EFFICIENCY: A Virginia home weatherization program that has been hailed as a national model will lose its funding if Gov. Glenn Youngkin succeeds in removing the state from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. (Energy News Network)

CLIMATE:
• Federal data shows Duke Energy’s substations leak more of a potent greenhouse gas than those of any other U.S. utility, and the company has declined to participate in a voluntary EPA program to reduce those emissions. (Inside Climate News)
• A historic Black community in North Carolina is “caught between rebuilding and retreating” as it is increasingly battered by floods as climate change accelerates severe weather events. (Grist)

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PIPELINES: West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin is expected to release his energy permitting reform measure today, as he decries “revenge politics” that threaten the plan. (Reuters, E&E News)

BIOMASS: Strained energy markets caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are creating a windfall for a wood pellet company that operates across the Southeast. (Forbes)

CLEAN ENERGY:
• West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice signs a bill creating business development districts that will enable companies to share energy from renewable-powered microgrids. (Huntington Herald-Dispatch)
• Despite the growth of clean energy in the state, Gov. Justice says notions of abandoning fossil fuels are “frivolous thoughts.” (WOWK)

SOLAR: Neighbors of a proposed 216 MW solar project in rural Texas are pushing local school district officials to reject tax breaks for the developers. (KXAN)

UTILITIES:
• North Carolina regulators hear arguments about Duke Energy’s plans to merge its utilities in the Carolinas to meet climate targets. (Charlotte Business Journal, subscription)
• Advocates in Virginia say the state’s utilities should do more to shield ratepayers from volatile fuel costs. (WAVY)
• A Florida utility is paying operators of popular Instagram accounts to promote its electric vehicle charging efforts. (Miami New Times)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Electric vehicle market share in the Southeast has doubled from last year, though the region still trails other parts of the country. (Electrek)
• Construction at a $6 billion Kentucky battery plant is expected to begin later this year. (WHAS)
• A November summit in Tennessee will address equity issues and misperceptions about electric vehicles. (WBIR)

TRANSITION: Industry leaders report a surge in tourism spending in West Virginia, a sector that many hope will help offset economic losses from coal’s decline. (Coal Valley News, Energy News Network archive)

COMMENTARY:
• An environmental writer challenges the practice of clearing forests and farmland for large-scale solar farms in Virginia. (New York Times)
• Arkansas high school students raise attention to a utility executive serving as an adviser to a school district on a proposed solar plan despite his company’s plan to also bid on the project. (Arkansas Times)

More from the Energy News Network: Midwest | Southeast | Northeast | West

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.