NOTE TO READERS: Northeast Energy News is taking a break for the holidays. The daily digest will return on Wednesday, January 2.

OFFSHORE DRILLING: Attorneys general from nine states sue the Trump administration to block seismic testing for oil and gas deposits off the East Coast. (Reuters)

OIL & GAS:

• With the release of a draft environmental study, the Trump administration is moving closer to opening an Alaskan wildlife refuge to drilling, possibly by the end of next year. (New York Times)

• After months of record output, Bakken oil production in North Dakota is expected to level off early next year. (S&P Global)

***SPONSORED LINK: Emissions will rise nearly 3% in 2018, but we have a decade left to avoid dangerous global warming – how can policymakers confront this challenge? Designing Climate Solutions identifies 10 policies, applied to 20 countries, that can keep warming below 2°C.***

COAL:

• Neighbors of coal plants near Orlando, Florida filed a lawsuit yesterday alleging pollution from the plants is responsible for a spike in cancer cases. (Orlando Sentinel)

• The Navajo Nation could lose $170 million over the next decade from its investment in an New Mexico coal plant, according to an energy research group. (KNAU)

POLICY: The Farm Bureau is an often unnoticed ally in the oil industry’s fight against climate science and policy. (InsideClimate News)

WIND:

• New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu plans to request a federal study of offshore wind potential in the state, a first step to development. (NHPR)

• Wind power generated 19,168 megawatts of electricity in Texas early this morning, beating a previous record, regulators say. (Houston Chronicle)

• Wind farm projects brought new revenue to an Ohio county and helped it boost its bond rating. (Bond Buyer)

SOLAR:

• New Jersey regulators take steps to phase out solar RECs and transition to new initiatives that can get the state to 100 percent renewable energy. (Utility Dive)

• Utilities in the Southeast face challenging policy questions because of the region’s growing demand for solar energy. (Utility Dive)

NUCLEAR:

• Nevada lawmakers appear to have stopped a last-minute attempt to include funding in a stopgap spending bill for the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository. (Las Vegas Review-Journal)

• Critics say New York regulators overstepped their authority by authorizing $7.6 billion in subsidies to nuclear power plants. (Times Herald-Record)

***SPONSORED LINK: The Minnesota Sustainable Growth Coalition is looking for its next Program Manager. Apply today to help the business-led coalition advance the region toward a circular economy.***

HYDROPOWER: A new study from Stanford University shows that when droughts sap hydropower production, Western states typically turn to fossil fuels and produce more carbon dioxide emissions. (Stanford News)

COMMENTARY: A USA Today contributor says it’s time for kids to have “the talk” with their parents — about climate change.