Topic: Tennessee Valley Authority

Change Agent
How renewable energy is rescuing US schools from budget cuts

Educators across the country are finding millions of dollars in savings through cheap and simple forms of renewable energy. Since 2003, one school district has cut more than $7 million in energy costs. That equates to 45 teaching positions.

Hollande's plane struck by lightning en route to Germany to meet Merkel (+video)

A quick trip to Germany is not unusual for a new French president. But François Hollande will bring a radically changed agenda when he meets Chancellor Merkel today.

Somber searches resume as tornado outbreak leaves heartland reeling

An 'enormous outbreak' of at least 91 tornadoes tore into the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys Friday, the second major tornado system to rake across the heartland in the span of three days.

The Monitor's View: Alabama tornado outbreak: preparedness and response

It's not easy to prepare an entire city for a mile-wide tornado like the one that hit Tuscaloosa in Alabama. That makes individual preparedness – and rescue and recovery – especially important. Obama will tour the area Friday.

Alabama tornadoes: Why was state's tornado death toll so high? (video)

The death toll from Wednesday's tornado outbreak across the South is now likely to top 200, with at least 131 fatalities in Alabama. Gov. Robert Bentley defends the state's preparedness.

Tornadoes take staggering toll in Alabama and Deep South (video)

A massive thunderstorm front spawned 137 tornadoes, killed at least 180 people, and mangled sections of Tuscaloosa, Birmingham, and Huntsville, Ala., on Wednesday. April is now one of the most violent weather months in the region in decades.

Opinion: Supreme Court should reject climate change nuisance suit

The Supreme Court is set to hear arguments in American Electric Power Co., Inc. v. Connecticut, an unprecedented “public nuisance” lawsuit brought against energy companies. The courts are hardly the place to set broad policy on climate change. Even Obama agrees.

Editorial Board Blog
Learning from Japan, once again. I'll bow to that.

The Japanese disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant is providing good lessons for US atomic plants. In either negative or positive ways, Japan's influence on America keeps growing, like shiitake mushrooms.

Coal power: TVA agrees to phase out 18 units, shift to cleaner fuels

Tennessee Valley Authority says it will phase out 18 older coal-fired generators at three power plants by 2020. Natural-gas and biomass units will replace the coal power as part of a TVA settlement over clean-air violations.

Supreme Court takes global warming case that targets power companies

A global warming lawsuit aiming to force power companies to curtail carbon emissions will come before the Supreme Court next year. The suit asks for a judicial order to that effect, but would such a move usurp role of other government branches?

Report: Contamination from coal ash waste is worse than EPA says

Two environmental groups report that at least 31 cases of coal ash waste contamination in 14 states are not listed by the EPA. Dangerous chemicals include arsenic, selenium, and boron.

Opinion: Shocked, shocked to find socialism in America

Do critics of Obama's health reforms realize how socialistic we already are?

In Afghanistan operation, Marines return to 'little America'

US forces are pushing deeper into Helmand Province, where Americans promoted development throughout much of the cold-war era.

The New Economy
Obama healthcare reform threatens truce with business

Bright Green
Have you seen this?

Environment news you may have missed.

Letters to the Editor

Readers write about ways the financial industry should be made to pay for its mistakes, why a stable retail price is the wrong way to handle gas, why the TVA should not be changed, and why Obama must appoint liberal judges to the bench.

Opinion: Obama's moment to overhaul the TVA

The utility, a New Deal icon, is a major polluter.

USA

Coal-ash waste poses risk across the nation

Hundreds of landfills and slurry ponds – like the one that failed in Tennessee – are dotted across the US, endangering communities and water supplies.

USA

Bright Green
What exactly is the toxic sludge that spilled in Tennessee?

A mixture of water and fly ash, a residue that is captured in the chimneys of coal-fired power plants.

Tennessee spill revives coal ash controversy

A dike break released more than 5.4 million cubic yards of toxic sludge and put rivers downstream at risk.

USA