SOLAR: A bill allowing people in Georgia to finance solar panels the same way they borrow money for homes or lease cars is headed to Gov. Nathan Deal. (Athens Banner-Herald)
LEED BUILDINGS: A bill passed by the Georgia legislature that would effectively ban state-owned buildings from using the green certification program known as LEED is heading to the desk of Gov. Nathan Deal. (WABE National Public Radio, Atlanta)
CLIMATE:
• Rise in government flood insurance rates to mirror growing risks of rising sea-levels in Virginia and elsewhere. (The Washington Post)
• Progress Florida Poll: climate change is a top issue for Floridians (Saint Peters Blog)
• Former Virginia Lieutenant Governor and current Congressman Don Byer said global warming killed more than 7,000 Americans last year. Politicfact.com researched that claim and found otherwise. (Politifact.com)
UTILITY: Experts question whether $600,000+ reduction in 2014 pay to Duke Energy CEO Lynn Good was mostly symbolic. (Charlotte Business Journal)
COAL:
• Current and former Duke Energy officials face a shareholder lawsuit — the 6th overall against Duke — over damage done to the company’s stock price by coal-ash contamination in North Carolina and Virginia. (Charlotte Business Journal)
• Duke Energy and Eden, NC city officials are discussing possibly keeping some of the coal ash generated at the nearby Dan River Steam Station close by forever. (Greensboro News & Record)
• Closures of aging coal-fired power plants in West Virginia are tied most to tougher emissions regulations and inexpensive natural gas but also to policies embracing wind and solar energy. (The Roanoke Times)
OIL & GAS:
• Oil and gas companies could be drilling in North Carolina in as little as 90 days, under a bill signed last week by Gov. Pat McCrory. (The Daily News, Jacksonville, NC)
• Virginia Beach’s Restaurant Association opposes drilling for oil and gas off the coast, joining what appears to be a growing opposition in Atlantic coastal communities. (The Virginian-Pilot, Hampton Roads)
EMISSIONS: Due largely to coal-fired power plants, toxic emissions in Virginia increased 10 percent in 2013 from the previous year after years of declines, a new report says. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
RECOVERING FROM COAL:
• Could vines – the wine grapes growing on a former strip mine in the hills of Seco, KY – help to draw visitors? (Associated Press)
• Hard hit Kentucky coal communities are the targets of federal grants aimed at reviving coal-based economies. (WUKY Public Radio, Eastern Kentucky)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Test-driving the shopping experience at Charlotte’s Tesla store (Charlotte Business Journal)
EFFICIENCY: Virginia Tech selected to continue developing innovative building automation system. (Southeast Green blog)
COMMENTARY:
• Exploding the myths involving climate change. (The Florida Times-Union)
• Climate change not real? Tell it to the ‘super-termites’ (Palm Beach Post)