COAL: A new bill unveiled Thursday in a West Virginia Senate committee is a retreat from previously proposed legislation that would have eliminated almost all authority over the state’s coal mines. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)

ALSO: 
• Numbers released Thursday show population declines in West Virginia’s southern coal-producing counties led to an overall drop in the state’s population last year. (Associated Press)
• Officials are investigating a coal slurry leak into a stream in West Virginia that is thought to have come from a pipe at a nearby plant. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)

COAL ASH:
• A federal judge ruled Thursday that arsenic flowing from a Dominion Virginia Power coal ash site violates the Clean Water Act, but did not to impose penalties or mandate how the violation should be addressed. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
• As coal ash continues to be imported into the Southeast for use in concrete, Virginia lawmakers pursue policies to make it more viable to recycle local ash. (Associated Press)
• The Tennessee Valley Authority is seeking public comment for its proposed dewatering facility for bottom ash as part of its commitment to convert from wet to dry storage of ash. (The Chattanoogan)

NUCLEAR: Toshiba’s financial problems may impact the ratings of municipal bonds tied to new nuclear reactors in Georgia and South Carolina. (Bloomberg)

SOLAR:
• Work is halfway complete on a major solar array at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida. (Pensacola News Journal)
• A new North Carolina solar array is helping offset carbon emissions at MIT. (MIT News)

CLEAN ENERGY: Abita Springs has become the first city in Louisiana to commit to a full transition to renewable energy. (Times-Picayune)

POLITICS: North Carolina conservative climate activist Jay Faison says he is not worried about the Trump administration: “there are a lot of other things happening that don’t depend on the White House. You need to look beyond the headlines.” (Weekly Standard)

COMMENTARY:
• The publisher of prominent Florida political blogs says questionable practices by some companies reveal a “dark side” to solar in the state. (Florida Politics)
• Gainesville, Florida, “does it right” by subsiding energy efficiency upgrades in older homes rather than electric vehicles. (The Gainsville Sun)
• Toshiba’s financial meltdown reveals “the real problem with nuclear plants: They cost too much.” (Houston Chronicle)
• Whether the Kemper “clean coal” plant is a good investment depends on what happens next with natural gas prices. (Hattiesburg American)

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Ken Paulman

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy and is a founding editor of both Midwest Energy News and Southeast Energy News. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he worked as a copy editor, online producer, features editor and night city editor. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and Investigative Reporters and Editors.