CLIMATE:
• Where Kentucky Senator — and now candidate for President — Rand Paul stands on climate and other issues. Preview: he’s not a total denier but he’s against any ‘war on coal.’ (Associated Press)
• American Legislative Exchange Council denies it’s a climate-change denier — and local readers begin reacting. (The Times-Picayune, New Orleans)
• Survey: 43% of Alabamans believe humans are causing climate change. (The Huntsville Times, Alabama)
SOLAR: The Mississippi PSC has drafted a net metering rule for public comment that would require utilities to credit back to homeowners — without any standby charges — any excess electricity generated by their solar systems. (The Meridian Star, Mississippi)
NUCLEAR: Georgia PSC delays decision on raising the cost recovery cap for two Vogtle plant reactors under construction — until one of them begins operating. (Atlanta Business Chronicle)
HYDROPOWER: Kingsport, TN officials support TVA’s decision to keep the water level at nearby Boone Lake low for the next year while engineers work to resolve a seepage issue at the dam. (Times News, Kingsport, TN)
OIL & GAS:
• A consortium formed after 2010 BP oil spill claims it can clean up such accidents much faster with new technology and dedicated manpower. (The Times-Picayune, New Orleans)
• The U.S. Coast Guard has re-opened Mississippi River ship traffic one-way upriver after an oil tanker and two other ships collided Monday near Convent, LA. (WDSU-TV, New Orleans)
• Divers are assessing extent of damage to the oil tanker ship which discharged about 400 gallons of oil into the Mississippi River after its collision with bulk carrier ship near Convent, LA. (The Times-Picayune, New Orleans)
• Eighteen of the country’s 100 most prolific oil fields are in federal waters off the coast of Louisiana. (The Times-Picayune, New Orleans)
• Hourly workers at the Marathon Petroleum’s Catlettsburg, Kentucky refinery are returning to work this week with higher wages and a new fatigue policy in place. (Associated Press)
ALTERNATIVE FUELS: A discovery by a team at Virginia Tech may help pave the way for cleaner burning, hydrogen-fueled, vehicles. (WVTF, Virginia Public Radio)
UTILITIES: Southern Co. to open a 6,000-square-foot “Energy Innovation Center” next to Georgia Tech in Atlanta where employees will work on next-generation energy technologies and products. (Atlanta Business Chronicle)
SUSTAINABILITY: U.S. EPA recognizes Kingsport, Tennessee-based Eastman Chemical Co. with a 2015 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year Sustained Excellence Award. (Times News, Tennessee)
COMMENTARY:
• The Guardian newspaper in the UK responds to two University of Alabama scientists who assert climate is changing a lot slower than most experts think. (The Guardian)
• Offshore drilling is a bad bargain for South Carolina in many ways. (The Beaufort Gazette & The Island Packet, South Carolina)
• Memphis and Shelby County achieved a prestigious milestone with award from a national nonprofit dedicated to evaluating and certifying sustainable communities. (The Daily News, Memphis)