Solar and wind beat coal generation so far this year

RENEWABLES: Wind and solar for the first time are on track to generate more power than coal plants in the U.S. this year thanks to a surge of solar deployment in 2023. (E&E News)

POLITICS:

• An Oklahoma-based oil billionaire played a key role in mobilizing other oil executives to back Donald Trump, opening the door for a flood of campaign donations and possibly influencing the Republican’s presidential agenda if elected. (Washington Post)
• Plenty of Inflation Reduction Act funds are being spent in Pennsylvania, a political swing state, but it’s yet to be seen whether voters know where the money is coming from and if it will benefit Democrats. (Politico)

BUILDINGS:

• A New York startup focused on decarbonizing big buildings from the outside with insulated, HVAC-integrated panels wins a $250,000 funding prize from a state tech competition and plans to pilot the tech at a public housing complex. (Canary Media)
• Wisconsin’s first net-zero school, which opened in 2020, is one of the largest all-electric buildings in North America and produces as much power from solar and geothermal as it consumes — and another school is soon to follow with a similar project. (WPR)

CLIMATE: Three Democratic Congress members ask a national insurance body to detail how it’s incorporating climate risks into the industry. (The Hill)

COAL: Wyoming leads 17 other states in a lawsuit seeking to block new U.S. EPA coal ash impoundment rules scheduled to take effect in November. (Cowboy State Daily)

CARBON CAPTURE:

• A study finds previous estimates vastly overinflate the amount of carbon dioxide that can be stored in crops and soil, throwing an Oregon initiative relying on agricultural carbon sequestration into question. (OPB)
• Carbon pipeline developer Summit Carbon Solutions buys land easements from the competing but now-defunct Navigator pipeline to advance the expansion of its project in Iowa. (Cedar Rapids Gazette)

HYDROGEN: A firm pauses development of a proposed hydrogen production hub in Washington state, citing uncertainty over tax incentives and a lack of affordable renewable energy. (Washington State Standard)