Firefighters assert they need more training for oil train accidents

OIL TRAINS: A firefighters group asserts they need more training responding to oil train accidents. (McClatchy Newspapers)

COAL ASH:
• Duke Energy discloses in an SEC filing that a sealed lawsuit alleges it exerted undue influence over regulators over coal ash regulations. (Charlotte Business Journal)
• The TVA is set to sell part of the land it has restored from its massive 2008 coal ash spill. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Tesla plans to build its 4th ​‘supercharging’ station in Virginia near Hampton Roads. (The Virginian-Pilot)

CLIMATE: Sea-level rise threatens Florida’s coast but a plan to deal with it doesn’t exist yet. (Associated Press)

NORTH CAROLINA LEGISLATURE: House members rejected an attempt by Rep. Pricey Harrison to undo a freeze on utilities’ renewable energy mandate at 6% of sales. (News & Record)

VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE: A new law restricts the value and types of gifts Dominion Virginia Power can give to lawmakers. (The Virginian-Pilot)

OFFSHORE DRILLING: Virginia Beach hoteliers join the growing opposition against drilling off Virginia’s coast. (The Virginian-Pilot)

FRACKING: Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring says the General Assembly intended to permit localities to prohibit fracking through zoning ordinances. (Associated Press)

COAL:
• Coal exports from North America’s largest coal-exporting port in Virginia dropped by nearly a third, year-over-year, during first four months of 2015. (The Virginian-Pilot)
• The U.S. Dept. of Labor has approved a $7.5 million grant to help out-of-work coal miners in eastern Kentucky find jobs. (Associated Press)
• Large Alabama coal operator Walther Energy faces a key deadline this week to stay afloat. (Tuscaloosa News)

BP OIL SPILL: The administrator overseeing medical payments under the BP oil spill settlement has warned of longer wait times after a surge in claims. (The Times-Picayune)

SUSTAINABILITY: FedEx, Waste Management and Univ. of Tennessee at Chattanooga are among recipients of the inaugural Sustainable Transportation Awards by Tennessee’s environment agency. (The Chattanoogan)