ENERGY POLICY: Eleven major green groups came out against a Senate energy policy reform bill on Monday, saying “several provisions in this bill… could cause detrimental effects to public health and our environment.” (The Hill)
OFFSHORE WIND: The developer of the nation’s first commercial-scale offshore wind farm has installed the first steel foundation for the project off Rhode Island’s coast. (The Hill)
CLEAN POWER PLAN: In countless meetings on the Clean Power Plan with states and energy companies, the most common plea to the EPA was for more time, and that is the element most likely to change in the rule’s final version. (ClimateWire)
EMISSIONS: Fertilizing crops in the U.S. Corn Belt emits the potent greenhouse gas nitrous oxide, and a new University of Minnesota study shows officials have been underestimating those emissions by as much as 40 percent. (Minnesota Public Radio)
FRACKING: Proponents and opponents of New York state’s fracking ban agree that use of gelled propane instead of water in fracking could be exempt from the ban. (Capital New York)
COAL: Rumors of the demise of coal-fired power plants are greatly exaggerated, and coal-fired generation capacity is expected to remain largely unchanged through 2024, according to a new report from Moody’s Investor Services. (FuelFix)
JOBS: Halliburton has cut nearly 14,000 jobs and Baker Hughes has laid off 13,000 employees since they began trimming their oilfield services staff last year to cope with the oil-market crash, officials said Monday. (FuelFix)
NUCLEAR: Former Exelon CEO John Rowe says the company should shut down its three Illinois nuclear power plants because “they have become uneconomic just like some old coal plants are uneconomic.” (EnergyWire)
NATURAL GAS: Natural gas futures rose after two days of declines on speculation that hotter weather in the eastern half of the U.S. will boost demand. (Bloomberg)
FEE HIKE: A rural electric cooperative in Iowa has until Wednesday to provide the state’s Office of Consumer Advocate with justification for imposing an $85 monthly fee on customers who generate some of their own power. (Midwest Energy News)
PRESIDENTIAL RACE:
• Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker says he would all but eliminate the EPA if he were elected president. (Wisconsin State Journal)
• During an Iowa speech on climate change Monday, Hillary Clinton refused to weigh in on the Keystone XL pipeline, arguing it would be inappropriate for her to comment while it is under review by her former employer. (The Hill)
• A coal industry group slammed Hillary Clinton’s climate change plan as a “dog and pony climate show” on Monday, indicating she could find as little support among fossil fuel interests as President Obama has during his term. (The Hill)
ALSO: Donald Trump has called global warming “bullshit,” demanded Al Gore be stripped of his Nobel Peace Prize, supplanted ecosystems with luxury golf courses, and his lead in recent polls has some environmentalists alarmed. (Greenwire)
CLIMATE: The French government has organized a climate road show across the U.S. and Canada to mobilize public opinion in favor of a U.N. deal to curtail global warming. (RTCC)