PIPELINES: Mountain Valley Pipeline construction is back off again after a federal court placed a stay on the project crossing streams in Virginia and West Virginia. (Roanoke Times)

ALSO:
• The Appalachia Regional Commission helps fund construction of a natural gas pipeline to an industrial park in southern Virginia. (Greensboro News & Record)
• A state-commissioned study launched in the wake of Virginia’s approval of a pipeline compressor station calls for a “cultural shift” toward environmental justice among state regulators. (Virginia Mercury)

CLIMATE:
• A Louisiana company plans to store up to 80 million tons of greenhouse gases from industrial plants in an underground repository. (New Orleans Advocate)
• Southeast Texas power plants rank among the nation’s worst for unauthorized pollution, according to a recently released report. (Beaumont Enterprise)

OIL & GAS:
• Texas regulators approve construction of a $163.8 million, gas-fired generator at an El Paso power plant over the objections of the city and environmentalists. (El Paso Times)
• Several planned petrochemical projects in Texas, West Virginia and elsewhere are being delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic. (WMRA)
• A first-term Oklahoma congresswoman in a tough re-election race is emphasizing her support for the oil and gas industry while defending votes to limit exploration on public lands. (Oklahoman)

SOLAR:
• A Georgia county commission discusses a resident’s suggestion that they encourage Georgia Power to develop a solar farm. (Rome News-Tribune)
• Georgia deputies respond on consecutive days to reports of fighting and vandalism at a planned solar farm. (Moultrie Observer)

WIND: A Virginia college will be the first in the state to offer training for wind-energy technicians. (Martinsville Bulletin)

TRANSPORTATION: A Nashville startup wants to establish a rideshare program using electric vehicles. (WSMV)

COAL: A federal judge denies the University of North Carolina’s efforts to dismiss claims in a lawsuit that alleges a campus coal-fired power plant violates federal law. (The Daily Tar Heel)

COAL ASH:
• A newly finalized federal rule loosens restrictions to allow coal operators to store coal ash in ponds without a plastic liner if they can show there’s no effect on groundwater. (Engineering News-Record)
• Duke Energy launches a 15-day public input session on coal-ash remediation at its Crystal River Energy Complex in Florida. (Citrus County Chronicle)

HYDROELECTRIC: The gates on West Virginia’s largest hydropower project were opened last month to drain a 3-mile tunnel for the first time since it was built in 1936. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)

COMMENTARY:
• The U.S. Secretary of Energy says southwestern Virginia’s coal industry may get new life as a hub for carbon-capture research and petrochemicals. (Bristol Herald Courier)
• A retired teacher debunks the myth that former President Barack Obama is responsible for the coal industry’s decline. (Courier Journal)
• The director of the Arkansas Sierra Club calls for the closure of a coal-fired power plant. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)

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Dan Haugen

Dan has two decades' experience working in print, digital and broadcast media. Prior to joining the Energy News Network as managing editor in December 2017, he oversaw watchdog reporting at the Sioux Falls Argus Leader, part of the USA Today Network, and before that spent several years as a freelance journalist covering energy, business and technology. Dan is a former Midwest Energy News journalism fellow and a member of Investigative Reporters and Editors. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in journalism and mass communications from University of Minnesota-Twin Cities.