CLIMATE:
• “Concert Jams” in key electoral states are part of Tom Steyer’s bid to urge more millennials to back “green” candidates. (National Journal)
• Duke Energy ranks among the most obstructive major corporations on climate change policy, says a new report by a British nonprofit. (Charlotte Business Journal)
POPE’S VISIT: A Wake Forest University journalism professor reflects on Pope Francis’ U.S. visit and his message on climate change. (WFDD, Piedmont Public Radio)
POLICY:
• Senate Democrats are set to propose new climate legislation but won’t find support from their Democratic colleagues in Kentucky or West Virginia. (The New York Times)
• The number of utility rate cases aimed at increasing fixed charges on customers with rooftop solar is mushrooming. (Utility Dive)
EFFICIENCY: Some Alabama home builders are going beyond new requirements in local building codes. (Dothan Eagle)
POWER GENERATION: A new boiler at the University of Georgia steam plant is making way for its future without coal. (Athens Banner-Herald)
SOLAR:
• A mosque in North Carolina is rushing to build a solar system before a state tax credit expires at year’s end. (Treehugger)
• Is there a future for “solar suburbs” in the Southeast U.S.? (Yale Environment 360)
SUSTAINABILITY: Green building construction is on track to make up a quarter of the U.S. construction market this year, says a new report from the U.S. Green Business Council. (The Guardian)
STREAM PROTECTION RULE: West Virginia Gov. Ray Tomblin accuses the Obama administration of kicking the state and coal industry while they’re down with its proposed safeguards. (Logan Banner)
PIPELINES:
• Virginia is becoming the regional hub for more natural gas pipelines, and affected property owners are fighting back. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
• The federal government has approved infrastructure upgrades to supply fracked gas from Appalachia to to the Cameron LNG export facility in southwest Louisiana. (The Advocate, Baton Rouge)
VOLKSWAGEN EMISSIONS VIOLATIONS:
• The research at West Virginia University that led to the EPA decree began with a $50,000 grant from the International Council on Clean Transportation. (The Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register)
• Investigations into Volkswagen’s alleged manipulation of U.S. emissions tests should widen to include the entire auto industry, officials say. (The Wall Street Journal)
COAL ASH: The TVA is preparing an Environmental Impact Statement on closing coal ash pits; public comments are due September 30. (Southern Alliance for Clean Energy)
COAL:
• Amid plans to auction its 12 coal mines in West Virginia, Patriot Coal now faces a liquidation threat. (Platts)
• The U.S. EIA releases data showing that China’s coal consumption flatlined in 2014 after growing less than 2% in 2012 and 2013. (Greentech Media)
COMMENTARY:
• Appalachian Power’s solar program would leave southwest Virginia in the dark. (Roanoke Times)
• North Carolina lawmakers killed the state’s renewable energy tax credit too early and job creation will suffer as a result. (Asheville Citizen-Times)
• Reviving rail transportation in the Southeast U.S. is essential to the region’s successful growth and reducing pollution. (Southern Environmental Law Center)