COAL: Oklahoma sues the U.S. Interior Department over its plans to strip the state of its jurisdiction to regulate surface coal mining within the Muscogee Nation reservation after a 2020 U.S. Supreme Court decision. (Associated Press)

ALSO:
• Researchers use a federal grant to determine if minerals for making solar panels, wind turbines and other projects can be extracted from the waste byproducts of Appalachian coal mining. (Daily Yonder)
• West Virginia will unveil a permanent roadside marker that pays homage to the seven miners who died in the 1966 New River Company Siltix Mine explosion. (Beckley Register-Herald)

OIL & GAS:
• A new report shows the 22 counties in West Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania that produce 90% of Appalachian natural gas trailed the nation in economic prosperity between 2008 and 2019, with very little industry revenue actually making it back into local economies. (news release)
• A pair of Permian Basin midstream oil and gas companies partially merge amid ongoing uncertainty over the price of oil and the COVID-19 delta variant. (Carlsbad Current Argus)

PIPELINES: The company behind the now-canceled Byhalia Connection pipeline asks regulators to drop its state and federal permits. (MLK50)

SOLAR:
• Pine Gate Renewables completes a 108 MW solar project in North Carolina that will sell power to Duke Energy. (PV Magazine)
• Enel Green Power takes over construction of a 90 MW West Virginia solar farm, with plans to build more, as part of a 3.2 GW portfolio. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Texas electric vehicle advocates won small gains in the legislative session, but saw an effort to establish a statewide charging network fail. (Texas Climate News)

MINING: North Carolina residents protest a proposed open-pit lithium mine. (WCNC)

UTILITIES:
• A hedge fund spars with Duke Energy over the utility’s leadership and whether it can “maximize value” for investors. (Florida Politics)
• Oklahoma electric cooperatives see a surge in power demand from marijuana growers. (KJRH)

POLITICS: Senate swing voter and energy committee chair Joe Manchin of West Virginia, who could take a lead role in developing a clean energy standard, had more money invested in fossil fuels than any other senator as of late 2019. (E&E News; Guardian)

WIND: A Texas economic development board approves incentives for a wrench manufacturer that services wind turbines. (KFDA)

GRID: A FirstEnergy Corp. subsidiary uses two helicopters with aerial saws to maintain eight difficult-to-access transmission line corridors in West Virginia. (WV News)

COMMENTARY:
• The Texas grid’s reliability problems represent not just an infrastructure challenge but show the shortcomings of state politicians, writes an energy journalist. (Texas Monthly)
• An active member of the Virginia United Methodists calls for a “bold investment in clean energy infrastructure” to advance environmental justice and public health and address the climate crisis. (Virginia Mercury)
• The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has a chance to respect the rights and interests of the Rappahannock and Upper Mattaponi tribes by closely considering the effects of a massive Dominion Energy transmission line, writes a river conservationist. (Washington Post)

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Mason Adams

Mason has worked as a journalist since 2001, covering Appalachian communities and the issues that affect them. He compiles the Southeast Energy News digest. Mason previously worked as a wildlife biologist before moving into journalism by freelancing at Coast Weekly in Monterey, California, before taking an internship in 2001 at High Country News. He wrote for the Enterprise Mountaineer in western North Carolina and the Roanoke Times in western Virginia before going freelance in 2012. His work has appeared in Southerly, Daily Yonder, Mother Jones, Huffington Post, WVPB’s Inside Appalachia and elsewhere. Mason was born and raised in Clifton Forge, Virginia, and now lives with his family and a small herd of goats in Floyd County, Virginia.