Clean Line wind transmission seeks pacts with TVA, power grids

WIND: The Clean Line transmission project designed to move wind-generated power from Oklahoma to the Southeast begins seeking needed agreements with the TVA and regional power grids. (ReCharge)

ALSO:
• GE research suggests there’s no hard limit to wind and other sources of renewable energy in Virginia. (Wind Power Engineering)
• A major expo this year in New Orleans inspires southerners to envision wind’s potential throughout parts of the South. (Southern Alliance for Clean Energy)
• The Department of Energy partners with a wind trade group to boost K-12 educational initiatives in North Carolina, Virginia and 10 other states. (EIN News)

SOLAR: A new report documents how a big share of solar’s latest growth is occurring in states without mandates, including Georgia, Mississippi and Arkansas. (Greentech Media)

COAL ASH:
• Despite a threatened veto, lawmakers in North Carolina move to reconstitute a commission separate from the governor to oversee ash disposal. (Associated Press)
• Activists in south Georgia are on the lookout for how ash is making money for landfills there. (Mother Nature Network)

NUCLEAR:
• Greenpeace ranks the top 10 malfunctions at U.S. plants, including four at reactors in South Carolina and one each in Louisiana and Virginia. (EcoWatch)
• Despite rising costs, some area residents support Dominion Virginia Power’s reactors at its North Anna plant. (CBS 19 Newsplex)

CLIMATE:
• An international foundation recognizes Greater Miami, Nashville and Louisville for their work to build resiliency against climate change. (News on 6)
• The University of Miami launches a coordinated research effort to explore climate threats to south Florida. (Huffington Post)

NATURAL GAS: As new gas-fired generators flood the market in the PJM Interconnection, wholesale power prices plunge. (RTO Insider)

CLEAN POWER PLAN: West Virginia and Texas demand the EPA stop spending federal tax dollars to implement the Clean Power Plan at least until the Supreme Court rules. (The Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register)

PIPELINES: Virginia signals it will carefully enforce how the proposed Atlantic Coast and Mountain Valley pipelines comply with erosion and sediment controls during construction. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: North Carolina turns down Tesla’s bid for a second retail site there. (Hybrid Cars)

RENEWABLES: Almost two-thirds of executives in a new survey estimate renewable sources will supply half of U.S. power generation by 2045. (Platts)

BIOMASS: North Carolina falls short again on meeting its goal for converting animal waste to electricity. (Raleigh News & Observer)

COAL: West Virginians share condolences over the loss of respected industry executive Ben Hatfield as two men are arrested in connection with his apparent murder. (Charleston Gazette-Mail, Associated Pres)

FRACKING: Pinellas County, Florida moves toward a final step to prohibit hydraulic fracturing. (SaintPetersBlog)

OIL & GAS: The Bayou region of Louisiana launches a web site and slates a job fair to help laid-off workers find jobs. (The New Orleans Advocate)

COMMENTARY:
• Legislation in North Carolina is the latest attempt to let Duke Energy off the hook over how it’s trying to dispose of coal ash. (Southern Environmental Law Center)
• We can take the uncertainty about coal ash disposal but we shouldn’t have to fear our water. (Charlotte Observer)
• Ignoring the impacts of climate change only makes solutions more painful and expensive. (Virginian-Pilot)
• Solar farms in North Carolina are creating a land-use conundrum. (Raleigh News & Observer)