RESIDENTS FIGHT BACK AGAINST RENEWED INTEREST IN ALABAMA COAL: Birmingham News reporter Thomas Spencer had a great piece in Sunday’s paper on how, due to an increase in the price of coal, mining companies are returning to old Alabama coal sites and how residents are organizing. The article focuses primarily on proposed strip mines around Smith Lake in Cullman County, but highlights other sites as well. The article, “Coal companies eye old Alabama sites as prices rise,” can be accessed here.