PIPELINES:
• As opponents march to protest the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, a lower-profile fight continues over what activists call an “appallingly incomplete” environmental impact statement for the project. (Southeast Energy News)
• Legislation that prohibits the construction of petroleum pipelines along Georgia’s coast passed the state senate late last week. (Savannah Morning News)

SOLAR:
• Duke Energy says the 5-year contracts it’s offering for large utility-scale solar projects do not violate state or federal laws. (Charlotte Business Journal)
• Solar advocates urge Florida lawmakers to move quickly to implement tax breaks approved by voters. (Solar Industry Magazine)

TRANSMISSION: Arkansas Republicans introduce legislation in Congress that would tighten restrictions on eminent domain for transmission projects, potentially blocking a project to deliver wind energy to the Southeast. (Arkansas Online)

COAL ASH:
• Kentucky lawmakers advance a bill that would weaken permitting requirements for coal ash landfills. (WFPL)
• A Kentucky public radio station defends its reporting on proposed coal ash legislation amid criticism from a state agency. (WFPL)
• Georgia lawmakers explain what’s next for coal ash reform after defeat of two bills in the legislature. (Golden Isles News)
• North Carolina officials are asking for public input on Duke Energy’s plans for shuttering nine coal ash ponds. (North Carolina Health News)

COAL:
• The Kentucky House passes a bill that would reduce the number of inspections required at coal mines. (WYMT)
• Coal exports from a Virginia terminal are at their highest levels since March 2015. (Platts)

POLLUTION: The Uniontown, Alabama coal ash dispute is an example of why EPA cuts will hit minority communities hardest. (The Guardian)

OIL AND GAS: 
• ExxonMobil plans to spend $20 billion on refineries and chemical and liquefied natural gas plants along the Gulf Coast, including Louisiana. (Associated Press)
• The first oil lease sale covering the entire Gulf of Mexico since 1983 would offer 73 million acres under a proposal from the federal government. (Associated Press)
• Advocates in Florida point to a recent study on spills as justification for a fracking ban in the state. (WUSF)
• Residents urge officials in a Florida county to more closely scrutinize a proposed liquified natural gas facility. (Florida Today)

POLITICS:
• A Florida congressman is booed at a town hall meeting after responding “we don’t live in a perfect world” to a question about repealing the federal stream protection rule. (Florida Politics)
• Religious leaders and environmental activists in Virginia are pushing back against a campaign targeting minority communities to promote the “importance of domestic oil and natural gas to making people’s lives better.” (Desmog Blog)
• A fossil fuel advocacy campaign offers scholarships to African American students in North Carolina. (Daily Tar Heel)

NUCLEAR:
• Kentucky lawmakers move closer to lifting the state’s moratorium on new nuclear plants. (Platts)
• Concrete recently poured at the Vogtle nuclear plant in Georgia was not certified to nuclear construction standards, but was used in “areas of the plant that are non-safety significant.” (Augusta Chronicle)
• The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is looking into how a contract worker was able to get a small handgun into an Alabama nuclear plant. (Decatur Daily)

GRID: Potomac Edison plans to spend $135 million on power grid improvements, including in West Virginia. (Electric Light & Power)

COMMENTARY:
• What Virginia can learn from California’s “grand experiment” with solar. (Bacon’s Rebellion)
• South Carolina lawmakers should pass a bill to attract investment from the solar industry to the state. (Southern Alliance for Clean Energy)
• Virginia would be “the perfect place” to develop small nuclear reactors for use around the world. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy and is a founding editor of both Midwest Energy News and Southeast Energy News. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he worked as a copy editor, online producer, features editor and night city editor. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and Investigative Reporters and Editors.