Kentucky: Advocates for the communities affected by mountaintop-removal coal mining had a recent opportunity to take members of the statehouse on a tour of mine sites. The group visited both strip mines and the people who live in nearby communities. Some state legislators where moved by the trip, and pledge to work to pass legislation to stop the practice. Other legislators continue to support it.
Maryland: In an effort to control pollution from farm runoff, the state is promoting winter cover crops through a state conservation program. The state pays farmers up to $50 per acre to plant wheat, rye, or other crops on their bare fields before winter. This year farmers are expected to plant a full one-third of cropland in the state with a cover crop protecting it from erosion and runoff and building soil organic matter.
Montana: As the rural population in the state continues to decline, the most rural school districts in Montana are searching for ways to keep the doors to their schools open. Administrators from some rural districts met recently to discuss strategies to avoid more outright consolidation.
Finding new ways to share faculty and staff among districts, four-day school weeks, and combining grades are all being used help keep rural schools open. Often a keystone of a rural community, keeping the school open can help keep a community alive.
Tennessee: Underserved and rural hospitals in Tennessee and parts of Georgia will benefit from a $2 million grant from the Federal Communications Commission. The grant is part of an FCC pilot program that aims to expand health care access through telehealth networks.
With the grant, Erlanger hospital in Chattanooga will work to establish high-speed internet connections with health care providers in rural areas. The high-speed connections will facilitate video conferencing and electronic transfer of X-rays and CT scans to medical specialists not otherwise accessible.
Timber States: A tentative deal reached in congress could bring an end to a longstanding dispute over federal aid to timber communities facing declining revenues due to more restrictive government regulations on logging national forest land. Currently attached to energy legislation, the agreement must be passed by both the House and the Senate before it is final. The deal would bring $1.5 billion in aid to 700 rural counties to support schools, roads, and community infrastructure.
Contact: Brian Depew, by email at
briand@cfra.org or by phone at 402.687.2103 x 1015 to comment or suggest other news for next month.
Dakota Rural Action has been a close ally of the Center for Rural Affairs since the South Dakota grassroots organization was established. In particular, Dakota Rural Action is a key ally in South Dakota on livestock market reforms, beginning farmer and rancher initiatives and on anti-corporate farming laws. Visit them online today. 
