OFFSHORE DRILLING: Early test of bills for the U.S. and states to share oil and gas production revenue draw sharp objections in the Senate. (E&E Daily)

COAL ASH:
• North Carolina officials warn more residents not to drink or cook with well water near Duke Energy’s coal ash pits. (Associated Press)
• Critics call Virginia’s proposed $2.5 million settlement with Duke Energy over the Dan River coal ash spill “grossly inadequate.” (Associated Press)

NORTH CAROLINA: Republican and Democratic lawmakers protest the handling of a Senate bill that would freeze the state’s renewable energy mandate. (The News & Observer)

FRACKING: A judge has halted fracking in North Carolina until a higher court decides the legality of appointments to state regulatory boards. (Associated Press)

COAL: Congressional Republicans are moving to block an imminent rule to protect Appalachian streams from mountaintop mining waste. (McClatchy Newspapers)

SOLAR:
• A Tesla battery that stores excess power from a new solar system is part of a sustainability push at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg. (The St. Petersburg Tribune)
• More Floridians are learning that overcoming utility power monopolies is no easy task. (Associated Press)

OIL & GAS:
• A judge rejected a Taylor Energy Co. bid to preserve confidentiality of records about its failure to plug an oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico. (Associated Press)
• The 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill likely played a “significant” role in killing many dolphins, scientists assert. (Miami Herald)
• Transocean has agreed to a $211 million settlement with Gulf Coast individuals and business owners over the 2010 oil spill. (The Times-Picayune)

COMMENTARY:
Utilities in the Southeast lack efficiency programs that encourage more energy productive manufacturing. (Southern Alliance for Clean Energy)
• Virginia should seize an opportunity to achieve significant energy efficiency gains.  (The Free Lance-Star, Fredericksburg)
• Florida should at least allow seismic testing for oil and gas offshore. (Palm Beach Post)
• Coastal towns should join neighbors in opposing drilling offshore South Carolina. (Bluffton Today)

Jim Pierobon, a policy, marketing and social media strategist, was a founding contributor to Southeast Energy News. He passed away after a long battle with pancreatic cancer in 2018.

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