Energy & Fuel

"Despite a surge in oil tank car blasts, Obama stops short of strict regulatory action demanded by trackside residents".

"The U.S. Forest Service announced it will try to reinstate the exemption to Colorado’s roadless rule that allows coal mines to build roads in protected areas of Western Colorado.  The exemption was struck down last summer by a federal court because the government failed to assess the impact of that future coal mining on climate change."

"Utilities in the U.S. Northeast stand to lose as much as half of residential sales by 2030 as customers install solar and battery-storage systems and generate their own power, according to a report by the Rocky Mountain Institute."

"Shell filed a lawsuit in federal court Tuesday seeking to kick six Greenpeace activists off one of its chosen Arctic drilling rigs and block the advocacy group from boarding more of its vessels."

"The natural gas extraction method known as 'fracking' would be banned in Maryland until October 2017 under legislation approved Monday night by the Maryland Senate."

"Chesapeake Energy paid undisclosed fees to the lead author, whose study was based on water samples provided by the company."

"The National Transportation Safety Board said Monday that new oil tank train cars should come with much stronger ability to withstand high heat and pressure from a crash or a blast."

"U.S. power company Duke Energy Corp agreed to a $2.5 million settlement proposed by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality relating to the 2014 coal ash spill into the Dan River in North Carolina, the DEQ said on Friday."

"Duke Energy Florida announced plans Thursday to launch a major solar power effort that will produce electricity equivalent to that of a small power plant."

"Anniversary of Exxon spill in Arkansas puts spotlight back on 48,400 miles of pipelines made with flawed technique phased out 40 years ago."