COAL: Federal regulators ask states to stop approving mining permits to companies that cannot guarantee they’ll be able to clean up afterwards. (The Hill)
COAL ASH:
• In an open letter, North Carolina environmental and health officials step up criticism of the toxicologist at the center of a growing controversy over water safety near ash ponds. (Salisbury Post, WRAL)
• A Georgia newspaper publisher fighting a waste company’s planned disposal of coal ash in a local landfill enlists Jimmy Carter to appeal one of the company’s stockholders: Bill Gates. (Brunswick News)
NUCLEAR:
• The “zero emission credits” at the center of Entergy’s sale of a New York nuclear plant could set a precedent for factoring nuclear power’s role in reducing carbon emissions. (Washington Post)
• The Florida Public Service Commission approves Duke Energy charging ratepayers $52 million to defray costs of shutting down a nuclear plant. (SaintPetersBlog)
• South Carolina utilities clear a milestone in their construction of two reactors. (Post and Courier)
SOLAR:
• A Tennessee utility drops a planned demand charge aimed at solar system owners. (Southern Environmental Law Center)
• Approval of solar amendments on Florida’s ballots Aug. 30 and Nov. 8 would produce different outcomes. (Bradenton Herald)
• A bulk-purchasing cooperative in central Florida aims to sign up 500 homeowners. (Orlando Sentinel)
• A county in north-central North Carolina draws proposals for two solar farms. (Winston-Salem Journal)
PIPELINES: Environmental groups in West Virginia plot an Aug. 18 protest against the Mountain Valley Pipeline. (Beckley Register-Herald)
UTILITIES: Florida Power & Light wants Vero Beach to decide by Aug. 25 on whether to sell a portion of its customer base. (TC Palm)
COMMENTARY:
• The Miami Herald urges voters to support the solar Amendment 4 on the state’s Aug. 30 primary ballot. (Miami Herald)
• A solar farm to be developed by Dominion Virginia Power at the Oceana Naval Station is a step in the right direction. (The Virginian-Pilot)
• Relying on Louisiana to keep its promise on incentives for home solar systems is a crap shoot. (Baton Rouge Advocate)
• Rising sea levels don’t care about anybody’s political party. (Raleigh News & Observer)