Feds shift Gulf wind focus from Texas to Louisiana

WIND: After ​“inflammatory rhetoric” about renewables discouraged bids in last year’s auction of offshore wind leases near Texas, federal officials are shifting their attention to areas off Louisiana instead. (Louisiana Illuminator)

ALSO:

• A Louisiana lawmaker proposes a bill to dedicate future revenue from offshore wind power and other alternative energy projects in federal and state waters to a state coastal fund for hurricane protection and shoreline restoration. (NOLA.com)
• The neighbors of a Virginia construction site where Dominion Energy plans to bring energy ashore from its offshore wind farm complain about noise and disturbance that’s expected to last another year. (WTKR)
• Virginia residents complain to their county board about an energy company’s plan to build about a dozen wind turbines on local mountain ridges. (Galax Gazette, subscription)

CLEAN ENERGY:

• Texas’ energy industry looks for new ways to build power in a state already flush with natural gas, wind and solar projects, resulting in discussions about hydrogen, geothermal and nuclear power development. (Texas Tribune)
• Despite its governor’s successful push to withdraw from a regional carbon market, Virginia submitted a climate plan that makes it eligible for hundreds of millions in federal funding to support the clean energy transition and reduce emissions. (Inside Climate News)

OIL & GAS:

• West Virginia and Pennsylvania residents push back against a company’s plans to build chemical recycling plants, which they say will expand an already dense network of oil and gas infrastructure. (Environmental Health News)
• A municipal utility in the San Antonio, Texas, metro area purchases three natural gas-fired power plants totaling about 1,710 MW. (KIII)
• The U.S. EPA is expected to finalize a power plant emissions rule this month that could lead utilities to reduce their use of natural gas-fired power plants — including a large plant planned for South Carolina that will likely cost taxpayers millions. (The State)
• Critics warn that South Carolina legislation to facilitate the construction of a natural gas-fired power plant would remove consumer protections and award utilities much more power. (Charleston City Paper)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• A Tennessee startup makes mobile, battery-powered fast chargers for electric vehicles. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)
• Virginia plans to install 18 electric vehicle chargers through a federal program to fill in gaps in charging infrastructure. (Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star)

HYDROGEN: Environmental advocates and residents who live near a proposed Appalachian hydrogen hub express concerns about the project’s potential to disrupt their lives and prolong the region’s dependence on fossil fuels. (WV Metro News)

CARBON CAPTURE: A Virginia company claims it successfully used carbon capture technology to grow lettuce at an indoor farm. (Roanoke Times)

CLIMATE:

• A new study finds Texas must overcome health, geographic, cultural and especially housing barriers if it wants to provide equitable recovery to numerous residents who lost their homes in last month’s wildfires. (Daily Yonder)
• Savannah, Georgia, is selected as one of 25 cities in a Bloomberg program that will pay for staff to leverage federal, state and private money to reduce carbon emissions and promote equity for residents. (Savannah Morning News)

GRID: Oklahoma lawmakers consider legislation to give utilities more of a stake in building electric transmission lines while moving oversight of bidding, construction and operations from federal to state officials. (NonDoc)

COMMENTARY: Federal money intended to fight climate change in Louisiana is set to pay for carbon capture projects that will perpetuate the oil and gas industry, writes a professor. (The Conversation)