ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE: A new study finds Louisiana communities with higher percentages of Black residents see 7 to 21 times more toxic air emissions than places with more white residents similarly located near industrial plants. (NOLA.com)
ALSO: Environmental justice and climate activists sue Texas to stop a planned interstate expansion they say will worsen air quality in neighborhoods already overburdened by industrial pollution. (Inside Climate News)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Volvo’s commercial truck company strikes a deal to create a national charging network at Pilot and Flying J truck stops across the country. (Greensboro News & Record)
• An Arkansas electric vehicle manufacturer reports its first quarterly profit in company history. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)
• Austin, Texas, prepares to dramatically increase incentives to buy electric bikes by doubling rebates for individual and fleet purchases. (Austin Monitor)
SOLAR:
• The owner of one of Alabama’s largest solar farms agrees to pay $500,000 to settle allegations it violated the Clean Water Act during construction. (AL.com)
• A Texas city considers installing a $4.4 million solar farm for which it would receive a 60% rebate. (Iola Register, subscription)
• A student club at a North Carolina university intends to solarize more affordable housing. (Daily Tar Heel)
• Seven Florida Wendy’s restaurants enroll in Duke Energy’s community solar program, with dozens more expected to follow by 2025. (news release)
GRID: Florida regulators approve four plans by electric companies to spend and recover $22 billion from ratepayers to harden the power grid against storms. (WFLA)
UTILITIES:
• Entergy Arkansas signs an agreement with U.S. officials to provide at least 50% carbon pollution-free electricity to federal agencies within the state. (Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)
• Tennessee Valley Authority CEO Jeff Lyash continues to be the highest paid federal employee, making $9.8 million in the last fiscal year, while the utility plans to pay out $161 million in bonuses to its employees for meeting major corporate goals. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)
• An energy consultant tells West Virginia regulators that a power plant state lawmakers bailed out in 2019 can avoid closure if utility Mon Power buys it and closes another plant that lacks key pollution controls. (West Virginia Public Broadcasting)
• A Texas program to help low-income families with energy bills reopens after being overwhelmed with demand and closing in July. (Dallas Morning News)
NUCLEAR: A Canadian company strikes a deal to purchase a southern Virginia uranium deposit despite a longstanding state uranium mining moratorium. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
OIL & GAS:
• A gas company pitches a West Virginia airport on installing a natural gas-powered microgrid. (WV News)
• A researcher describes to West Virginia lawmakers how natural gas prices have spiked for customers as the industry’s job growth has plateaued. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
MINING:
• A company seeks to reopen a North Carolina lithium mine with plans to process the mineral in a Southeast factory for the electric vehicle industry. (Bloomberg)
• Five Democratic U.S. senators send a letter to mine safety officials questioning delays in a new silica exposure rule intended to protect miners against incurable respiratory diseases. (The Hill)
POLITICS:
• Federal lawmakers resume negotiations on an energy permitting package, but forced completion of the long-delayed Mountain Valley Pipeline remains a sticking point. (E&E News)
• Republican Herschel Walker calls for continued reliance on “gas-guzzling cars” as he competes in a runoff election for U.S. Senate in Georgia, which has attracted significant electric vehicle investment. (Grist)
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