North Carolina wind farm could be a catalyst for the region

WIND: The Southeast’s first-ever wind energy system by Amazon in North Carolina could trigger more wind energy throughout the region, says Duke University professor. (WABE Public Radio, Atlanta)

SOLAR:
• Dominion Virginia Power is looking for developers to expand its solar energy portfolio with projects up to 20 megawatts. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
• Alabamans surveyed call for utilities to generate more power from solar and for their right to choose solar energy for their homes. (Triple Pundit blog)
• Taxpayers in Louisiana are complaining it is withholding refunds longer than allowed to review credits claimed for installing home solar energy systems. (WVUE New Orleans)

COAL:
• What happens after a coal-fired power plant in West Virginia closes? (Bloomberg View)
• Dr. Donald Rasmussen, who pioneered research and subsequent treatment for black lung disease in miners, died Thursday. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
• West Virginia miners and elected officials who support them called for easing water quality rules imposed on coal mines in the state. (Coal Tattoo blog)

CLEAN POWER PLAN:
• States can significantly lower electricity bills for consumers and businesses if they take the right steps to comply with the Clean Power Plan, a new report concludes. (The Hill)
• Key congressional Republicans want a ​“full inter-agency review” of the Clean Power Plan before it is finalized later this summer. (The Hill)
• A North Carolina lawmaker offered a plan to delay state action on the EPA’s controversial Clean Power Plan until it clears legal challenges. (Associated Press)

CLIMATE: More than 60 percent of voters surveyed in Virginia and other swing states support the Pope’s call to mitigate climate change. (The Hill)

PIPELINES: Georgia’s attorney general defended its denial of eminent domain authority for the Palmetto gasoline pipeline planned through the Savannah area, asserting it does not meet the ​“public necessity” test. (Morris News Service)

POLITICS: Jeb Bush says he wants to phase out subsidies for all forms of energy through tax reform. (The Hill)

COMMENTARY:
• The Clean Power Plan is unfair to rural electric cooperatives in Florida. (Rural Electric Magazine)
• The Clean Power Plan is helping cleaner energy take hold more quickly than capitalists would like, but slower than environmental advocates want. (The Virginian-Pilot)
• Does it matter where a pipeline’s profit is being made, whether it’s the sale of natural gas in the American Southeast or in South Asia? (The Roanoke Times)
• Virginia Gov. McAuliffe should avoid letting Dominion Virginia Power’s Integrated Resource Plan impede the pursuit of his ​“New Virginia Economy” goals. (NRDC Switchboard blog)