5.2 magnitude earthquake hits Texas oil fields

OIL & GAS: A 5.2 magnitude earthquake strikes part of west Texas where scientists say hydraulic fracturing and the routine practice of injecting salty wastewater into the ground has dramatically increased the number and strength of earthquakes. (El Paso Times, Texas Tribune)

ALSO: Tennessee residents protest the Tennessee Valley Authority’s plans to build more natural gas-fired power plants, and call for more transparency in its future power plans. (Chattanooga Times Free Press, subscription)

COAL: Kentucky regulators allow a utility to close two coal-fired units but block the closure of two others while also granting construction of a new gas unit and expansion of its renewable portfolio. (Louisville Courier Journal)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• The deal between the United Auto Workers and Ford could touch more than 100,000 jobs across Kentucky as the automaker prepares to launch an all-new electric vehicle at its Louisville factory and open two battery plants. (Louisville Courier Journal)
• A South Carolina economic development official touts the state’s regulatory flexibility to attract Korean battery and electric vehicle makers to join Mercedes-Benz, Volvo and Scout Motors factories. (Korea Herald)

SOLAR:

• Automaker Hyundai partners with two other Korean companies to embark on solar plant development in the U.S., beginning with a 459 MW solar farm in Texas. (Korea Economic Daily)
• Florida Power & Light’s sister company partners with Jacksonville’s municipal utility to build four new solar farms. (Florida Times-Union)
• Florida county commissioners approve a Florida Power & Light solar farm on 600 acres. (TC Palm)
• A Virginia county board delays a vote on a proposed solar farm after residents voice opposition. (WVIR)

POLITICS:

• Advocates say Democrats’ electoral victories in Virginia will likely preserve landmark climate and electric vehicle laws that have been targeted by Republicans. (Inside Climate News)
• New Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry’s previous eight-year stint as attorney general was marked largely by his defense of the fossil fuel industry. (Grist)
• In the Republican presidential debate, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley called current Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ​“a liberal when it comes to the environment.” (The Hill)

RENEWABLES:

• Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt sounds the alarm about Chinese companies buying state land for ​“marijuana farms,” but data reveals the spike in foreign-owned land has come almost entirely from Canadian and European companies building wind and solar farms. (Investigate Midwest)
• The U.S. Department of Agriculture announces $2.3 million in grants to develop renewable energy in nine Virginia counties and a city. (WRIC)

STORAGE: An energy company announces it’s obtained financing for a 150 MW battery storage project in Texas. (Renewables Now)

HYDROGEN: A petrochemicals manufacturer announces it will convert a soon-to-be-closed Texas oil refinery into a hydrogen production facility, while another company announces a liquified natural gas export terminal on the Texas Gulf Coast. (Engineering News-Record)

NUCLEAR: A Virginia company will supply nuclear fuel and components for a team of businesses developing a nuclear fission reactor to power space vehicles. (Cardinal News)

GRID:

• Duke Energy launches a new energy control center in North Carolina to monitor power for 1.7 million customers and replace an aging facility. (WRAL)
• A North Carolina artist will transform two utility poles near a park entrance into 73-foot-tall sunflowers as part of a public art project. (WTVD)

COMMENTARY: Schools should emphasize STEM education to prepare students to solve complicated environmental problems, writes an Arkansas teacher. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)