Report: Wind now top source of renewable electricity capacity

WIND: Wind power has become the largest source of renewable electricity capacity in the country, exceeding the generating capacity of hydroelectric power for the first time, according to a new report. (The Hill, New York Times)

ALSO:
• The first large-scale wind farm in North Carolina is fully operational, despite efforts by 10 legislators to shut the project down. (Associated Press)
• A Maine lawmaker submits a bill to stop an experimental floating wind farm from being built within 10 miles of a lobster conservation area. (Portland Press Herald)
• Denmark-based Vestas Wind Systems tops the U.S. wind market, supplying 43 percent of wind power capacity. (Reuters)

***SPONSORED LINK: Join the Midwest Energy Research Consortium (M-WERC) at the Energy Storage Conference, February 15 in Milwaukee. This conference will explore recent advances in energy storage technologies, as well as the applications and in-field examples of the role of energy storage. ***

SOLAR:
• Ten policy debates over rooftop solar to watch this year. (Utility Dive)
• The Navy is planning to build a 200-acre solar farm and energy storage system on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. (Pacific Business News)
• Indiana lawmakers are debating a bill to eliminate net metering in the state – a move that critics say would tilt the market in favor of utilities and make it difficult to break even on solar installations. (Associated Press)
• A China-based solar cell and module manufacturer is expected to bring more than 200 jobs to a new factory in Sacramento, California. (Sacramento Business Journal)

EFFICIENCY: Minnesota could create 15,000 jobs and save more than $3.1 billion by reducing energy use in municipal buildings, universities, schools and hospitals, according to a new report. (Midwest Energy News)

REGULATION:
• The Trump administration may shutter the enforcement division of the EPA. (Huffington Post)
• Over 6o percent of Americans oppose removing regulations that combat climate change, while only 40 percent support the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines, according to a new survey. (TIME)

EMISSIONS: As Congress works to scrap a federal methane rule, California moves ahead with its own methane rule, which seeks to cut emissions from oil and gas extraction by nearly half. (KPCC)

COAL:
• West Virginia’s governor promises to stop the state Department of Environmental Protection from saying ​“no” to the coal industry. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
• The White House press secretary says rolling back regulations on coal plants will be done in an ​“environmentally friendly” way. (Independent)

OIL & GAS:
• A Colorado county is refusing to rescind a moratorium on oil and gas drilling despite a state Supreme Court ruling that only the state can regulate the industry. (Associated Press)
• About 8,700 megawatts of new natural gas capacity was added in 2016, compared to 6,400 megawatts in 2015, according to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. (Utility Dive)

PIPELINES:
• Crews restart construction on the final segment of the Dakota Access Pipeline, as a local tribe files a legal challenge to block the project. (Associated Press)
• The chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe says he ​“was disrespected” by the Trump administration and opponents are now running out of options to stop the Dakota Access Pipeline. (Washington Post, Reuters)
• Workers are injured during a pipeline explosion and fire in southern Louisiana, which has led to the evacuation of about 60 homes. (Reuters)

NUCLEAR: The Cherokee Nation and the state of Oklahoma are fighting to stop approximately 11,000 tons of radioactive waste from being stored in a rural town near the Arkansas and Illinois rivers. (Tulsa World)

COMMENTARY: California’s solar incentive program contains valuable lessons for states looking to accelerate clean energy adoption, according to a state energy commissioner and clean energy trade group leader. (Utility Dive)