Federal officials said dozens of drums of radioactive waste at a weapons laboratories in Los Alamos, New Mexico are stable after showing some signs of chemical reactions over the past year.”The drums are being closely monitored after a container with similar contents broke open in 2014, resulting in a radiation release and the indefinite closure of the country’s only underground nuclear waste dump.

The U.S. Energy Department says there have been some chemical reactions in the containers at Los Alamos National Laboratory, but the gases building up inside have decreased over the past several months, indicating the reactions have reached a steady state.” [The Washington Post]

Australia has the infrastructural capacity to reduce emissions at low cost as the costs of carbon-free technologies such as wind and solar have fallen in recent years.” A WWF report produced in collaboration with the Australian National University argues Australia could source 100% of its power from renewables by 2050 – without incurring massive adjustment costs or depressing economic growth – if there were clear and stable national policy settings to support investment in renewables.

Australia’s national climate policy does not extend beyond 2020.” [The Guardian]

The Oklahoman state legislature is planning on reforming on its tax-credit policies for emerging renewable energy companies amid calls for stricter regulation. “The roughly 188 wind turbines erected since 2010 have generated more than $22 million in leases and royalties to them and others across the state, according to a recent study by the Economic Impact Group.

The farmers argue the money helps cover lost income during tough harvest years.

But the local wind-power industry, like those in many other states, is facing challenges from Republican lawmakers and others those who question whether the tax exemptions and credits and other subsidies for so-called “green energy” projects are worth the taxpayer investment.” [FOX News]