessment and Improvement Plan project. This grant will help provide Calhoun County with the resources needed to improve and expand water and wastewater infrastructure systems. "I'm proud to  more

MORGANTOWN, West Virginia, Dec. 15 (TNSRep) -- West Virginia University issued the following story on Dec. 14: Investing in renewable energy is a viable solution to diversifying and strengthening West Virginia's economy. And according to a new report issued by the Center for Energy and Sustainable Development at the West Virginia University College of Law, the switch to renewable energy would be cost-effective and can be done in a way that creates thousands of jobs -- and may even save consumer  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 17 -- Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, issued the following news release: U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) announced the City of Middlesboro will receive $450,000 to upgrade aging infrastructure at a wastewater treatment plant. The federal funding comes from the Appalachian Regional Commission's (ARC) Central Appalachian Distressed County Infrastructure Program, which was established by Senator McConnell. These communities have received more  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 17 -- Sen. Steve Daines, R-Montana, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) reintroduced a bipartisan bill, the "Charitable Conservation Easement Program Integrity Act," to stop the abuse of conservation easements, save taxpayers billions of dollars and promote conservation in the U.S. "Our bipartis  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 17 -- Sen. Charles E. Grassley, R-Iowa, issued the following news release on Dec. 16: Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) along with Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Sens. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) and Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) today reintroduced a bipartisan bill, the "Charitable Conservation Easement Program Integrity Act," to stop the abuse of conservation easements, save taxpayers billions of dollars and promote conservation in the U.S. "The conserv  more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 17 (TNSRep) -- Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news on Dec. 16: Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) along with Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Sens. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) and Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) today reintroduced a bipartisan bill, the "Charitable Conservation Easement Program Integrity Act," to stop the abuse of conservation easements, save taxpayers billions of dollars and promote   more

BOONE, North Carolina, Dec. 12 (TNSRes) -- Appalachian Voices issued the following news release on Dec. 11: After almost 8,000 people called on the U.S. Forest Service this fall to prevent the fracked-gas Mountain Valley Pipeline from cutting through public land in Virginia, the agency today issued a final report supporting changes to its own environmental standards to accommodate the project. The agency's Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement confirms its plan to weaken 11 fundamen  more

KENT, Ohio, Dec. 18 (TNSPer) -- Wright State University issued the following news: Two Wright State University alumni have joined the Board of Trustees as national trustees. Ricky Peters, a systems engineering graduate, and Brittney C. Whiteside, a two-time Wright State graduate, were unanimously appointed national trustees by the Board of Trustees during its Dec. 11 meeting. Peters and Whiteside join Anuj Goyal and Vishal Soin as Wright State national trustees. National trustees serve for a   more

WASHINGTON, Dec. 17 (TNSRep) -- The U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration issued the following news release on Dec. 16: Today, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross announced that the Department's Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding a $3 million CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to the South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism, Columbia, South Carolina, to support the implementation of the state's Tourism Recovery Marketing Plan   more

BOONE, North Carolina, Dec. 17 (TNSRep) -- Appalachian Voices issued the following news release on Dec. 16: Today, the Institute for Energy Economics and Analysis released a report shedding light on Dominion Energy's costly coal-fired Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center in Wise Co, Va., and its likely early closure. The report, entitled Virginia Coal Plant's Future Isn't Bright: Preparation for Transition Should Commence Now, finds that the plant operates significantly below its full capacity at  more

ASHEVILLE, North Carolina, Dec. 18 -- Warren Wilson College issued the following news: Warren Wilson College has announced the naming of its soccer and lacrosse complex in honor of legendary coach Hank Steinbrecher. Steinbrecher coached Warren Wilson's men's soccer team from 1973 to 1978. During this time, his teams racked up an impressive 45-22-6 record, including capturing the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) District 6 title. He was named the NAIA Coach of the Year i  more

MORGANTOWN, West Virginia, Dec. 15 (TNSRes) -- West Virginia University issued the following story: As West Virginia became the epicenter of the nation's opioid epidemic, donor dollars brought Dr. Judith Feinberg to the West Virginia University School of Medicine to expand research focused on the intersection of addiction and infectious disease. More than five years later, her work is making a difference by expanding testing and increasing access to treatments for diseases spread through inject  more