PIPELINES: Energy industry consultants say there isn’t enough U.S. demand for all the natural gas that would come from pipeline projects in Appalachia, which would extend the country’s fossil fuel habit by half a century. (NPR)

ALSO:
• Virginia landowners could still block pipeline construction even though the state’s Supreme Court upheld a law that allows natural gas companies to survey private property without the owner’s permission. (WVTF)
• Two public hearings on the effects on water quality from the Atlantic Coast Pipeline are scheduled this week, just ahead of FERC issuing its final environmental impact statement on Friday. (Progressive Pulse)

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COAL ASH:
• A Tennessee lawmaker sent a letter to regulators asking the state why it believes toxins found under a coal plant in Memphis are not affecting drinking water. (Associated Press)
• A federal judge ruled that Dominion Energy must submit a revised plan for dealing with coal ash pollution from a Virginia plant and perform at least two years of environmental testing. (Associated Press)

BIOFUEL: The Department of Energy is awarding a $12 million grant to the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee to support its plant-based fuel research. (Nashville Public Radio)

SOLAR: Researchers from Virginia Tech are working on finding ways to increase rooftop solar production in rural Virginia. (WVTF)

NUCLEAR: As two troubled nuclear projects in Georgia and South Carolina have made funding the construction of reactors increasingly difficult, small reactors could boost the stalled nuclear sector. (MIT Technology Review)

COAL: A report shows that the on-the-job death of a Kentucky coal miner earlier this year was the result of a conveyor belt that did not have adequate safety guards. (Herald Leader)

COMMENTARY:
• North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper should veto legislation that imposes a moratorium on wind-energy development and ask state lawmakers for separate legislation to boost solar power. (News & Record)
• Two energy experts from Virginia say U.S. leadership in clean energy technology starts with research and development from the public and private sectors. (Times-Dispatch)
• Why a mostly black community in the path of the Atlantic Coast pipeline is “Virginia’s Standing Rock.” (Huffington Post)
• North Carolina falls short with its health and safety standards for private wells near coal ash ponds. (Capitol Broadcasting Company)
• The Latin Builders Association disagrees with South Miami’s mandate of solar panel installation for new construction. (Miami Herald)