Energy and Environment News Roundup – 12.9.13

A daily roundup of the most important energy, environment, and climate news from around the world.

EMISSIONS 

US Supreme Court to hear cross-state air pollution rule (via The Hill)

Companies increasingly counting internal cost of carbon (via BusinessGreen)

Eastern US states press Midwest to improve air (via New York Times)

NATURAL GAS/FRACKING 

LNG’s future hinges on demand more than exports (via Houston Chronicle)

Battle widens over “gas rush” climate footprint (via National Journal)

Marcellus region to provide 18% total US natural gas production this month (via US EIA)

USGS sending instruments to record Texas quakes (via EnergyWire)

Ohio shale gas boom closer than many realize (via Cleveland Plain-Dealer)

RENEWABLES 

US wind farms get extended leeway on eagle deaths (via Los Angeles Times)

Which states win and which states lose on the Production Tax Credit? (via CleanTechnica)

Wind energy projects rush to start construction in advance of expiring PTC – again (via Energy Collective)

Has concentrated solar power run out of steam in the US? (via Greentech Media)

Reservoir emissions: A quiet threat to expanding hydropower (via ClimateWire)

Bioports emerge as runway for aviation biofuels (via Navigant Research)

New wind farms in New Mexico, Texas, Minnesota cost just 2.2-3.3 cents/KWh (via Facts of the Day)

TVA to increase renewable energy capacity by 126MW in 2014 (via Solar Industry Magazine)

California utility merges forecasting, weather, economics to handle renewables (via Greentech Media)

Wind power and wildlife can get along, birders say (via EarthTechling)

Kansas lawmaker, religious allies push for renewable energy (via News OK/AP)

KEYSTONE XL 

Clock ticks on Canadian carbon rules as Keystone decision looms (via National Journal)

CLIMATE 

Study says Arctic thaw tied to European, US heat waves and downpours (via Reuters)

Can hacking the stratosphere solve climate change? (via NPR)

US Navy predicts summer ice-free Arctic by 2016 (via The Guardian)

Australian firefighter numbers “will need to double by 2030 as climate change bites” (via The Guardian)

What London would have looked like on Friday without flood defenses (via Forbes)

Two big issues to tackle as the green climate fund sets up shop (via WRI Insights)

OIL 

Oil near $98 as US economy shows improvement (via Houston Chronicle/AP)

Offshore drilling industry takes aim at safety rule (via Houston Chronicle)

Northeast Nevada eyed for more oil exploration (via Houston Chronicle/AP)

TRANSPORTATION 

US partners with China to put auto emissions in check (via Washington Post)

Advanced batteries reached $10.8 billion in market value in 2012 (via Navigant Research)

Average new-vehicle MPG ratings continue to climb, now up to 24.8 (via Autoblog Green)

Americans are driving less and taking public transit more: Let’s invest accordingly (via Greentech Media)

COAL 

Minnesota orders Xcel Energy to study shutting down two large coal units (via Minneapolis Star-Tribune)

ENERGY EFFICIENCY 

Will costs delay energy efficiency gains in developing countries? (via Breaking Energy)

Interest groups call on EPA to write energy efficiency into upcoming regulations (via National Journal)

Expanded “Green Button” will reach federal agencies, more US energy consumers (via Energy.gov)

OPINION 

Four possible scenarios for Australia’s energy future (via CleanTechnica)

Five ways wind power can survive without extending the Production Tax Credit (via Christian Science Monitor)

How best can we use natural gas, or should we use it at all? (via National Journal)

Bye, bye biofuels: Why the US Renewable Fuels Standard failed (via Forbes)

The fracking-earthquake connection (Dallas Morning News)

Monterey Shale isn’t all it’s fracked up to be (via Smart Planet)

Cap, trade, and profit (via Albany Times-Union)

Renewable energy might save thousands of lives in Ohio (via Crain’s Cleveland Business)