SOLAR: A Kentucky lawmaker tables a controversial solar bill ahead of a key hearing, and the measure is likely dead for this session. (Lexington Herald-Leader)
ALSO:
• Four Charlotte-area schools are receiving grants to install solar panels from Duke Energy’s multi-million settlement in 2015 of Clean Air Act violations. (Charlotte Business Journal)
• A Florida utility reveals more details about its major solar expansion. (News Service of Florida)
• A Florida city unveils a new 2 MW solar array atop a former landfill. (Palm Beach Post)
EFFICIENCY: Virginia efficiency advocates try again to update the state’s building code amid pushback from homebuilders. (Southeast Energy News)
COAL ASH:
• Pending bills in Georgia are part of a broader movement across the Southeast to keep imported coal ash out of landfills. (Southeast Energy News)
• A Virginia lawmaker seeks a one-year “cooling off period” on ash removal permits to further study impacts. (Chesterfield Observer)
COAL:
• A bill to cut safety inspections at coal mines advances to the Kentucky House. (Lexington Herald Leader)
• The United Mine Workers sent a letter to retired miners warning them that their health benefits won’t continue unless West Virginia lawmakers intervene. (WV Public Broadcasting)
FRACKING: In north-central Arkansas, fewer earthquakes have been reported since a 2011 disposal well moratorium. (Arkansas Online)
NATURAL GAS:
• Mississippi Power’s Kemper project shows how cheap natural gas is slowing the development of “clean coal.” (Inside Sources)
• Analyists predict utility demand for natural gas will decline in coming years amid competition from renewables. (Houston Chronicle)
PIPELINES:
• Residents who live along the Sabal Trail pipeline in Florida have unresolved safety concerns about the project as construction continues. (WGCU)
• Opponents of West Virginia’s Mountain Valley Pipeline say not enough information is known about the project’s environmental implications. (Register-Herald)
• A two-week protest walk is planned in Virginia and North Carolina along the route of Atlantic Coast Pipeline in opposition of the project. (The Daily Herald)
NUCLEAR: Georgia Power has stopped preliminary work on a a proposed nuclear project in Stewart County, according to a letter filed with state regulators. (EnergyWire, subscription/free trial required)
GRID: Kentucky utilities launch a 1 MW energy storage demonstration site. (Utility Dive)
CARBON CAPTURE: An Alabama research firm receives an $800,000 federal grant to develop commercial chemicals from carbon dioxide and shale gas byproducts. (news release)
COMMENTARY:
• The director of pollution control for Miami-Dade County says it is a mistake that the Florida Supreme Court refused the addition of two nuclear reactors to FPL’s plant. (Miami Herald)
• As Florida’s legislature begins, lawmakers are reminded residents “spoke loud and clear at the ballot box about solar energy.” (Tampa Bay Times)