Florida bill would overrule local fracking bans

FRACKING: A bill in the Florida House would create a regulatory framework for fracking, but would also pre-empt city and county bans on the process. (Saint Peters Blog)

COAL ASH: North Carolina cites Duke Energy for a second violation over how it’s disposing of coal ash and orders corrective action. (Charlotte Business Journal)

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RENEWABLES: ​“Green tariffs” by Duke Energy and other utilities are making it easier for Google to source more of its power from wind and solar. (The New York Times)

CLIMATE:
• A compact of South Florida communities fights gridlock to deal with rising sea levels. (Miami Herald)
• Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed is headed to Paris to voice the city’s concerns. (Atlanta Business Chronicle)
• Any agreement out of the Paris climate talks will offer economic development opportunities for Kentucky, says a state climate scientist. (WKYU Public Radio)

SOLAR:
• After the loss of a city feed-in tariff last year, solar installers in Gainesville, Florida are bracing for another hit as a federal tax credit expiration looms. (The Gainesville Sun)
• Chevrolet says it will build a modest-sized solar system to help supply power to its Corvette assembly plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky. (Left Lane News)

BLANKENSHIP TRIAL: Prosecutors and defense attorneys scramble to deal with a deadlocked jury. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)

COAL: A new study shows that coal is king among all sources of pollution as a cause of heart disease. (The Washington Post)

NUCLEAR: A judge rejects a challenge to Virginia’s 33-year-old ban on uranium mining. (Southern Environmental Law Center)

2010 GULF OIL SPILL: A judge drops manslaughter charges against the last two of four BP supervisors involved in the litigation. (Associated Press)

UTILITIES: Florida-based NextEra Energy is taking over three military solar energy systems in Hawaii amid its bid to acquire Hawaiian Electric. (Pacific Business News)

OIL & GAS: Area residents of a south Alabama town blast its plans for oil storage tanks. (Alabama Media Group)

COMMENTARY:
• South Florida officials lack the luxury of climate change denial. (Miami Herald)
• The Southeast U.S. is poised to gain from whatever comes out of the Paris climate talks. (Southern Environmental Law Center)