SOLAR: A working group of clean energy advocates and utilities in Virginia hopes lawmakers will consider four policy changes in 2017. (Southeast Energy News)

ALSO:
• A key state senator signals support for a philanthropist’s bid in Virginia for a consumer-friendly policy to boost credits for excess power generation. (Loudoun Times-Mirror)
• Opponents fight a permit for a South Carolina solar farm, citing aesthetic concerns. (The Oconee Enterprise)

POLICY:
• Sens. Lindsey Graham and Joe Manchin are targets of a push by the Sierra Club to deny Scott Pruitt the top job at the EPA. (The Hill)
• What Rick Perry’s leadership at the Department of Energy could mean to nuclear waste storage and fuel fabrication operations in South Carolina. (WRDW)
• If Rick Perry is serious about scrapping the Department of Energy, it won’t be easy. (Bloomberg, Greenwire)

NORTH CAROLINA: Advocates are relieved, for now, that a much-anticipated regulatory reform bill does not include a study about locating wind turbines near military bases. (Progressive Pulse)

BIOENERGY: A company is to break ground today on a $100 million biogas plant in North Carolina that will help Duke Energy meet its renewable energy quota. (Charlotte Business Journal)

COAL:
• The outgoing head of the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration cautions against rolling back protections for miners. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
• A program to retrain miners for technology jobs launches in eastern Kentucky. (Public News Service)

WIND:
• The now operational wind farm off the Rhode Island coast could help pave the way for other projects. (New York Times)
• The Obama administration finalizes a rule to let companies operate high-speed turbines for up to 30 years even if it means killing federally protected bald and golden eagles. (Associated Press)

PIPELINES:
• An environmental group alleges a Virginia county violated state policy and local zoning rules when it recommended a permit for a compressor station for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline. (The Daily Progress)
• The ranks of activists opposing the Sabal Trail Pipeline grow in Florida. (Gainesville Scene)

ALABAMA: A new app enables citizens to illustrate the mix of electricity supplies they want for the state’s utilities. (Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, PicMyEnergyMix.org)

EFFICIENCY: A non-profit helps disadvantaged households in Chattanooga and Nashville gain access to clean energy. (Southern Environmental Law Center)

POLITICS: States with higher per capita carbon emissions tended to support Donald Trump. (The Atlantic)

CLIMATE: Virginia Beach weighs spending funds meant for a light rail project on mitigating floods from rising sea levels. (The Virginian-Pilot)

OIL & GAS: Oil producers and gas exporters in Louisiana are energized about Cabinet picks by President-elect Trump. (WWL)

COMMENTARY:
• A proposal for utility-owned community solar in Virginia prevents participants from owning a share of such systems. (Power for the People VA blog)
• Rick Perry could be a champion for clean energy. (The Hill)
• If Virginia’s leaders are serious about sustained economic growth, they should look to Roanoke for one example of how solar power and energy efficiency can help. (Roanoke Times)
• President-elect Trump will have a chance to help coal miners soon after he takes office. (The Herald-Dispatch)