SOLAR: Nearly 1,400 permits were issued for new solar installations in the three-county area around Charleston, South Carolina, compared to only 100 in 2015. (Post and Courier)

ALSO:
• A 250 acre solar farm is planned in Louisiana. (Natchez Democrat)
• An industry group highlights the growth of solar jobs amid declining coal employment in states like West Virginia. (The Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register)

NUCLEAR:
• Georgia Power defends using ratepayer funds for preliminary work on a now-suspended nuclear project. (E&E News)
• The TVA is investigating after a contractor brought a loaded handgun into an Alabama nuclear plant, which is a federal crime. (AL.com)

COAL:
• In Appalachia’s Coal Country, residents look to a future without a significant presence from the coal industry. (Al Jazeera)
• Pollution controls are lowering demand for Kentucky’s low-sulfur coal. (Daily Independent)

OIL AND GAS:
• A senate committee in Florida considers on Tuesday a bill to ban fracking in the state. (WRLN)
• A federal court affirms dismissal of a lawsuit against oil and gas companies over damage to Louisiana coastal lands. (Natural Gas Intelligence)

PIPELINES:
• The Georgia Senate approved on Friday to make it more difficult for petroleum pipeline companies to use eminent domain to take private property along proposed pipeline routes. (Atlanta Business Journal)
• Protesters started their planned multi-day walk Saturday along the Atlantic Coast Pipeline in North Carolina in opposition of the project. (Daily Herald)
• Three hearings are scheduled this week in West Virginia on the Mountain Valley Pipeline. (WV MetroNews)

HYDRO: Technological upgrades at a Kentucky dam could provide lessons for small hydroelectric plants around the country. (Lexington Herald Leader)

RENEWABLES: The University of Mississippi offsets a small portion of its electricity through renewable energy credits. (news release)

TECHNOLOGY:
• An Alabama firm develops techniques to turn industrial waste into biofuels and other products. (AL.com)
• Students from 20 Tennessee schools compete in a solar go-kart race. (Johnson City Press)

COMMENTARY: “Tighter regulation is crucial when the government grants Georgia Power a lock on selling residential power in much of the state.” (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy and is a founding editor of both Midwest Energy News and Southeast Energy News. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he worked as a copy editor, online producer, features editor and night city editor. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and Investigative Reporters and Editors.