CLIMATE: California proposes the most ambitious climate goal in North America, with a target to cut greenhouse gas emissions 40 percent by 2030, compared to 1990 levels. (The Hill)
ALSO:
• President Trump’s America First Energy Plan is “replete with misinformation and specious claims about climate and energy policy.” (Climate Central)
• The White House says eliminating climate rules and other environmental regulations would increase wages “by more than $30 billion over the next 7 years” – a figure taken from a 2015 paper that was written for a fossil fuel industry group and not peer reviewed. (Climate Central)
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CAP-AND-TRADE: A 4-year-old legal challenge to California’s cap-and-trade program is a more immediate threat to that state’s climate goals than the Trump administration. (Los Angeles Times)
EMISSIONS: Carbon dioxide emissions from the transportation sector surpass emissions from the power sector for the first time since the 1970s, primarily due to the increased use of natural gas, hydropower, wind and solar, according to a recent report. (Utility Dive)
RENEWABLE ENERGY:
• Two Democratic lawmakers in Massachusetts propose a bill that would require the state to obtain all of its electricity from renewables by 2035. (Associated Press)
• With many clean energy projects relying heavily on federal tax credits and grants, it’s unclear what Trump’s presidency will mean for states trying to promote renewable energy. (Associated Press)
• The CEO of a conservative clean energy group discusses the importance of renewable energy in North Carolina and Virginia and predicts what the industry’s future might look like under the Trump administration. (Southeast Energy News)
SOLAR: Montana’s largest regulated utility asks state regulators to cut guaranteed rates for small solar farms down to $34 a megawatt hour – a price solar advocates say would be unprofitable. (Billings Gazette)
WIND:
• The offshore wind industry is poised to take off in the U.S., but projects placed in federal waters will need approvals from the Trump administration. (New York Times)
• Wind farms are popping up along a network of new and planned transmission lines in the Midwest. (Midwest Energy News)
COAL: North Carolina residents who say their well water was contaminated by coal ash are “balking” at the compensation being offered by Duke Energy. (Charlotte Business Journal)
OIL & GAS:
• A Houston-based oil company will pay $700,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the Clean Air Act by selling a fuel additive that was not registered with the EPA. (FuelFix)
• Republicans are renewing a fight to allow oil exploration in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. (Bloomberg)
PIPELINES: The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe formally asks hundreds of Dakota Access Pipeline protesters to leave three camps near its reservation in North Dakota. (Reuters)
POLITICS: Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham say they will vote in support of former Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson as secretary of state, despite his ties to Russia while an oil executive. (Texas Tribune)
GRID: The CEO of the New York Power Authority talks about his push to digitize the state’s grid system, including the creation of a “digital foundry” where industry innovators can re-imagine the grid. (Greentech Media)
COMMENTARY: Trump should diversify our energy portfolio – not double down on fossil fuels. (The Hill)