COAL: Hope is fading fast for what was supposed to be a model for generating power using “clean coal” in Mississippi. (The New York Times)
ALSO:
• Murray Energy says it could lay off up to 4,400 miners in Kentucky, West Virginia and four other states come September. (West Virginia Public Broadcasting)
• Plans to reduce catastrophic floods in West Virginia with tighter regulations on mountaintop coal removal are “sitting dusty on a shelf.” (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
• Alpha Natural Resources says it will spend $7.5 million partnering with a trio of nonprofits to clean up scarred land and polluted water left by mountaintop coal removal in West Virginia. (The Hill)
SOLAR:
• Is North Carolina reaching ‘peak solar?’ Not so fast, advocates say. (Southeast Energy News)
• A panel manufacturing company in Mississippi reportedly is falling far short of the 1,000 jobs it agreed to create. (Mississippi Business Journal)
• Electric co-ops in South Carolina are creating the largest network of community solar systems in the state. (The Times and Democrat)
• This solar-powered portable home in Tennessee strives to include some traditional amenities. (Gizmag)
COAL ASH:
• Environmentalists join some lawmakers in decrying a legislative compromise in North Carolina designed to regulate how Duke Energy disposes of ash. (Carolina Public Press)
• Researchers at North Carolina A&T University say they have found a way to dispose of coal ash without harming the environment. (Greensboro News & Record)
POLICY: Some Republican lawmakers in Virginia slam Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s administrative push for power plant emission reductions. (Bluefield Daily Telegraph)
RENEWABLES: Dominion Virginia Power creates a special rate to accommodate demand for renewable power from data center operators. (Greentech Media)
UTILITIES:
• A divided utilities commission rules Virginia lawmakers did not overstep their authority to block rate reviews of power companies. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
• Southern Co. says it has completed its acquisition of natural gas distributor AGL Resources. (Atlanta Business Chronicle)
NUCLEAR: Florida Power & Light takes its case to regulators this week for a 27 percent rate increase to help fund construction of future reactors. (WFSU Public Radio)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: A decision by Virginia regulators over whether Tesla may sell its vehicles in the Richmond area could be five months away. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
WIND: An early look at the 22-acre Amazon wind farm under development in eastern North Carolina. (Triangle Business Journal)
VW EMISSIONS SCANDAL: Arkansas owners of qualifying Volkswagen models are to receive at least $5,100 under a recently announced settlement. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)
COMMENTARY:
• North Carolina lawmakers have given Duke Energy another pass on how it disposes of coal ash. (Climate Progress)
• Sadly, North Carolinians got what we expected in the coal ash disposal compromise that favors Duke Energy. (Fayetteville Observer)
• Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe should back off his attacks on coal-fired power plant emissions. (Bluefield Daily Telegraph)