NOTE TO READERS: Northeast Energy News is taking a break for the holidays. The daily digest will return on Wednesday, January 2.
OFFSHORE DRILLING: Attorneys general from nine states sue the Trump administration to block seismic testing for oil and gas deposits off the East Coast. (Reuters)
OIL & GAS:
• With the release of a draft environmental study, the Trump administration is moving closer to opening an Alaskan wildlife refuge to drilling, possibly by the end of next year. (New York Times)
• After months of record output, Bakken oil production in North Dakota is expected to level off early next year. (S&P Global)
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COAL:
• Neighbors of coal plants near Orlando, Florida filed a lawsuit yesterday alleging pollution from the plants is responsible for a spike in cancer cases. (Orlando Sentinel)
• The Navajo Nation could lose $170 million over the next decade from its investment in an New Mexico coal plant, according to an energy research group. (KNAU)
POLICY: The Farm Bureau is an often unnoticed ally in the oil industry’s fight against climate science and policy. (InsideClimate News)
WIND:
• New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu plans to request a federal study of offshore wind potential in the state, a first step to development. (NHPR)
• Wind power generated 19,168 megawatts of electricity in Texas early this morning, beating a previous record, regulators say. (Houston Chronicle)
• Wind farm projects brought new revenue to an Ohio county and helped it boost its bond rating. (Bond Buyer)
SOLAR:
• New Jersey regulators take steps to phase out solar RECs and transition to new initiatives that can get the state to 100 percent renewable energy. (Utility Dive)
• Utilities in the Southeast face challenging policy questions because of the region’s growing demand for solar energy. (Utility Dive)
NUCLEAR:
• Nevada lawmakers appear to have stopped a last-minute attempt to include funding in a stopgap spending bill for the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository. (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
• Critics say New York regulators overstepped their authority by authorizing $7.6 billion in subsidies to nuclear power plants. (Times Herald-Record)
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HYDROPOWER: A new study from Stanford University shows that when droughts sap hydropower production, Western states typically turn to fossil fuels and produce more carbon dioxide emissions. (Stanford News)
COMMENTARY: A USA Today contributor says it’s time for kids to have “the talk” with their parents — about climate change.