No more free pass for methane emissions

EMISSIONS: The EPA proposes new rules that would charge oil and gas producers methane emissions fees starting at $900 per metric ton and rising to $1,500 by 2026. (The Hill)

ALSO: Advocates celebrate proposed U.S. EPA restrictions on pollution from waste-to-energy facilities but say they don’t go far enough to combat environmental justice concerns. (Inside Climate News)

CLIMATE:

• John Kerry plans to step down as President Biden’s climate envoy in the coming months and join Biden’s re-election campaign. (Axios)
• Electric buses, solar panels, and HVAC improvements are helping schools around the country cut their climate impacts. (The Hill)
• YouTube creators that have long pushed climate skepticism now seek to discredit renewable energy and other climate solutions. (CNBC)

CLEAN ENERGY:

• Renewable energy capacity is expanding worldwide at its fastest pace in decades, but total capacity still needs to triple by 2030 to meet climate goals, the International Energy Agency says. (Utility Dive)
• A growing number of states are moving renewable energy siting authority from local governments to state regulators in an effort to get more projects built. (Associated Press)
• A remote Colorado town looks to install a clean energy-powered microgrid to provide backup during avalanche and snow-caused power outages. (Colorado Sun)

GAS:

• Testing reveals gas stoves release hazardous levels of pollutants that can be harmful to vulnerable populations, but protective measures can reduce those risks. (Washington Post)
• National Renewable Energy Laboratory modeling suggests U.S. power sector emissions will drastically fall through 2050, even though gas-fired capacity will continue to grow. (Utility Dive)

PIPELINES:

• Activists combat the long-delayed, over-budget Mountain Valley Pipeline as developers forecast it’ll be completed by the end of March. (Grist, Roanoke Times)
• GOP presidential candidates say they support the ethanol industry but largely avoided staking out clear positions on carbon pipelines ahead of Monday’s Iowa caucuses. (E&E News)

SOLAR: Xcel Energy’s plan to replace one of the country’s largest coal plants with solar on the same site is meant to minimize economic losses for the local Minnesota community. (Inside Climate News)

CLEANTECH: Massachusetts’ booming clean tech economy is expanding, and politicians, including the state’s governor, are looking at how to keep that growth in state. (Boston Globe)

WIND: A northern California port commits to using electricity instead of diesel to power a planned terminal that would serve the offshore wind industry. (JPR)

CARBON CAPTURE: California’s petroleum companies look to survive the transition from fossil fuels by establishing a carbon management industry that stores captured greenhouse gasses in depleted oil fields. (Los Angeles Times)