SOLAR:
• A proposed amendment to Florida’s Constitution backed by utilities reaches 75% of the required signatures to be considered for the November ballot but still needs court approval. (Saint Peters Blog)
• Floridians for Solar Choice sue a signature-gathering firm for access to about 270,000 signatures. (Tampa Bay Times)
• Google expands its service helping property owners assess their solar options to North Carolina. (Associated Press)
• Sun Edison and institutional investors acquire a 33% stake in a portion of Dominion Resources’ operating solar power plants. (The Wall Street Journal)
CLEAN POWER PLAN:
• Even as it challenges the Clean Power Plan, West Virginia is moving to reduce CO2 emissions from power plants by 37%. (The Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register)
• A judge sets July 19 for the start of a trial for a dispute over EPA estimates of job losses. (Associated Press)
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COAL:
• 120 coal-fired power plants are either closed, cancelled or set for closure by 2020 in six Southeast states. (Southern Environmental Law Center)
• The federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. says it will pay retirement benefits of more than 2,700 Walter Energy employees in Alabama. (Tuscaloosa News)
• An environmental group opposes a delay in a Tennessee lawsuit seeking to clean up decades of the TVA’s coal ash pollution near Nashville. (Southern Environmental Law Center)
• Union officials say more than 500 coal miners could lose their jobs at five Murray Energy mines in West Virginia. (West Virginia Public Broadcasting)
• Automation is also responsible for declining coal job losses in Kentucky. (WKU Public Radio)
• A judge overrules environmental groups in approving a reclamation bond agreement between West Virginia and Alpha Natural Resources. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
CLIMATE:
• Environmental activists in North Carolina spell out how the Paris climate accord could them overcome in-state hurdles. (Coastal Review Online)
• Municipalities in Florida are shouldering responsibility for mitigating climate change amid inaction by Gov. Rick Scott. (Tampa Bay Tribune)
COAL ASH:
• Rejecting staff findings, North Carolina classifies most coal ash ponds as low risks to drinking water and the environment. (Charlotte Business Journal)
• North Carolina’s draft timeline for closing coal ash sites disappoints some residents who live close by. (WSOC-TV)
OFFSHORE DRILLING: Activists and oil drillers await the Obama administration’s decision whether to open the Atlantic Coast to lease sales from 2017 to 2022 and any restrictions. (The Hill)
OIL & GAS:
• Flooding from Midwest rains threatens 13% of the nation’s oil refining capacity later this month in the Baton Rouge-New Orleans area. (Baton Rouge Advocate)
• The Cheniere liquified natural gas export terminal in Louisiana moves to fill its first cargo for export later this month. (Houston Business Journal)
• A West Virginia county on the Ohio River is expected to be the site of a new natural gas processing facility. (The Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register)
• Tennessee sues Chevron and subsidiaries, including Texaco, to recover petroleum tank spill cleanup costs. (The Tennessean)
NUCLEAR:
• Duke Energy plans a major expansion of its 70-acre training center in North Carolina. (Triangle Business Journal)
• A judge rejects an environmental group’s bid to block use of additional water needed to cool reactors at Florida Power & Light’s Turkey Point plant. (Palm Beach Post)
• A new consortium forms in Virginia to research small modular reactors. (Lynchburg News Advance)
BLANKENSHIP CONVICTION: A judge reduces the ex-Massey Energy CEO’s bond to $1 million and eases travel restrictions. (West Virginia Public Radio)
BIOENERGY: North Carolina awards $1 million in grants for 12 research projects to boost production in the state. (North Carolina Political News)
ENERGY EFFICIENCY: A Charlotte-based startup is moving to begin commercial production of faster, digital and programmable circuit breakers. (Charlotte Business Journal)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: To help maintain roads, a Tennessee lawmaker says electric and hybrid vehicle owners should pay more than the current $18.75 annual registration fee. (Nashville Public Radio)
PIPELINES:
• Opponents of the proposed Palmetto Pipeline slated to run from South Carolina along the Georgia coast to northeast Florida spotlight the frequency of pipeline leaks. (Savannah Morning News)
• Virginia says expansion of an interstate natural gas pipeline appears “unlikely” to pose a threat to its environment. (NGI’s Daily Gas Price Index)
NORTH CAROLINA: Here are the top four energy issues facing the Tar Heel state in 2016. (Charlotte Observer)
COMMENTARY:
• Proposed pipelines transporting natural gas through or from West Virginia can help the state recover from coal’s decline. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
• Solar investments by utilities are set to expand significantly throughout the Southeast in 2016; far less so for homeowners. (Southern Environmental Law Center)