SELC

In a recent announcement, Preservation Virginia named the site of WaHōnSeNaKah (Powhatan)’s birthplace one of Virginia’s most endangered places of 2026.

Located on the north bank of the James River immediately downstream from present Richmond, Powhatan’s birthplace is depicted as a prominent settlement on historic maps and initial archaeological work has uncovered tens of thousands of artifacts at the site. The site holds immense cultural significance to Virginia’s Tribes and reflects a long-standing and ongoing relationship between Tribal Nations and the landscape. The property was later home to a plantation and enslaved community and it is recognized as the site of Richmond’s surrender at the end of the Civil War.

Today, it is one of the last undeveloped parcels near Richmond on Route 5/Old Osborne Turnpike — one of the oldest roads in the state and designated as a Virginia Byway for its high aesthetic and cultural value. It is also in danger of being lost to development.

A private company is reviving plans to develop the 530-acre property. When this development was originally approved, Virginia’s Tribes had not received federal recognition and had far more limited capacity to engage in state and local decision-making processes.

Photo by Katie Orlinsky

Our communities need clean water that is not contaminated with arsenic, mercury, lead, and other harmful toxins from coal ash. Exposure to these toxins is known to cause cancer, developmental issues in children, and other serious illnesses.

Yet the Trump administration just moved to gut a federal rule that protects us from this toxic pollution—giving polluters what they asked for and putting our drinking water sources at serious risk.

We need your voice now to stop this dangerous reversal. Act today and tell EPA and Congress to say NO to toxic coal ash in our water.

Image of Plant Hammond coal ash pit in Rome, GA

We are thrilled to share our podcast Broken Ground won a Webby for Best Sustainability & Environment podcast. The award, which celebrates “the best of the internet,” recognized our season on rural environmental issues.

Listen to episodes with locals defending the Okefenokee Swamp against mining, others moving an entire downtown out of the floodplain, and another community securing stronger pollution protections from wood pellet plants.

Catch the full season on your favorite podcast app or at www.brokengroundpodcast.org/season7.

EPA wants to gut protections against toxic PFAS or “forever chemicals” in drinking water — putting polluters ahead of public health.

These chemicals have been linked to cancer, liver disease, harm to children and pregnant women, heart attacks, and more. Communities across the country have spent years fighting for clean water, and now those protections are on the chopping block.

“By abandoning and delaying enforceable limits on dangerous industrial chemicals like GenX and other PFAS, the agency is putting polluters’ profits over people and sending a clear message that corporate interests matter more than human lives.” - Kelly Moser, senior attorney and water program leader.

In places like North Carolina’s Cape Fear River Basin, families are already living with the impacts of PFAS contamination while utilities and ratepayers shoulder massive cleanup costs. Polluters should pay, not the public.

Clean drinking water is not optional. EPA must protect people, not corporate polluters.

Photo by Cornell Watson

SELC’s work is stronger because of the guidance and leadership of our Board of Trustees — and we’re excited to welcome three new members at a critical moment for the South and our environment.

Please join us in welcoming Brenda Mallory, Jeremy Hoffman, and Nancy Clair Laird.

Brenda Mallory previously served as SELC’s Director of Regulatory Policy and most recently chaired the White House Council on Environmental Quality under the Biden administration.

Jeremy Hoffman is a climate scientist and Director of Impact Evaluation and Community Science at Groundwork USA, and lead author of the Fifth National Climate Assessment Southeast Chapter.

Nancy Clair Laird is secretary and treasurer of Mountain Conservation Trust and a longtime conservation leader with experience across environmental nonprofits and outdoor education.

We’re honored to have their experience and leadership guide SELC’s work for a healthier, more resilient South.

VICTORY: The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals has revived Mobile Baykeeper's lawsuit over the 21 million tons of toxic coal ash sitting in unlined pits next to the Mobile River.

For decades, this ash has polluted the waters of the Mobile-Tensaw Delta — one of the most biodiverse places in North America. This ruling means our fight to protect “North America’s Amazon” moves forward. We’re not backing down.

Image by Julie Dermansky

https://selc.link/4dT93yQ

The South Carolina Public Service Commission just voted unanimously to approve Santee Cooper and Dominion’s methane gas power plant on the banks of the Edisto River in Canadys. At 2,200 megawatts of power, this plant would be one of the largest in the country.

For years, residents and nonprofits including SELC have raised concerns about the project’s potential negative impact on nearby communities, the ACE Basin, and other natural resources. The residents of Canadys have already faced decades of pollution from the coal plant that once stood on the site.

The Southern Environmental Law Center, on behalf of Coastal Conservation League and Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, intervened at the Public Service Commission to raise concerns about the environmental impacts and rising costs of the massive plant and the 71-mile greenfield pipeline needed to service it. Pipeline owner Kinder Morgan could use “eminent domain” to force landowners to sell their land to make way for the project.

"This massive, polluting plant has already doubled in cost from $2.5 to $5 billion in the last year, and the utilities admitted at the hearing that its final all-in costs will be even higher,” said Kate Mixson, SELC Senior Attorney. “We’re certainly worried that the plant and pipeline will negatively impact communities and raise customers’ bills. We will closely monitor the project’s next steps to ensure its impacts are as mitigated as possible.”

Photo by Gavin McIntyre

https://selc.link/4oaufDj

Removing unnecessary dams is not just good for rivers and aquatic species like fish and salamanders — undamming rivers makes our communities more resilient to a changing climate.

Last year, nearly 4,900 miles of waterways were reconnected after a banner year for dam removals, according to American Rivers (tag). These free-flowing waterways are healthier and safer. And it’s often cheaper to remove an obsolete dam than keep it in place.

“Our dams aren’t getting younger,” said Serena McClain with American Rivers. “With more extreme weather, more and more of these structures are failing over time. If we don’t remove them, Mother Nature is going to do it for us.”

But too many unnecessary dams still separate rivers across the South. Now the movement to reunite our waterways is gaining traction.

Read more in the New York Times: https://selc.link/4wtxZ7x

America the Undammed (Gift Article) More miles of the country’s rivers were reconnected last year thanks to dam removals than at any other time in history.

With data center growth and skyrocketing fossil fuel prices, electricity bills for Virginians have gone up more than 23% over the past two years. This is an unprecedented time in Virginia and throughout the South where clean energy is under attack at the federal level.

Yesterday, Governor Abigail Spanberger made a stop in Charlottesville to sign eight energy affordability bills that were passed during the 2026 legislative session. SELC’s Virginia office was honored to host the signing.

These are the types of solutions that can help us combat rising bills while staying on track for our clean energy transition.

Senior Attorney Nate Benforado works alongside clean energy advocates across the state during the General Assembly. “The bills signed today continue to advance solar and other affordable clean energy options that we desperately need in the Commonwealth,” he said.