CLIMATE:
• EPA administrator Gina McCarthy says the agency will push for further action on climate change in the coming year. (The Hill)
• Activists in the coming year plan to target fossil fuel leases on federal land. (InsideClimate News)
• A lawsuit says Massachusetts officials have failed to take adequate steps to meet a state emissions reduction mandate. (Boston Globe)
CLEAN POWER PLAN: A look ahead at what to expect in 2016. (ClimateWire)
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SOLAR:
• Nevada regulators will consider delaying new charges for solar customers, who have accused utilities of a bait-and-switch. (Associated Press, KNPR)
• Beyond Nevada, other state fights over net metering cloud the future of the solar industry. (MIT Technology Review)
• A Google program aims to help homeowners make smarter decisions on solar panels. (Associated Press)
• Brewers in western North Carolina are using peer pressure to persuade minds about solar and renewable energy. (Mother Nature Network)
• Here’s how the national solar lobby succeeded in persuading Congress to extend the Investment Tax Credit to 2022. (Greentech Media)
WIND:
• A new report says New Jersey could be a leader in offshore wind. (The Record)
• Amazon is planning to build a 100 MW wind farm in northwest Ohio to help power three new data centers. (Toledo Blade)
GRID: In response to price spikes in Illinois, federal regulators order PJM to redesign parts of its capacity auction. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
NUCLEAR: How San Francisco’s mayor plans to push for closure of California’s last nuclear plant. (San Francisco Chronicle)
OIL AND GAS:
• A California utility is erecting screens to prevent an out-of-control natural gas leak form impacting nearby neighborhoods. (Reuters)
• Oklahoma regulators order changes to rules governing wastewater disposal in response to a string of earthquakes near Oklahoma City; new data show the number of earthquakes in the state increased 50 percent in the last year. (Associated Press, EnergyWire)
• The number of drilling rigs in North Dakota has hit its lowest point since 2009. (Fargo Forum)
• A New York town approves a six-month moratorium on fracking wastewater. (Buffalo News)
• In an interview, the CEO of BP recounts the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill as a “near-death experience.” (BBC)
BIOENERGY: A Colorado city is believed to be the first in the U.S. to power municipal vehicles with methane from its sewage treatment plant. (NPR)
ELECTRIC CARS: The global Zero-Emission Vehicle Alliance, which includes 8 U.S. states, aims to eliminate the sale of gasoline-powered vehicles by 2015 2050. (Greenwire)
COMMENTARY: The conservative case for solar subsidies. (New York Times)