COAL:
• Hillary Clinton unveils a plan to boost infrastructure and education in communities hard hit by coal’s decline; the plan gets mixed reviews in eastern Kentucky. (The Guardian, Lexington Herald-Leader)
• The founder and former CEO of Alpha Natural Resources backs retirees’ objections to the coal operator’s plan to terminate their benefits. (West Virginia Public Broadcasting)
SOLAR: Research by a federal lab assessing home appraisals in Florida, North Carolina and four other states indicates rooftop solar systems boost their resale value by an average $15,000. (Greentech Media)
UTILITIES:
• The former chair of the FERC warns utilities such as Duke Energy and Dominion may be over-investing in natural gas pipelines. (Bloomberg)
• An industry consultant outlines pressures utilities face as ratepayers act on options for how they use energy and where their electricity comes from. (Breaking Energy)
• The operator of the power grid that includes all of West Virginia and parts of Kentucky, North Carolina and Virginia, says it expects no problems meeting demand for electricity this winter. (Platts)
CLEAN AIR ACT: A federal judge rules EPA chief Gina McCarthy must give a deposition in a lawsuit filed by Murray Energy over the Act’s projected impact on jobs. (Associated Press)
OIL & GAS:
• One of several coastal Louisiana parishes suing oil and gas companies over alleged damages to wetlands has dropped its lawsuit. (Associated Press)
• Virginia regulators deny Washington Gas Light’s request to invest in natural gas exploration. (Kallanish Energy News)
EFFICIENCY: Virginia-based GridPoint is purchased by an energy investment firm in Washington, D.C. (Washington Business Journal)
BLANKENSHIP TRIAL: Attorneys for former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship ask the judge presiding in his criminal trial to dismiss the federal case against him. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
CLIMATE: A documentary produced by professors and journalism students at Florida International University highlights how climate change is affecting South Florida. (Miami Herald)
COMMENTARY:
• A climate activist calls on Florida lawmakers to work harder on building the state’s resiliency to climate change. (Palm Beach Post)
• Access to cleaner air with cleaner energy shouldn’t be influenced on the race, gender or economic status of community residents. (Southern Alliance for Clean Energy blog)
• Has wind energy become too cheap to qualify for an extension of its production tax credit? (Southern Alliance for Clean Energy Blog)