EFFICIENCY:
• A report finds efficient light bulbs have done more to reduce carbon emissions in recent years than increased use of clean energy. (Bloomberg)
• Economists clash with advocates over whether energy efficiency is really the best bang for the buck. (Greenwire)
CLEAN POWER PLAN:
• Led by West Virginia, 15 states asked a federal court Thursday to push back the plan’s emissions targets for power plants while they sue the government to get the regulations overturned. (The Hill)
• A new report shows Minnesota is among a number of states that are already on pace to exceed emission-reduction goals by 2022 and 2030; this table shows how different states rank. (Midwest Energy News)
WIND:
• New data shows that the capacity factor for wind can reach 65 percent, which is comparable to fossil-fuel generation, and possibly become the country’s primary source of generation. (Greentech Media)
• A Minnesota couple’s dispute over a $5 fee for their wind turbine has prompted a statewide review of utility charges for customers who generate their own power. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
UTILITIES: A map from InsideClimate News tracks utility efforts so far to increase fixed charges on customers who generate their own power.
SOLAR:
• A report finds distributed solar prices continue to fall in the U.S. for the 5th straight year. (Utility Dive)
• Despite steady industry growth and declining prices, solar is not faring so well on Wall Street. (Reuters)
• A closer look at the dueling solar ballot measures in Florida. (Utility Dive)
• How California is stringing together solar arrays to act as virtual power plants. (Vox)
NUCLEAR: A 100-year-old Great Lakes water treaty could block Canada from building a nuclear waste depository along Lake Huron. (MLive)
OIL AND GAS:
• A federal judge finds BP manipulated natural gas markets in Texas in 2008. (Reuters)
• Following a successful effort to impose a state ban on fracking, some local officials along with a physicians’ group want New York to study the health impacts of compressor stations and other infrastructure. (Oneonta Daily Star)
• Greenpeace protesters who hung from a Portland, Oregon bridge to block an arctic-bound drilling rig face $5,000 fines from the Coast Guard. (Reuters)
COAL:
• The Crow tribe in Montana reaches a deal to build an export terminal in Washington state to handle coal mined from their lands. (Billings Gazette)
• A Kentucky town wants Republican politicians to stop blocking federal efforts to help local economies adapt to coal’s decline. (Vox)
• Abandoned mines throughout Ohio still taint state rivers and streams with polluted water. (Columbus Dispatch)
HYDROPOWER: Portland, Oregon uses turbines embedded in downhill-flowing water pipes to generate electricity. (ClimateProgress)
SECURITY: A TVA contractor was fired last year for violating a security protocol after plugging a thumb drive into a utility computer. (EnergyWire)
MEDIA: A new tool helps scientists assess the credibility of climate change coverage in major news outlets. (The Guardian)
COMMENTARY: The “Thin Green Line” is stopping fossil fuel projects in their tracks. (Sightline)