Judge blocks federal fracking rules

FRACKING: A federal judge in Wyoming has blocked the Obama administration’s fracking regulations that apply to federal and tribal land. (New York Times)

OHIO: Republican Gov. John Kasich says state legislators’ efforts to freeze the state’s clean-energy standards indefinitely are ​“unacceptable.” (Associated Press, Gannett Ohio)

COAL:
• More than 200 retired miners, wives and widows in Indiana would lose money set aside for health care coverage as part of a coal company bankruptcy. (ProPublica)
• Former coal baron Don Blankenship goes to trial today, facing up to 30 years in prison for his role in avoiding safety standards that led to miner deaths. (Associated Press)
• The EPA imposed new rules Wednesday to limit toxic pollutants from coal plants from entering into waterways. (Associated Press)

CLEAN ENERGY: A report finds clean energy will create jobs even in coal-dependent areas like Pittsburgh, but the transition will be challenging. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

CLEAN POWER PLAN:
• North Dakota gets a two-year extension to file a state implementation plan. (Bismarck Tribune)
• The Republican architect of the U.S. House’s plan to kill the rules says he will not seek re-election. (E&E Daily)

WIND:
• Scientists say offshore wind has been a missed opportunity in the U.S. (Climate Central)
• New Jersey Democrats urge the state’s governor to finalize a funding mechanism for offshore wind that has languished for five years. (Bergen County Record)
• A rejected New Hampshire wind farm will get another shot before state regulators. (New Hampshire Public Radio)

OIL AND GAS:
• Why America’s oil output remains strong despite low prices. (Bloomberg)
• As groups fight over nuclear and coal, a national trade group pushes for more natural gas in Illinois and the Midwest. (EnergyWire)

KEYSTONE XL: TransCanada says it will turn to Nebraska regulators for approval of the Keystone XL pipeline. (Reuters)

TECHNOLOGY: How lessons from the University of Michigan’s solar car can help improve the performance of other solar arrays. (Wired)

VOLKSWAGEN:
• VW’s plans to add 2,000 jobs and expand its Chattanooga assembly plant by 30% remain, for now. (Associated Press)
• VW owners wonder where a fix will leave them. (National Public Radio)

EFFICIENCY: Through efficiency and renewables, an Iowa town is taking aggressive steps to become energy independent by 2030. (Midwest Energy News)

COMMENTARY: How an oil industry campaign urging people to think about life without fossil fuels misses the mark. (Climate Progress)