RICHMOND, Va. —
The Southern Environmental Law Center is out with its latest endangered places in the Southeast and there are some familiar names among the top 10.
The list released Thursday includes places in six states that the environmental group said face the threat of intrusive development, such as proposed highways and energy projects. It includes, for instance, Southside Virginia and what it calls the continuing threat of uranium mining; and a proposed timber sale within view of the Blue Ridge Parkway near Asheville, N.C. Some 472 acres of forest could be lost, the SELC said.
Other entries include two unlined coal ash ponds near Myrtle Beach, S.C., that are leaking high levels of arsenic; and plans for reservoirs in the Atlanta area that the SELC says are not needed and threaten water supplies downstream.
The other entries on the endangered list, the fifth annual edition, and an SELC description of the threats are:
Alabama: Talladega National Forest, which faces pressure to allow a drilling process known as fracking, which the SELC said threatens drinking water supplies and could bring industrial operations to camping and hiking areas.
North Carolina: Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge, threatened by plans to widen U.S. 64, destroying 300 acres of wetland and habitat for the last wild population of red wolves; Cape Fear Basin, a cement plant proposed near Wilmington that would destroy 1,000 acres of wetlands.
Tennessee: GoForth Creek Canyon on the Ocoee Scenic Byway, a new highway through the Cherokee National Forest.
Virginia: A proposed $224 million bypass that would scar the city that is home to the University of Virginia; and the Coalfields Expressway through the rural southwest region of the state.
The SELC’s Nat Mund, the group’s legislative director, said there is no reason states should have to choose “between a healthy environment and a healthy economy” when investments in clean energy can achieve both.
———
Online:
Southern Environmental Law Center: www.southernenvironmentall.org
State News
February 7, 2013
SELC releases ’most endangered’ Southeast places
- State News
-
-
Ga water negotiator’s role may be seen as conflict
ATLANTA (AP) — One of Georgia’s negotiators in a tri-state water dispute also is president of a lobbying firm that has sought to commercially develop a technology billed as a partial solution to that feud, a situation that a top state official and others say could look like a conflict even though it is legal.
Continued ... - Heavy rains close Atlanta area roads
- Obama exhorts good deeds by Morehouse graduates
- Partnership looks to grow heritage tourism
- Man, 2 children injured in dog attack near Atlanta
- Obama’s Morehouse visit shines spotlight on HBCUs
- GOP US Senate candidates denounce immigration bill
- May 17, 2013
- Handel jumps into crowded US Senate race in Ga.
- Bibb County schools scrap year-round calendar
- Atlanta names Collier Heights historic district
- May 15, 2013
- Graves: Who gave the orders to target conservatives?
- Chambliss statement on the release of Benghazi emails
- Deal orders return of Bibles to rooms at parks
- Georgia celebrates preservation month
- Ga. agency orders removal of Bibles at state parks
-
Ga water negotiator’s role may be seen as conflict
Fatal Hot Air Balloon Accident in Turkey
Tornadoes, Storms Strike Midwest
'Babyland': Camp Lejeune's Toxic Legacy?
Raw: Heavy Tornado Damage in Shawnee, Okla
Probe Begins After Conn. Commuter Trains Crash
NTSB Begins Investigation Into Conn. Train Crash
Lotto Fever Sweeps the Country
Conn. Commuter Trains Collide; 60 Go to Hospital
Coffee Run Leads to Hatchet Hitchhiker Arrest
Fmr. IRS Head Insists No Politics in Targeting
CDC: Fecal Bacteria Common in Swimming Pools
$1 Million in Jewels Stolen at Cannes Film Fest
NM Mom Chases Down Child Abductor
Raw: Crash Sends Car Into Fla. Pool
Raw: Obama Sits Down With Elementary Kids
Raw: Bear Falls From Tampa Tree
Ousted IRS Chief: Errors Not Caused by Politics
Terror Suspect Due in Court in Idaho Friday
Raw: Driver Ejected From Truck, Over Bridge
Could Tobacco Be the Next Biofuel?
