Controversial technique by mining companies of dynamiting moutaintops to get at coal destroys more than the environment.
Once brimming with life and the promise of prosperity, most of these communities now sit empty and broken. Failed businesses and rundown buildings stand like memorials to a more hopeful past...With the rise of mountaintop-removal mining, entire towns have been relocated -- in many cases forcibly evacuated -- to allow better access to the coal seams running through these hills...The coal dust piles up quickly on buildings, in homes, and on land around the plants. And the sulfur it contains, in addition to posing a potential public-health hazard...The goal for local activist groups, then, is to raise awareness among residents in areas of heavy mining activity and teach them to watch for notices of land sales or permit applications in the local papers."
FULL STORY: Blast Rites

Rethinking Redlining
For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

California High-Speed Rail's Plan to Right Itself
The railroad's new CEO thinks he can get the project back on track. The stars will need to align this summer.

Savannah Reduces Speed Limits on Almost 100 City Streets
The historic Georgia city is lowering speed limits in an effort to reduce road fatalities.

A Park Reborn: Resilience and Renewal in Fire-Stricken Altadena
Rebuilt in just two months after the devastating Eaton Fire, Loma Alta Park now stands as a symbol of community resilience and renewal, even as some residents hope recovery efforts will continue to support housing stability and long-term equity.

Spain Moves to Ban 66,000 Airbnbs
The national government is requiring the short-term rental operator to remove thousands of illegal listings from its site as part of an effort to stem a growing housing crisis.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
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