Southern Environmental Law Center
@selc
We are the Southern Environmental Law Center. Nonprofit and nonpartisan, we’re one of the nation’s most powerful environmental defenders, rooted in the South.
TAKE ACTION: Mining in Virginia’s federal waters could threaten ocean wildlife and the seafood industry. Tell BOEM that extractive seabed mining doesn’t belong in our public waters: https://selc.link/4w1ryXU
While millions of Americans struggle to pay their electric bills, we’re taking the Trump administration to court to fight for funding that had been awarded for a groundbreaking program that lowers energy costs for people who need it most: https://selc.link/4fzkGuD
BREAKING: We're ready to take the Trump admin to court to protect wildlife The federal government just took a major step towards attempting to illegally dismantle the Endangered Species Act — pushing the South's rarest species even closer to extinction: https://selc.link/3KTpj7y
NEWS: Private companies look to mine in Virginia’s public waters for profit The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management just announced it’s considering opening federal waters off the VA coast to seabed mining. Read more here: https://selc.link/4azup2v (Image credit: Getty)
We just warned four facilities operating on Charleston Harbor that we intend to sue in federal court if they don’t stop polluting Charleston’s waters with microplastics called "nurdles." https://selc.link/4dVAs2d
EPA wants to gut protections against toxic PFAS or “forever chemicals” in drinking water — putting polluters ahead of public health. https://selc.link/42SQ6pU
Good news: Mobile Baykeeper’s lawsuit over Alabama Power’s plan to leave 21 million tons of toxic coal ash beside the Mobile River is moving forward. Image by Julie Dermansky https://selc.link/4dT93yQ #CoalAsh #EnvironmentalJustice
The SC Public Service Commission voted to approve the massive, polluting gas power plant in Canadys on the banks of the Edisto River. Residents and groups like SELC have raised concerns about the impacts on communities, the environment, and the beloved ACE Basin for years. https://selc.link/4oaufDj
Yesterday, Governor Abigail Spanberger made a stop at SELC’s headquarters in Charlottesville, Va. to sign eight energy affordability bills that were passed during the 2026 legislative session.
When we speak up, they listen. A rural community in NC is encouraged after the Stokes County Board of Commissioners voted last week to formally void its rezoning decision and text amendment that would have cleared the way for a massive data center: https://selc.link/4tL4xrN
We’re taking legal action to protect clean water from a destructive pipeline. The SSEP pipeline could permanently damage aquatic ecosystems in more than 150 streams and wetlands along the pipeline’s path: https://selc.link/42mZSQE
BREAKING: The Trump administration moves to gut safeguards that protect communities from toxic coal ash pollution: https://selc.link/4sXeVfH
Great news: As of yesterday, the largest planned offshore wind project in the country is now operational. The Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project, also known as CVOW, started producing clean, fuel-free electricity and will eventually provide energy for up to 666,000 homes.
Pollution from cutting down Southern forests to make biomass energy knows no bounds, and neither does SELC Senior Attorney Heather Hillaker’s work to stop it. Follow her journey from the American South to Japan this International Day of Forests. https://selc.link/3NixHi3
Register for this year’s Reed Environmental Writing Award to hear from Emmy-award winning author, host, and renowned birder Christian Cooper. Join us 3/20 at 5 p.m. for the livestream. https://selc.link/46bd0uH
The Trump administration just announced a pledge with tech companies in an attempt to gloss over fears about data centers and rising energy costs. We're not fooled. Learn more. https://selc.link/4aPknuv
North Carolina faces a choice: Repair past harms done by historic highway development or repeat them. Governor Steing needs to pause the I-77 South expansion project now: https://selc.link/3MOCgjW
Virginia just took a big step toward confronting climate change. Here's the latest on joining a proven climate program. #RGGI https://selc.link/4aURHiA
We thank @ncgovernor.bsky.social for bringing a diverse array of stakeholders on the Energy Policy Task Force together to chart a responsible energy future as North Carolina grapples with growing energy demand from data centers and rising utility costs: https://governor.nc.gov/NCEPTF
Duke Energy has proposed merging its Carolinas and Progress subsidiaries, a move they say will save ratepayers money. SELC is stepping in to ensure NC residents receive the full benefits of the merger, enhance affordability & advocate for clean energy: https://selc.link/3LhabB6
The U.S. House just passed the PERMIT Act — a giveaway to industrial polluters that threatens the rivers and streams we rely on for drinking, fishing, and swimming. SELC joined 150+ groups in opposition. Our water is on the line. #ProtectCleanWater protectcleanwater.org/wp-content/u...
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
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.
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
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...
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.
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...