Clyde Craig
The West Virginia Department of Agriculture is inviting milk producers and the public to discuss the state of the dairy industry in West Virginia and will host five meetings in November to gather input, according to Commissioner of Agriculture Kent Leonhardt. “The dairy industry is struggling across the country, just as it is here in … Read more
The West Virginia Water Research Institute at West Virginia University has been awarded $5 million to scale-up its Rare-Earth Recovery Project, which will include a new facility at an acid mine drainage treatment plant near Mount Storm. Provided by the U.S. Department of Energy with the full support of West Virginia’s congressional delegates, the funding … Read more
Students at West Virginia University will help ensure space travel is safe for future explorers thanks to the continuation of a long-standing partnership with NASA announced this week. NASA approved a contract of up to $24.9 million for support services at the agency’s Katherine Johnson Independent Verification & Validation facility in Fairmont, West Virginia. The … Read more
Officials with the W.Va. Department of Agriculture warn that 18.7 percent of the Mountain State as of October 3, 2019, is under severe drought status. The severity is worst in the southern and southwestern counties, notably in Mingo, Mercer, Monroe, Summers, and Kanawha and adjacent areas. These areas may experience potential crop loss, as well … Read more
Industrial hemp farmers in West Virginia more than quadrupled crop production in 2019 compared to the previous year, according to the West Virginia Department of Agriculture. This year, 132 farmers grew 641 acres of industrial hemp, according to Commissioner of Agriculture Kent Leonhardt—a significant increase from the 155 acres grown in 2018. “We must be … Read more
Officials at the state Department of Agriculture are offering the following recommendations to farmers whose livestock are suffering from water shortages as a result of drought. Commissioner of Agriculture Kent Leonhardt says steps can be taken to remedy some problems now and as winter approaches. “When the weather gets this hot, farmers have to use … Read more
Bethany College is hosting three recipients of the prestigious Fulbright scholarship who will be teaching foreign languages during the school’s 2019-2020 academic year. Engaged through Fulbright’s cultural exchange program’s foreign language teaching assistantship, Aya Atwa, of Egypt, Chu-Yun Hsueh, of Taiwan, and Léa Serres, of France, will be teaching language courses in Arabic, Chinese, and … Read more
Can artificial intelligence be employed to boost coal power usage? One chemical engineer at West Virginia University is tapping into artificial intelligence to improve the profitability and flexibility of coal-fired power plants. Debangsu Bhattacharyya has received a $2.5-million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to develop an online tool that uses AI to monitor … Read more
West Virginia leads the U.S. in the number of small farmers, and a team of researchers at West Virginia University is hoping to help them increase the safety of the local foods sold to communities. Researchers are developing a three-step wash process to help mitigate food safety risks associated with locally grown fresh produce in … Read more
To the casual observer, Japanese stiltgrass appears as a harmless, leafy-green plant that blends into the majestic scenery during a weekend hike, but plant biologists like Craig Barrett know better. “I’d visited sites to study endangered orchids in West Virginia over the past few years, and I’d noticed Japanese stiltgrass creeping in and becoming a … Read more
