Now that the city of Asheville has agreed to play ball, the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners will consider joining the financial team for improvements to the home of the Asheville Tourists. The board meets Tuesday, March 21, to consider pitching in $250,000 annually over a 20-year period — a total commitment of $5 million […]
A local teachers group presented a grim picture to the Asheville City Board of Education on March 14 illustrating that Asheville teachers are paid less but face a higher cost of living compared with eight similar North Carolina districts. While the state sets a base salary for various levels of teacher experience and education, local […]
The Energy Innovation Task Force, a joint effort of the city of Asheville, Buncombe County and Duke Energy Progress, along with community stakeholders, was created to find ways to slow the growth of energy demand in Western North Carolina. Two years in, how is that going?
Asheville recycled 590 pounds of trash per household per year in fiscal year 2016-17, the highest rate among North Carolina cities. But when you throw your commingled recyclables in the blue bins, where do they go? How does single-stream recycling work? Does it work? Xpress takes an inside look.
Asheville and Buncombe County have worked for several years on plans to reduce the area’s solid waste stream, but implementing “pay as you throw” and municipal composting programs remain in the realm of good ideas rather than reality or even future plans. But the city says it hasn’t given up on initiatives to divert more waste away from the landfill.
A program of the USDA shares the cost of organic certification with farmers, reducing the burden of obtaining organic certification and accessing a broader market for their produce. A recent change places the administration of the program with the Farm Service Agency, which operates out of 72 local offices across North Carolina.
