SOLAR: The U.S. is on track for a record year for solar installation, with utilities leading the way. (Bloomberg)

ALSO:
• A coal-dependent Texas utility announces plans to develop 116 MW of solar. (Texas Tribune)
• A $1.2 million Colorado program will help bring community solar to low-income areas. (PV Magazine)
Former mega-lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who did time for corruption and now considers himself a reformer, is supporting a proposed ballot measure advancing solar energy in Florida. (Palm Beach Post)
• State officials say Massachusetts will exceed its goal for solar power if lawmakers lift a cap on net metering. (Springfield Republican)
• A New York county considers a 28 acre solar project that would be the largest in the state outside Long Island. (Rochester Democrat & Chronicle)

CLIMATE:
• A study pegs the cost of major economies’ carbon emissions since 1990 at $10 trillion. (InsideClimate News)
• A federal report says climate change could put Native Americans’ energy resources at risk, particularly in the West and Southwest. (Climate Central)
• A report says cities worldwide can save trillions of dollars and avoid 8 gigatons of CO2 emissions each year by investing in more efficient buildings, transportation and waste management. (Washington Post)
• The mayor of a Pennsylvania city says residents are seeing as much as a 4-to-1 payback from efforts to cut carbon emissions. (Allentown Morning Call)

POLICY:
• California lawmakers have until Friday to pass landmark climate legislation; legislators from low-income and minority districts are backing the proposals. (Reuters, Los Angeles Times)
• FERC chairman Norman Bay says he doesn’t understand perceptions that the agency is enigmatic and difficult to predict. (EnergyWire)

WIND: 
• Opponents seek to invalidate permits for a proposed Utah wind farm. (Salt Lake Tribune)
• A video captures the controversy over a Maine wind project. (Yale E360)

TECHNOLOGY: Could fuel cells help lower carbon emissions from coal-fired power plants? (Greentech Media)

OIL AND GAS:
• Recent polling shows wide support in North Dakota for more regulations on natural gas flaring. (Midwest Energy News)
• Meanwhile, cleanup of a 2013 pipeline spill in North Dakota is moving slowly because of a lack of natural gas needed to power equipment. (Associated Press)

OFFSHORE DRILLING: Rising sea levels make access to Louisiana’s Highway 1 increasingly difficult for companies serving oil and gas production companies in the Gulf of Mexico. (EnergyWire)

NUCLEAR:
• Nevada hires a former deputy attorney general to help the state fight the Yucca Mountain waste project. (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
• Due to budget constraints, federal regulators have ended a study to determine the risks of cancer near nuclear power plants. (The Hill)

HYDRO: Owners of small hydro facilities in Michigan say major investor-owned utilities plan to cut power purchases in half over the coming years as contracts expire. (Crain’s Detroit Business)

GRID: As costs continue to decline, 2015 is on pace to the best year ever for battery storage and the market is “on a growth trajectory.” (Utility Dive)

ELECTRIC CARS: Low gasoline prices slow sales for electric and hybrid vehicles as consumers opt for trucks and SUVs. (ClimateWire)

COMMENTARY: A new documentary captures the impact of the coal industry on Appalachian families. (Huffington Post)

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.

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