TOP STORY

Reactions to Waxman-Markey Climate and Energy Bill

• Joe Romm says it's a "solid bill" and a "good first step," and gives it a B+. [ClimateProgress] 
• Dave Roberts thinks that lumping all the energy and climate legislation together in one bill is smart.  [Grist]
• Bradford Plumer wonders how the carbon permits will be distributed. [The Vine-The New Republic]

RECOMMENDED READING

China To "Conquer" Global Electric Car Market

A Chinese company known for manufacturing batteries, BYD, will release a fully electric sedan later this year and "plans to dominate the global market for clean-transport."  The company's name stands for "Build Your Dreams, which prompted snickers when the company debuted in US car shows last year, as did the soaring ambitions of the founder Wang Chuanfu, who has stated that BYD will be the biggest carmaker in China by 2015 and the biggest in the world by 2025."  [Guardian]

Nestle in Bottled Water War

The Nestle company is gearing up for a legal battle over plans "to tap an aquifer feeding a pair of springs near Salida, southwest of Colorado Springs, and draw 65 million gallons of water per year to bottle and sell under its Arrowhead brand."  Local mountain residents worry that the company "will pump and pump until they suck it dry," and fear what would happen to the springs, which feed the Arkansas River, during a drought.  [Los Angeles Times]

Maps Balance Clean Energy and Land Conservation

The Audubon Society and the Natural Resources Defense Council have teamed up with Google Earth to create "The Path to Green Energy project," a series of maps that intend to inform clean energy development companies on what areas might provoke a fight with local environmental interests.  The maps "cover 13 Western states and show legally prohibited sites, such as national parks, and areas that are key wildlife habitats -- where environmentalists might put up a fight with developers."  [Reuters]

HEAD SCRATCHER

New "Friends of Coal" license plates available in West Virginia.  [Coal Tattoo]