SOLAR:
• The next big utility vs. solar showdown is brewing in North Carolina. (Utility Dive)
• Survey indicates people love solar power if it doesn’t cost ratepayers extra. (Charlotte Business Journal)
RENEWABLE ENERGY:
• A Republican state senator in North Carolina and three colleagues have filed a bill to extend to 2020 the state renewable-energy tax credits scheduled to end this year. (Charlotte Business Journal)
• Judge rules GCS can move forward with all four of its complaints against Pinellas County stemming from losing its waste-to-energy contract to another company during a competitive bidding process. (Saint Peters Blog)
CLIMATE
• U.S. Supreme Court perceived as split on a case involving an EPA pollution rule legality of Obama’s Clean Power Plant and its fate on 460 coal-fired power plants, many of which operate throughout the Southeast U.S. (Northwest Arkansas Democratic-Gazette)
• A weather blog challenges scientists about climate change. (WRAL-TV, Raleigh-Durham, NC)
• The Bridge the Gulf web site spotlights energy’s growing impact on Gulf Coast communities. (The Times-Picayune, New Orleans)
SUSTAINABILITY: Atlanta ranks third in U.S. EPA’s seventh annual ranking of the top 25 U.S. metropolitan areas with the most Energy Star-certified buildings. (Neighbor Newspapers, Metro Atlanta)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: The Georgia state Senate has passed legislation that would render moot a legal challenge auto dealers filed last year arguing that Tesla’s direct sales model violates Georgia law by bypassing dealerships. (Atlanta Business Chronicle)
NATURAL GAS VEHICLES: Athens, Alabama is increasing its usage of compressed natural gas. (The News Courier, Athens, AL)
UTILITIES: Charlotte, NC-based Duke Energy is the nation’s eighth-largest recipient of federal grants and special tax credits over the last 15 years, according to a new report by the advocacy group Good Jobs First. (Charlotte Business Journal)
OIL & GAS: The Charleston, SC City Council has voted to oppose offshore drilling. (Associated Press)
NUCLEAR: Federal regulators set meeting for March 31 to inspect the four nuclear reactors under construction in Georgia and South Carolina. (Associated Press)
COMMENTARY:
• Editorial in the Palm Beach Post by spotlights how U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Boca Raton, turned to Twitter to draw attention to Florida’s silence on climate change. (Palm Beach Post)
• The GOP’s 10 commandments of climate change. (Context Florida)
• Virginia’s General Assembly is warming up the solar energy (Power for the People blog)
• Getting juiced on electric vehicles in Winter Park, Florida. (Orlando Weekly)