Highlands Conservancy News Today

The Blackwater River, which flows more than 30 miles through West Virginias Allegheny Mountains, ranks among the top 10 most endangered rivers in the nation, according to a new report. The river is threatened by a proposed four-lane highway construction project which would cross all of its headwater streams. Judy Rodd, executive director of the group Friends of Blackwater, said Corridor H would involve building a bridge in an area honeycombed with old mines and explains the construction could ...

The state Department of Environmental Protection has filed a motion in federal court to intervene in a proposed settlement to limit mining pollutants in streams.  At the heart of the issue is the Guyandotte River and the alleged failure of the DEP to administer water testing and limits for ionic toxicity in 11 state streams that affect 100,000 people. As a result, conservation groups filed a lawsuit.

Most school and transit buses on the nations roadways these days are still powered by diesel engines but in Wisconsin and elsewhere, there is hope about the push to switch to electric fleets. The city of Racine has made headlines in recent years for leveraging federal funds to add more electric buses operated by its transit agency. Through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, school systems such as the Palmyra-Eagle district have used federal grants to buy a handful of buses fitted with such tech...

Groups concerned about air pollution and public health are asking the city councils of Long Beach and Los Angeles and their respective Harbor Commissions to pass major restrictions on air pollution from ships. The "Ports for People" ordinance would require agencies to take steps to reduce pollution from cargo ships by 50% from 2019 levels by 2030, and to achieve 100% zero-emission shipping at the ports by 2040. Dawnyall Heydari, climate campaign advocacy manager for the nonpr...