CLIMATE: New EPA director Scott Pruitt says “it’s a fair question” whether the agency has the “tools” to regulate carbon emissions. (Greenwire)

ALSO:
• How a spat between two North Carolina scientists fueled a climate denial conspiracy theory. (New York Times)
• The CEO of coal giant Murray Energy claims 4,000 scientists told him “global warming is a hoax” and the earth’s surface is cooling. (CNBC)

WIND:
• A North Dakota Republican introduces legislation to halt wind development for two years in an effort to boost the state’s coal plants. (Forum News Service)
• The wind industry has taken off in Texas thanks to its ability to help struggling farmers and create jobs. (The Guardian)

SOLAR:
• A Florida utility announces plans for more than 600 MW of new solar. (SaintPetersBlog)
• Less than one percent of Texas’ energy comes from solar, but a handful of clean energy entrepreneurs in Houston are trying to change that. (Houstonia)
• The city of Lancaster, California, passes a net-zero energy policy that requires new houses to install enough solar to meet all their energy needs. (Greentech Media)
• The solar industry should be wary of two federal policy changes: weakening of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA) and increases to the federal interest rate. (Greentech Media)

HYDROGEN VEHICLES: Shell and Toyota are partnering to build seven hydrogen car refueling stations in California, furthering the state’s goal of reaching 100 retail hydrogen stations by 2024. (Bloomberg)

STORAGE: Researchers are racing to develop better batteries that will revolutionize our energy system. (Grist)

REGULATION: President Trump is preparing executive orders that target the Clean Power Plan, water safeguards and a moratorium on federal coal leasing, according to anonymous sources who were briefed on the measures. (Washington Post)

UTILITIES: Illinois regulators approve a plan by the state’s top utility to share anonymous energy usage data with third-party companies and researchers. (Midwest Energy News)

OIL & GAS: Environmental activists fear that regulators may open Pennsylvania’s northeastern tip to drilling and fracking. (Associated Press)

PIPELINES:
• A bill introduced in Montana would ban pipelines from crossing under bodies of water and establish construction requirements for them to cross above ground. (Missoulian)
• Dakota Access Pipeline opponents say they will remain at a protest camp in North Dakota, regardless of flood warnings and a Wednesday evacuation deadline. (Associated Press)

POLLUTION: A bill introduced in New Mexico would allow the state’s Oil Conservation Division to impose penalties on oil and gas companies that pollute water. (NM Political Report)

COAL: Temporary layoffs at a Pennsylvania coal mine stemming from a state environmental board order has created uncertainty for miners. (Washington Examiner)

ADVOCACY:
• Pipeline protesters are moving to block projects around the country, with protest camps emerging in at least four states. (The Intercept)
Clean energy advocates rally in Nevada to support legislation for solar and other renewables, following the introduction of state bills calling for more clean energy. (Review-Journal)

COMMENTARY: The head of the Maryland Public Policy Institute says the state should not ban fracking because it would permanently handicap the economy. (Baltimore Business Journal)

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