SOLAR:
Alabama Power is seeking approval to install up to 500 megawatts of renewable energy projects, including solar. (Alabama Media Group)
• A debate prompts a dispute between Tea Party chapters over support for the proposed solar choice constitutional amendment in Florida. (Saint Peters Blog)
• Utility-scale solar systems in the U.S. cost roughly half as much as residential systems on a per kilowatt-hour basis, says a new report by a utility consultancy. (Greentech Media)

PIPELINES: South Carolina officials question whether state law gives pipeline developers eminent domain power. (Savannah Morning News)

OFFSHORE OIL & GAS:
• A geophysical company will use aircraft to assess oil and natural gas potential off the southern Atlantic Coast. (Miami Herald)
• The oil industry’s push to drill off Florida’s coast puts the state’s lawmakers in Congress, as well as Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio, on the spot. (E&E Daily)

COAL:
• The battle over legislation to bar mountaintop coal removal is heating up in Congress. (Huffington Post)
• What a bankruptcy filing by Birmingham-based coal producer Walter Energy would mean for Alabama. (The Birmingham News)
Kentucky Power says it will shut down the second of two coal-burning units at its Big Sandy power plant this fall, six months sooner than planned. (Platts)

EMISSIONS:
• With their heavy reliance on coal, Duke Energy ranks first, Southern Co. third and the TVA sixth in ranking of carbon emissions by power producers. (Mother Jones)
Arkansas, Kentucky and Louisiana are seeing their carbon emissions rise while most other states’ emissions — including others in the Southeast — are falling. (Climate Central)

CLIMATE: While evidence is growing that global warming is harming human health, many scientists say it is only one of the many forces influencing health. (The New York Times)

OIL REFINERIES: A lack of experienced managers points to more cost overruns and delays of planned refinery expansions in Louisiana and Texas. (Houston Chronicle)

BP OIL SPILL SETTLEMENT: The public Audubon Commission in Louisiana voted to accept a $3.5 million settlement. (New Orleans Times-Picayune)

COMMENTARY: Here is what Miami and Charleston, South Carolina could look like with a dramatic rise in sea levels. (Climate Central)

Jim Pierobon, a policy, marketing and social media strategist, was a founding contributor to Southeast Energy News. He passed away after a long battle with pancreatic cancer in 2018.

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