EMISSIONS: House Democrats get mixed reviews from environmental groups for a Green New Deal alternative that aims to put the country on a path to net-zero emissions by 2050. (Common Dreams, The Hill)
ALSO:
• More than a dozen major outdoor retailers announce greenhouse gas reduction commitments as climate change threatens to upend the industry. (E&E News)
• A recent report by Nevada Gov. Steve Sisiolak’s Office of Energy shows the state reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 22% between 2005 and 2016. (KVVU)
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RENEWABLES:
• Texas accounted for more than a quarter of all corporate renewable energy deals signed worldwide last year, according to a report. (Greentech Media)
• Amazon and Arlington County, Virginia, agree to buy all the power from a new solar farm, a major step for the county’s renewable goals. (Washington Post)
• An analyst says a Florida bill to require 100% renewable electricity by 2050 may be difficult to pass, even as utilities install more solar. (S&P Global)
STORAGE:
• Solar-plus-storage projects took off in 2019, as projects pairing renewable energy and large batteries became a $2.8 billion global business. (E&E News)
• iPod inventor Tony Fadell backs a company that says it’s using silicon scrap waste to make more powerful batteries. (Bloomberg Environment, subscription)
TECHNOLOGY: A startup company that sells modular microgrid products wins a $300 million investment from a private equity firm. (Greentech Media)
EFFICIENCY: Cities are incorporating workforce development programs into their efforts to prepare employees needed for jobs in energy efficiency. (ACEEE)
GEOTHERMAL: A Minneapolis developer wants to heat a planned food hall and apartment complex with an aquifer thermal system that could be a model as the city looks to reduce its reliance on natural gas. (Energy News Network)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Republican senators press the IRS for information about “what appear to be systemic problems” with an electric vehicle tax credit program. (The Hill)
OIL & GAS:
• The Guardian will no longer accept advertising from oil and gas companies, becoming the first major global news organization to do so. (The Guardian)
• Colorado oil and gas companies failed to submit thousands of monthly reports used to track energy production, costing the state millions in tax revenues. (Denver Post)
PIPELINES: The Keystone XL pipeline developer plans to start construction in South Dakota in August, but legal challenges still loom. (Associated Press)
COAL:
• An expert says Wyoming and Montana’s U.S. Supreme Court motion challenging Washington state’s regulatory roadblock of a west coast coal port expansion project faces an uphill legal battle. (WyoFile)
• Clean energy and consumer advocates worry an Indiana bill requiring special approval to shut down coal plants is a “Trojan Horse” that could become more insidious with revisions. (Energy News Network)
• New York state’s top pension fund official says it is reviewing whether to divest from 27 coal companies and could make decisions within two months. (Reuters)
BIOFUELS: A court decision last week casts doubt on the legitimacy of dozens of biofuel waivers granted to oil refiners by the EPA, experts say. (Reuters)
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POLITICS:
• A conservative clean energy group is committing $2 million to help re-elect Republicans who support its values. (E&E News, subscription)
• The political action committee of Murray Energy, which declared bankruptcy in October, contributed $160,000 in July to a fund to re-elect President Trump. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
COMMENTARY:
• Automakers deserves blame for falling electric vehicle sales as most have failed to fully market EVs in much of the country, a journalist writes. (Greentech Media)
• A Harvard graduate says the university has ignored student activism promoting divestment of fossil fuels from its endowment, so a new strategy is to elect like-minded graduates to university boards. (New York Times)