Election day is November 5, 2024 all across the country. In case you haven’t heard a president will be elected. But there are also many important West Virginia local and state races to be decided. The problem is that many West Virginians don’t turn out to vote and are left with the political choices other […]
West Virginia is served by a small number of electric utilities, all of which are regulated by the Public Service Commission. Appalachian Power provides service generally in the southern half of the state. First Energy Corporation operates in most other areas of the state through Mon Power and Potomac Edison. Two counties in the Northern […]
We all know them. They are in our families and at our workplaces. They are the people who deny that climate change is manmade, or who claim that some scientist has proved it’s all a hoax. Sometimes it’s a matter of choosing teams. Concern about climate change is broadly shared on the blue team, so […]
According to the West Virginia Division of Forestry, forests cover 78.5% of the land in the state – making us the third most heavily forested state in the nation. This natural blessing filters water, provides wildlife habitat, and provides rich outdoor recreation opportunities. But in recent years wildfires have taken an increasingly large toll and […]
You may not have really noticed the impact of overheating on outdoor recreation – like the frog doesn’t notice the water in the pot slowly getting warmer. But if you play outdoors the impact on your fun is obvious. Increasing temperatures cause by climate change is creating new challenges for the look and playability of […]
Gov. Jim Justice has declared a State of Emergency for all 55 counties due to a prolonged shortage of rainfall that has caused dangerous drought conditions. The US Department of Agriculture issued the chart below, showing the drought conditions prevailing in the state as of July 23, 2024. Many Easten Panhandle counties, including Berkeley and […]
Skeptics of climate change often warn of the cost of reducing greenhouse gases. They cite job dislocation in fossil fuel industries, increased taxes and government debt as reasons to do nothing. Sure, there will be costs. But there will also be costs of not acting. And since we like to think of ourselves as rational […]
Climate change worldwide is taking money from our pockets in ways we never imagined. One of those ways is the higher cost of homeowner’s insurance. The skyrocketing cost of homeowner’s insurance has caused people in West Virginia to underinsure their homes or go without insurance altogether. Underinsured means the policy is not enough to rebuild […]
Everyone has noticed the higher price of food when they shop at the grocery store. Climate change is contributing in a big way to these price increases. Depending on the particular food we talk about, climate change can be the single biggest cause of price hikes. How does this work? First, extreme weather made more […]
In the last two decades, West Virginia’s story has been one of declining population, particularly young people of working-age, and sluggish job growth. Our representation in Congress recently dropped from three Representatives to two because of this population loss. During this same period our economy has sputtered. Between 2010 and 2020, West Virginia lost a […]
