EMISSIONS: The EPA on Friday proposed tough new standards to improve fuel efficiency and reduce carbon pollution from medium and heavy-duty vehicles. (Associated Press)
FRACKING:
• Drinking water wells in Texas counties with intensive fracking operations contain elevated levels of more than two dozen metals and chemicals, according to a new study. (InsideClimate News)
• A Colorado Indian tribe has filed a lawsuit challenging new federal fracking regulations. (Associated Press)
OZONE: A hundred business groups sent a letter to President Obama Friday asking him to abandon proposed EPA ozone restrictions, while a Republican congressman from Wisconsin introduced a bill to block the rule. (The Hill)
JOBS: The collapse in oil prices may have abated, but the employment picture is still worsening for North Dakota, the poster child of the shale-oil revolution. (MarketWatch)
OIL SPILL: Oil-stained beaches along the site of last month’s oil pipeline spill in California are being cleaned up with hand tools instead of heavy equipment or chemicals. (Associated Press)
BATTERIES:
• Tesla’s $5 billion “gigafactory” may be the best thing to happen to northern Nevada since the silver rush of the 1850s and the gaming boom a century later. (Bloomberg)
• Little known start-up UET just announced a major milestone for its latest flow battery project, which some observers see as a Tesla rival. (CleanTechnica)
COAL: FirstEnergy continues to fight full disclosure of its bid for Ohio ratepayers to bail out three coal plants and a nuclear plant, even as it proposes more rate hikes. (Midwest Energy News)
NUCLEAR: Lawmakers in statehouses are looking for ways to support nuclear power close to home. (The Hill)
CONGRESS: The House will take up a slew of environmental measures this week, including a bill that would slash EPA funding and block many of President Obama’s climate measures. (The Hill)
HOLLYWOOD: Actors Leonardo DiCaprio and Mark Ruffalo have teamed up to launch the “100%” campaign, aimed at making renewable energy attainable for everyone. (Associated Press)
RELIGION: Republican Catholics are more likely than the rest of the GOP to believe climate change is happening and to support policies to fight it, according to research released Friday. (Yale University)
COMMENTARY:
• The free market is good at what it does, but it may need a nudge from government on energy consumption and environmental protection. (Tampa Bay Times)
• We want coal to drive Wyoming’s economy for as long as possible. (Casper Star Tribune)