NUCLEAR: Three former nuclear oversight managers sue the Tennessee Valley Authority, saying they were ousted from their jobs in 2019 after alerting federal regulators to repeated safety concerns and violations. (Tennessee Lookout)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• A Republican North Carolina lawmaker sponsors legislation to make it illegal for a gas-powered vehicle to block any electric vehicle charger. (Winston-Salem Journal)
• West Virginia officials announce a pilot project with an electric vehicle company building a factory in the state to inform school districts about buying electric school buses. (WV Metro News)
• Oklahoma is among the states under consideration for a new Panasonic plant to build batteries for electric vehicle maker Tesla. (Reuters)
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CLIMATE: A climate scientist at Texas Tech University warns that counting on adaptation to limit damage from climate change is no substitute for urgently cutting greenhouse gases. (Guardian)
POLLUTION: Experts warn a “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico created from nutrient pollution carried down the Mississippi River could grow to 6,500 square miles this summer — larger than the state of Connecticut. (NOLA.com)
UTILITIES:
• Shareholders in a South Carolina utility later absorbed by Dominion Energy are awarded $63 million in a settlement related to the utility’s cover-up of a failed nuclear plant expansion project. (Post and Courier)
• Florida Power & Light points to a 1989 snowstorm as a basis for expanding the capacity of its power plants and making other changes to handle demand during Florida winters. (WMBB)
SOLAR:
• A Virginia county board approves rezoning for a 3.75 MW community solar facility to provide power to Dominion Energy, although the project will need to return for a special-use permit. (Chatham Star-Tribune)
• Two companies partner to begin construction on three North Carolina solar projects that will generate about 20 MW. (Solar Power World)
WIND: North Carolina conservation groups intend to work with offshore wind developers to protect bald eagles and other birds as the projects are developed. (Port City Daily)
OIL & GAS: Texas residents see a 70% increase in the cost of natural gas, to what appears to be the highest average rate since the state deregulated electricity over two decades ago. (Dallas Morning News)
GRID:
• New Orleans leaders announce the city will draw on lessons from Hurricane Ida by adding more cooling centers for post-storm relief and keeping a closer watch on senior-living residences. (NOLA.com)
• A Kentucky woman died stepping on a downed power line after her car hit a utility pole leaning over from a storm. (WFIE)
CARBON CAPTURE: Chevron announces it will take a 50% stake in a plan to build a carbon capture and storage project in the Gulf of Mexico near Texas. (Journal of Petroleum Technology)
COMMENTARY:
• The Tennessee Valley Authority deals with legal cases that range from whistleblowers at its nuclear plants to repercussions from a 2008 coal ash spill, writes an opinion editor. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)
• A climate activist describes a forthcoming project to develop a North Carolina energy transition plan to shift the state to renewables while reducing pollution and helping people lower their utility bills. (Appalachian Voices)
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