Texas Republican launches investigation into New York climate investigation

CLIMATE: An analysis finds the ​“carbon budget” to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees will run out in five years. (Carbon Brief)

ALSO:
• A Republican congressman launches a probe into New York’s investigation of oil company climate disclosures. (New York Times)
• Documents show oil companies had the technology to limit carbon emissions in the 1960s, but ​“clearly preferred to invest in research to explain away the climate risks.” (Huffington Post)

ACTIVISM: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission barred the public from its monthly meeting yesterday in anticipation of fracking and climate protests. (EnergyWire)

GRID: The Department of Energy says solar growth will require ​“unprecedented coordination” on upgrading the grid. (EnergyWire)

SOLAR:
• A Pennsylvania regulatory review board rejects caps on net metering. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• New Hampshire embarks on a process to calculate the value of solar to the grid. (Utility Dive)
• Another Arizona co-op seeks higher fixed charges on solar customers. (Arizona Daily Star)
• Arizona solar proponents seek a state investigation into ​“coordinated opposition” to their ballot initiative. (Arizona Republic)
• A new Arizona law modifies conflict-of-interest rules so the state’s newest regulator can rule on a solar case. (Arizona Daily Star)
• ​“There’s a lot of prospecting” from out-of-state companies looking to build solar projects in Montana. (Great Falls Tribune)
• Floating solar arrays are eyed to help limit evaporation losses from California reservoirs. (New York Times)
• Misaligned mirrors cause a small fire at the Ivanpah solar plant in California. (Associated Press)

COAL:
• How review of federal leasing could fundamentally reshape the U.S. coal industry. (International Business Times)
• Hundreds of coal miners pack a Utah hearing to oppose leasing reforms. (Deseret News)
• The nation’s top federal mining regulator openly wonders whether companies and states are colluding to avoid mining cleanup obligations through self-bonding. (Casper Star Tribune)
• An 8-hour public hearing is scheduled for next week to discuss a proposed Washington state coal terminal. (Portland Business Journal)

PIPELINES:
• A federal review of last year’s Santa Barbara pipeline spill finds layers of ​“completely unacceptable” failures leading to the incident. (Los Angeles Times)
• Nearly 17,000 gallons of oil and more than 100,000 gallons of a mixture of saltwater and oil have spilled in North Dakota. (Associated Press)
• Construction has begun in three of four states in the path of the Dakota Access pipeline. (Associated Press)

OIL AND GAS:
• A judge hears arguments in a Pennsylvania lawsuit over whether drilling opponents are denying leaseholders the opportunity to profit from mineral rights. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• A Colorado county ends its fracking moratorium in response to a state Supreme Court ruling, but establishes a new short-term one to update oversight policies. (Boulder Daily Camera)
• Oklahoma lawmakers approve a cap on subsidies for low-producing wells. (Oklahoman)

UTILITIES: The Florida Supreme Court rules state regulators overreached in authorizing Florida Power & Light to bill customers for a speculative investment in a fracking company. (Miami Herald)

NUCLEAR: A New Mexico rate case is interrupted because of discrepancies over the value of electricity from an Arizona nuclear plant. (Santa Fe New Mexican)

BIOENERGY: A Colorado city’s project to capture biogas from sewage treatment may be replicated around the state. (Public News Service)

TRANSMISSION: A Texas city reaches an agreement with its power cooperative to help cover costs of a $22 million project to bury a 2.9 mile section of transmission line. (Dallas Morning News)

COMMENTARY: How solar power is saving lives in the U.S. (Vox)