CLIMATE: Walmart says it will eliminate greenhouse gas emissions from its global operations by 2040 without using carbon offsets by securing renewable energy and electrifying its transportation fleet. (Bloomberg)

ALSO:
• West Virginia environmental leaders form a new group focused on educating the public on the causes and solutions to climate change. (MetroNews)
• North Carolina’s state climate council is scheduled to meet next week. (Coastal Review Online)

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OFFSHORE DRILLING: President Trump says he will add North Carolina his recently announced offshore drilling ban in Southeast states. (Associated Press)

STORAGE: The Tennessee Valley Authority announces it is installing its first grid-scale battery storage system at an industrial complex near Knoxville. (Chattanoogan)

SOLAR: Dominion Energy proposes to build the largest solar array in downtown Richmond on the top of a parking garage next to its corporate headquarters. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

PIPELINES:
• A pipeline developer has employed a Louisiana lawmaker to help it push a project through Black and Indigenous communities. (Southerly)
• A Memphis-area school district objects to an easement request to run an oil pipeline under its property. (Commercial Appeal)
• A Mountaineer Gas pipeline explodes in West Virginia after utility crews digging a trench for a new pipeline struck an existing line. (Morgan County USA)

UTILITIES:
• A new report says utilities like Duke, Dominion and Southern Company won’t be able to meet decarbonization goals unless they reduce their reliance on natural gas, find ways to “baseload” solar and wind power, and radically expand energy efficiency and demand response. (Greentech Media)
• NextEra Energy and its subsidiaries hired lobbyists and advisors with deep ties to city leaders as it sought to purchase Jacksonville, Florida’s municipal utility. (Energy & Policy Institute)

COAL ASH:
• Virginia, North Carolina and the federal government enter a consent decree to finalize a restoration plan and environmental assessment related to the 2014 Dan River coal ash spill. (Augusta Free Press)
• North Carolina regulators say coal ash used as structural fill under a parking lot spilled into a stream after a sinkhole formed. (Progressive Pulse)

POWER PLANTS: Sunrise El Paso and other climate action advocates protest the addition of a new generator at an El Paso, Texas, natural gas power plant. (KTSM)

POLITICS: After decades of backing climate deniers, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce endorses several Democrats in competitive races who support climate action, including Oklahoma Rep. Kendra Horn. (Grist)

COMMENTARY:
• A South Carolina editorial board says moving away from monopoly control of the state’s electricity system has potential to benefit “pretty much everybody” with the possible exception of the power companies. (Post and Courier)
• The link between COVID-19 and air pollution makes accelerating the transition to electric vehicles more urgent than ever, a Tallahassee electric vehicle advocate writes. (Tallahassee Democrat)

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Dan Haugen

Dan has two decades' experience working in print, digital and broadcast media. Prior to joining the Energy News Network as managing editor in December 2017, he oversaw watchdog reporting at the Sioux Falls Argus Leader, part of the USA Today Network, and before that spent several years as a freelance journalist covering energy, business and technology. Dan is a former Midwest Energy News journalism fellow and a member of Investigative Reporters and Editors. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in journalism and mass communications from University of Minnesota-Twin Cities.