Georgia Power rendering of proposed Plant Vogtle Southern Co.’s proposed expansion of Plant Vogtle near Augusta is expected to become the first nuclear power plant out the gate today with a federal loan guarantee in an expected rush toward more nuclear plants spurred by need to cut greenhouse gas pollution. The Associated Press reported over the [...]

North DeKalb residents may succeed in keeping a proposed biomass plan out of a densely developed district near their homes, the AJC reports. The article describes the he-said/he-said debate between not-in-by-backyard activists and Southeast Renewable Energy, which has proposed a facility that would generate electricity through the gasification of waste wood products. The plant would be [...]

It sounds non-sensical but “global warming” could be contributing to the snowstorms like the one that hit Atlanta today. Climate modelers have long predicted that much of the Eastern seaboard is likely to see more rain and snow over the next few years because warmer temperatures pull more moisture in the atmosphere that eventually will return [...]

See update in story! Gov. Sonny Perdue’s proposed budget would reduce EPD funding to Clean Air Campaign, an Atlanta nonprofit that helps businesses and individuals to green their commutes, according to Southeast Green. The Clean Air Campaign cut? A whopping $620,000, which has got to be a fair piece of the organization’s budget. I’ve put a note [...]

Here’s a provocative argument that draws a link between the issue of climate change and sprawling metro areas like Atlanta. In an interview with Grist, prominent environmental editor Alex Steffen argues that environmental groups are largely ignoring a key battle line in the debate over climate change. Cities sit on one side of that divide and [...]

Wait at least two weeks before buying that new refrigerator, stove, dishwasher or other appliance. On Feb. 12, Georgia initiates a rebate program for the purchase of EnergyStar-rated appliances. EnergyStar is a federal green certification program that, among other things, rates appliances. Even without the rebate, EnergyStar-rated appliances tend to be a good deal over the long [...]

Georgia Power filed a plan this afternoon to provide its customers with enough electricity over the next 20 years by adding two new nuclear reactors and three natural gas plants to a production system that currently relies heavily on coal. The utility’s Integrated Resource Plan must be submitted to the state Public Service Commission, which takes [...]

Eight days of civil disobedience at the Coal River mountaintop removal mine in West Virginia has largely notice from the national media. But it has all the markings of a significant act of civil disobedience. There’s a cause: The fight against more mountaintop removal of coal, which by any measure is an extremely destructive form of [...]

The South is positioned to become the “Saudi Arabia” for a vast untapped energy source, a renowned Georgia Tech energy expert told an audience of executives, entrepreneurs and advocates Wednesday. Instead, Public Policy Professor Marilyn Brown lamented, the region is lagging the nation in developing that resource. What energy source was she talking about? Efficiency. “The lifestyles we [...]

Eco-billionaire Ted Turner announced Tuesday that he and the uber-polluting Southern Co. are working together on a major renewable energy initiative. Their initial focus: “Developing and investing in large scale solar photovoltaic projects in the U.S. Southwest.” Turner is the nation’s largest landowner, and much of his property is in New Mexico. Some of the projects under consideration [...]