As Southern cities grow, smart, equitable transit is the way forward. Voters just approved a major referendum to expand light rail and modernize transit across the region in Charlotte. More on this historic win: https://selc.link/3Xenwwd

“This is already on track to be one of the most expensive gas-fired power plants in history, and the health and environmental impacts will reach millions.” - Eddy Moore, @CleanEnergyOrg https://selc.link/4oaufDj

Japan has rapidly expanded its use of industrial wood pellets for energy but this so-called “climate solution” is devastating Southern forests and harming nearby communities. SELC’s Heather Hillaker joined a delegation to Japan to share how this false “climate solution” impacts the South.

Cleaner air. Lower costs. More jobs. CHARGE’s new report confirms the benefits of clean transportation programs. Congress—protect and expand these investments. America can’t afford to go backwards. Learn more: www.chargingusforward.com/charging-for...

“We’re in court fighting because the E.P.A. ripped away this program from families with no basis,” SELC senior attorney Nick Torrey said to the NY Times. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/11/c...

All around the world, groups are preparing for a day of action to raise awareness of the impacts of the biomass industry. YOU are invited to join them! #BigBadBiomass🪚🌳 You can take part: organise an online or offline action on October 21st. Learn how: environmentalpaper.org/2025/08/idoa...

EVs are on the move in the South. Despite efforts in DC to undercut EV demand, EVs are an increasingly popular choice with drivers. In GA, VA, and NC, EVs made up nearly 10% of all new car sales in the first half of this year: https://selc.link/3KCJ7eQ

"When the mud covers oyster beds, traps shrimp and kills what’s underneath — it doesn’t just wipe away the catch—it wipes our way of life.” - Anthony Theriot, Cameron Parish fisherman: https://www.kplctv.com/2025/09/26/new-ldwf-report-shows-sediment-higher-mortality-rate-oyster-beds-big-lake/#

One year ago, Helene tore through Appalachia — reminding us that climate change isn’t a distant threat. It’s here, now. Author Jay Leutze reflects on the chaotic days following the storm and the strength of his neighbors who are still working together to rebuild. https://selc.link/42zRez5

Congratulations and thank you to @selc.bsky.social and Sound Rivers for using the law to protect water in Falls Lake, NC. www.wral.com/news/local/d...

Are you one of the 900k people that may be drinking contaminated water in the Cape Fear River Basin? You can speak up. The EPA will be hosting a public hearing about the City of Asheboro’s discharges of cancer-causing 1,4-Dioxane on 10/22: https://selc.link/41Rjf4J

The South’s wildest, most untouched places are on the line and you have just two weeks to stand up for them. Tell the Forest Service we need the roadless rule now: https://selc.link/3V0gvOG

Last week, the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners passed a resolution calling on federal regulators to protect residents and reject a dangerous pipeline. Learn more: https://selc.link/45MAHK1

Did you know that the Trump administration recently made it harder for you to weigh in on federal rules? "There is definitely a pattern of this administration skirting around transparency and oversight tools.” - SELC Federal Regulatory Director Liz Zepeda: https://selc.link/4g2vCR8

CALL FOR ENTRIES: Submit your book or article for the Reed Environmental Writing Award. The Reed Award celebrates writers who achieve literary excellence and offer extraordinary insight into the South’s natural treasures and environmental challenges: www.selc.org/2026-reed-en...

In NC, legislators have approved a dangerous bill that prohibits them from considering critical things like avoidable serious illness, health harms, and preserving property values when calculating the impact of potential environmental rules, via @wunc.org: www.wunc.org/environment/...

GREAT NEWS: On August 8, the Fish and Wildlife Service shared the that the world’s only wild population of red wolves has grown by as many as 16 pups. The births are a critical step forward for a wild population that numbered only seven wolves in 2020: www.selc.org/news/hope-fo...

The EPA stripped billions of environmental grant dollars from communities across the South and beyond. We’re leading a historic class action lawsuit to get these funds back to the communities that need them most. Learn more via The Guardian: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

“This new law marks an awful turning point for families and communities across North Carolina when elected officials in the state legislature ignore serious illnesses and deaths in favor of polluters’ profits.” @selc.bsky.social's Mary Maclean Asbill www.northcarolinahealthnews.org/2025/08/04/n...

“If leaders in the Trump administration move forward with this unlawful attempt to strip critical funding from communities across the United States, we will see them in court." - Kym Meyer, SELC Litigation Director www.nytimes.com/2025/08/05/c...

We appreciate the leadership of @repscfigures.bsky.social and Rep. Edwards in working to make crucial resilience funding more accessible to communities across the South. www.alreporter.com/2025/07/23/r...

No one voted for dirty air and water. Communities across the South are feeling the impacts of federal funding freezes, staffing cuts, and rollbacks of our bedrock environmental laws.

Report compares data center forecasts to global chip production -- "It is not reasonable to believe that data centers in the United States will procure almost all the output of production capacities for AI-related semiconductor chips from the entire world over a six-year period."

From federal litigation to local advocacy, SELC experts will share how we’re stepping up alongside communities, partner organizations, and state leaders to protect what matters most:  Join us Thursday, July 31 at 12:30 p.m. ET and REGISTER TODAY: selc.link/3Tvlvdf

NEW REPORT: Across the South, electric utilities are pursuing a massive expansion of new pipelines and gas plants in response to unprecedented projected power demand from data centers. But new research shows that current demand projections are implausible: www.selc.org/press-releas...

The next issue of SELC’s magazine is here. Our latest issue features everything from life in WNC after Helene, photos from the north GA mountains to the gulf and changemakers big and small. Want the next one? Sign up to get Issue 6 right to your mailbox, free: www.selc.org/magazine-sig...

We just sued the Trump administration. Together with our partners at @earthjustice.org, @selc.bsky.social, and @publicrightspro.bsky.social, we’re challenging the illegal termination of environmental justice grants that Congress required by law. Learn more: L4GG.org/ProtectEJ

ICYMI: The PERMIT Act would weaken federal clean water protections, making it easier for polluters to run rampant. @repscfigures.bsky.social is standing up for low-income and rural communities across Alabama that would bear the greatest consequences of pollution and flood.

Yesterday, we sued the Trump administration for unlawfully terminating $3 billion in environmental and climate justice grants. Access to clean air, water, and affordable, clean energy should not depend on your zip code, race, or income: www.selc.org/news/we-want...

BREAKING: After six years of pressure from local partners, advocates, and SELC, a major threat to the Okefenokee Swamp has been defeated: www.selc.org/news/battle-...

BREAKING: Elon Musk’s xAI facility is polluting South Memphis, we’re taking action. Get the latest: www.selc.org/news/resista...

The fight against a mega landfill in Cumberland County, Virginia continues as residents wait for the public hearing on the proposal to be rescheduled. Learn more about what’s going on from Cumberland County native Justin G. Reid: farmvilleherald.com/2025/06/just...

The EPA just proposed gutting key limits on harmful pollution from coal plants. The South hosts 4 of the dirtiest plants in the U.S. — and our communities will pay the price. We need clean air, not more pollution: www.selc.org/press-releas...

GREAT NEWS: Last month, @markwarner.bsky.social reintroduced the Shenandoah Mountain Act, which would designate more than 92k acres of Virginia’s George Washington National Forest as the Shenandoah Mountain National Scenic Area. Local county and city governments have also endorsed the proposal.

COMMENTS FILED: Thanks to you and our partners we just hand delivered nearly 1,700 letters from Georgians who don’t want to be on the hook for dirty, expensive fossil fuels so Georgia Power can cash in on data centers.

Meta plans to build a data center with 3 methane gas power plants in Richland Parish, Louisiana. This proposal is just one of many data centers across the South that tech companies are using to justify a massive methane gas buildout; read more via @technologyreview.com: selc.link/4ko5bqH

We are proud to support @selc.bsky.social in their fight for South Memphis communities, and we are grateful to our volunteer pilots who can help provide transparency on industrial projects. Read more: buff.ly/kmKGITl

GREAT NEWS: This month, @kaine.senate.gov reintroduced the Shenandoah Mountain Act, which would designate more than 92,000 acres of Virginia’s George Washington National Forest as the Shenandoah Mountain National Scenic Area. Local county and city governments have also endorsed the proposal.

One small, rural town in eastern North Carolina is looking to clean energy to cut electric bills, spur job growth, and achieve energy independence. Enfield, NC sees more than 260 sunny days a year – making the town an ideal spot for a solar farm: www.canarymedia.com/articles/cle...

The Trump administration’s EPA is siding with polluters to weaken the federal coal ash protections that help keep our water free from dangerous waste. Read more: apnews.com/article/trum...

This Endangered Species Day is about more than the species making the South great, it’s about the Endangered Species Act. This powerful law saves from extinction 99% of the species it protects. Now it’s the ESA’s turn to be protected: www.selc.org/news/save-th...

"In coming weeks, the Shelby County Health Department is expected to decide whether to approve xAI’s permit to permanently install 15 gas turbines. Meanwhile, xAI has already purchased another property in nearby Whitehaven to expand its operations in Memphis. Local residents aren’t backing down. "

Cumulatively, the turbines at xAI in S. Memphis can power 280,000 homes--and emit more smog-causing NOX than the actual gas power plant down the road or a nearby Valero refinery, according to calculations from @selc.bsky.social . That's "essentially running a power plant without a permit."

WEBINAR: Join us and @grist.org for a star panel of climate experts and their take on how federal funding freezes and terminations will impact our future. REGISTER: www.eventbrite.com/e/funding-th...

🌧️🏘️ A rural Alabama town floods every time it rains — but no one was listening. Pastor Timothy Williams’ call to ABC News started a national story. 🎥 The result? A Reed Environmental Writing Award & a powerful look at environmental racism. Read more: ow.ly/CLPL50VKPu0 @selc.bsky.social #EarthMonth

Georgia Power is preparing for a tsunami of data centers, but is refusing to say how it plans to power them: www.canarymedia.com/articles/uti...

GREAT NEWS: This Tuesday, the Cumberland County Planning Commission listened to the people — and recommended that the Board of Supervisors reject a proposed landfill that threatens a historic Black community in Virginia: www.wric.com/news/local-n...

Helene had a huge impact on river ecosystems. Cleanup is critical — but how we do it matters. We can restore our rivers and protect the wildlife that makes Appalachia a global biodiversity hotspot — but we must use smarter, science-backed cleanup methods: www.blueridgenow.com/story/news/l...

“xAI has essentially built a power plant in South Memphis with no oversight, no permitting, and no regard for families living in nearby communities.” - SELC Senior Attorney Amanda Garcia: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

North Carolinians know just how important the work of our friends and neighbors at Research Triangle Park is. Scientists who work here have conducted research for decades that inform environmental policy, helping ensure that we breathe clean air and drink clean water.