Virginia joins 17 other states supporting the Clean Power Plan

CLEAN POWER PLAN: Virginia is the only Southeast state joining 17 others in a legal push to defend the Clean Power Plan. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

ALSO:
• Why the Clean Power Plan will likely survive even if a Republican is the next President. (Vox)
• All but six states have taken one side or the other in the growing legal battle over the Clean Power Plan. (Climate Progress)

WIND: The Energy Department says it wants to partner with a private company to build a high-voltage wind transmission line through Arkansas. (Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)

SOLAR:
• The head of the solar industry’s main lobby says there are four ways Congress could extend beyond 2016 the 30% Investment Tax Credit. (Greentech Media)
• Alabama regulators approve solar projects at two military bases, with one saying ​“our vindictive, liberal president would probably try to punish Alabama” if they didn’t. (Alabama Media Group)

BIOMASS: A Florida plant that burns wood waste is back online, but not for long. (The Gainesville Sun)

NUCLEAR:
• The industry warns that closure of more reactors could imperil the success of the Clean Power Plan. (The Hill)
• A leading southern environmental group joins the fight to defend Virginia’s 33-year-old statutory ban on uranium mining. (Southern Environmental Law Center)

UTILITIES: Public opposition forces Duke Energy to reduce the size of a proposed natural gas plant and abandon plans for a 45-mile transmission line. (Charlotte Business Journal)

KENTUCKY:
• Clean energy advocates await signals of how Governor-elect Matt Bevin may change how the state grows jobs while protecting the environment. (Louisville Courier-Journal)
• Kentucky coal production and employment continued to dwindle during the third quarter of the year. (Lexington Herald-Leader)

FRACKING: EPA’s science advisers criticize its dismissal of dangers to drinking water from sources near fracking sites. (EnergyWire)

BLANKENSHIP TRIAL: A key witness testifies he warned coal baron Don Blankenship of a ​“disaster” if more employees weren’t hired to improve mine safety. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)

2010 GULF OIL SPILL: A new study finds dolphins living in a Louisiana bay polluted by BP’s 2010 offshore oil spill are having difficulty procreating. (Associated Press)

COMMENTARY: Mother Nature is ignoring elected officials in Georgia who deny the changing climate’s impact on the state. (Gainesville Times)