CLIMATE: Asheville, North Carolina, becomes the first city in the state to declare a “climate emergency” and sets goals to reduce emissions and increase renewable energy. (Associated Press)
POWER PLANTS: Duke Energy shuts down its coal units at the Lake Julian power plant in western North Carolina and prepares to switch to natural gas. (Asheville Citizen-Times)
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COAL:
• Two dozen people died in mining accidents in the U.S. last year — 11 of them in coal mines — which is the lowest number ever recorded. (Associated Press)
• West Virginia is investing in research to transform coal into carbon products, but critics say the state should put that money into renewables. (U.S. News & World Report)
OIL & GAS: A bill that would allow fracking companies to pay double the price to ensure permits are approved or denied within 45 days passes a West Virginia Senate committee. (Beckley Register-Herald)
PIPELINES:
• A Virginia Tech professor has spent the last two years protesting the Mountain Valley Pipeline. (Collegiate Times)
• A court dismisses a charge against a Mountain Valley Pipeline protester who blocked construction work in Virginia. (Roanoke Times)
EMISSIONS: The natural gas industry underestimates methane emissions, and the switch from coal is less beneficial than the government reports, experts say. (InsideClimate News)
SOLAR:
• Duke Energy’s 100 MW solar plant in Texas, which is the company’s largest in the state, is now in service. (Renewables Now)
• Utility experts break down how Floridians can take steps to install solar panels on their homes, and the benefits of going solar. (Sun Sentinel)
WIND: A Virginia economist says it’s “highly doubtful” that Dominion Energy’s offshore wind project will create 14,000 jobs. (Virginian-Pilot)
RENEWABLES: William & Mary signs an agreement with Dominion Energy to source nearly half of the university’s power from renewables. (news release)
NUCLEAR:
• A judge dismisses South Carolina utility Santee Cooper’s efforts to stop a major court case over whether it can charge customers billions of dollars for a failed nuclear plant. (Post and Courier)
• The head of the Tennessee Valley Authority says Chattanooga is “the nuclear heartbeat” for the utility, and wants to expand nuclear power operations. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)