KNOXVILLE — A federal magistrate handling dozens of lawsuits that seek damages from the Tennessee Valley Authority's coal ash spill has extended deadlines for some court filings.

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Go Vols!

Nashville:

Rented beer trucks are standing by to provide a steady supply of beer, margaritas and nachos to crowds that Waters expects will be triple the size of their normal post-game crowd.

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I'm working on a list of questions to ask our candidates for Governor at some point during the primary season. If you could ask them yourself, what would your question be?

The eagles and these folks are working on their summer homes.

And the Barred Owls are going off in the daytime, too.

Ah the views...

This one is just above the Transmission lines in the Emory River. Not sure what mile marker that would be, maybe mile one.

...the running total is now 21 consecutive months of negative growth in sales tax collections since January 2008...

Via Kleinheider

Step one: Tax Internet Sales

Step Two: Accept that What we have now isn't working

Step Three: ???

Ward Cammack gave a deep and substantive speech to the Roane County Democratic Party. There's no question that Cammack knows his stuff and has powerful ideas that Tennessee would do well to embrace. If the Tennessee Governor's race can be purchased then this doesn't matter, but if the good people of this state get the chance to really decide what they want Tennessee to be in the future, then Kim McMillan will have an excellent advisor in Ward Cammack.

The Press Release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Ward Cammack endorses Gubernatorial Candidate Kim McMillan

The EPA has released a document that shows where they think the remaining coal ash is situated in the Emory River. Interesting to note that there are several significant ash deposits located as far up river as mile 6. One has to question if there are additional ones even further upstream?

Here's the PDF. I encourage folks to check it out. It contains a lot of info and raises a number of questions.

KnoxViews.com is following the Justice Department anti-trust action concerning voting machines and Diebold.

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Every place on earth has its challenges and I would rather work on changing things than sweeping them under the rug. I still think Roane County is a great place to start a business, retire to, raise a family, recreate, and just plain visit with folks when there's time.

We do seem to have more than our fair share of certain things like this. Actually, I think we get a bad rap. Does anyone keep current crime stats in our county?

Update: It was an elaborate suicide. (note to commentors at KNS...Suicide is a tragic and painful thing for friends and family. Could you put aside the "mean" for just a little while?)

Harriman Blue Devils beat Cloudland at home tonight in the Sub-State game! Harriman is now 3 games from the State Championship! They play in Murfreesboro next Wed. 03/17 the time is not set as of yet.

Go Big Blue!

Everybody wants the money, nobody wants the pollution, except for those who get the money.

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Humphrey notes a big contributer getting a private easement on state land over the objections of TDOT and others. Wonder how our folks will vote?
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Roane County Environmental Review Board (Board)
February 4, 2010 Meeting Minutes (approved March 4, 2010)

Destiny Carter, a Rockwood fifth-grader, has won the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation's poster contest. Her entry will go on to compete at the national level in the Department of Justice-sponsored event. See: Link...

Congratulations, Destiny Carter!

-- OneTahiti

A Billion dollar cleanup bill is small potatoes:

...an audit report published by TVA's inspector general found that the retirement systems assets are currently $3 billion below what actuaries say is needed to meet future financial obligations...

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Every 100 ton train car that leaves the TVA disaster site contains about 30 tons of water, and there are between 80 and 110 cars a day headed to Alabama. It's a problem...

In Demopolis, about 20 miles from Uniontown, officials failed to renew their wastewater treatment operating permit but the wastewater plant has continued receiving the landfill's drained fluids while operating under a special state order.

TVA was operating under a "special" interim permit at the Kingston Coal plant when this disaster happened as I recall. More:

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We had a great time talking with Kim McMillan today. If qualifications won political races this one would be over and Tennessee would historically have it's first Woman as Governor. McMillan has more credentials for Governor than all the other candidates in both parties combined as several Roane Countians found out today.

McMillan hopes to succeed Phil Bredesen as Governor of Tennessee and already has an impressive record of achievement behind her. McMillan was the first woman elected House Majority Leader in the history of Tennessee. Governor Bredesen asked her to move up and serve in his cabinet during his second term. Roane Countians got to see first hand why Bredesen asked her to serve at the higher level as she visited Rockwood, Kingston and other communities in Roane County today.

Kim McMillan at Junior's in Rockwood

Kim chats with Nick Forrester at the Market Street Fountain at Ladd's Landing in Kingston.

Women for Kim

Support Kim McMillan for Governor

Google is offering ultrafast broadband to cities, but they must apply by March 26: Link...

I hope cities in Roane County, perhaps even the county itself, are applying. This broadband would propel us into the modern age and would attract both new business and new residents.

-- OneTahiti

To Roane County Community Advisory Group

March 5, 2010

Harriman to get fiberoptic broadband connectivity because it was found to be "Underserved" by Broadband Internet.

Well done, Harriman! Other than having good schools, Broadband Internet availability is the singlemost important amenity for a community.

"I would love to turn him loose right now," Roane County Sheriff Jack Stockton said this afternoon. "But we have to have the proper paperwork to release him. And without a piece of paper with a judge's signature on it, we don't do anything."

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The CAG is hearing from TVA:

TVA Safety standdown still in effect. Injured worker seriously injured but will be released from hospital soon. Other accidents and near misses triggered decision to review and train for safety considerations. Overtime and fatigue issues are a concern. 60 hours per week is OK. More than 60 hours, employee must be certified by employer as being safe. There are no hour limitations on a per day basis.

2.7 million cyds ash removed... 166 trains transported 1.5 cyds million to Al.

New rail spur to ease switching blockages on Swan Pond Road date is within a week if weather stays favorable. This will reduce blockages to coal train ingress and exit, and ash train exit and return per day. These will be 80 to 110 car trains.

KINGSTON — A worker at TVA’s Kingston Fossil Plant was seriously injured Tuesday in a fall from a piece of equipment used to filter solids from coal ash sludge, prompting TVA to suspend operations at the site until workers go through a safety refresher session Thursday.

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Breaking News... Rocky Houston CANNOT be retried........

Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate, Kim McMillan, will be in Roane County this coming Friday. The schedule, which is always subject to change, is currently as follows:

2:00 P.M. Roane County Courthouse walk through

3:30 Rockwood at Junior's Restaurant

5:00 Kingston at the Market Street Fountain in Ladd's Landing

These will be informal meet and chat events for all Roane Countians.

McWherter To Use Blind Trust If Elected Governor

The study, titled, “Economic Impacts of Tennessee’s State Parks,” was conducted by the University of Tennessee Human Dimensions Research Lab in the Institute of Agriculture. It concluded that in FY2008-2009, Tennessee State Parks visitors directly spent $725.2 million on items such as food, gas, lodging and activities for visits to state parks, financing nearly 12,000 jobs in Tennessee communities. Additionally, the study indicates that for every dollar spent on trips to Tennessee State Parks, an additional $1.11 of economic activity was generated, resulting in $1.5 billion in total industry output. That brings the total number of jobs supported by state parks in Tennessee to more than 18,600. Indirect business taxes from state park visitors were estimated at $106.3 million.

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Heard some folks wondering about all the action in Harriman last night.
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