Overnight Energy: Third Pruitt aide leaving EPA this week | Prosecutors charge Volkswagen ex-CEO | Anheuser-Busch aims for zero emission truck fleet

View in your browser     ANOTHER EPA EXIT: A top public affairs official at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is calling it quits, marking the third departure of one of Administrator Scott Pruitt's political aides this week. Liz Bowman, who was in charge of general communications for Pruitt, including answering press inquiries, plans to leave EPA for a job on Capitol Hill. "I leave extremely thankful for the opportunity to serve the Trump Administration and Administrator Pruitt," Bowman said, noting her last day would be May 11. Bowman told The Hill she would be joining Sen. Joni Ernst's (R-Iowa) office as communications director. "Being a member of the EPA team has allowed me to further my skills, learn from my mistakes, and make lifelong friendships. It has also provided me the opportunity to develop a new, and deep, respect for the public servants who serve the American people, day in and day out, to ensure that we all have access to clean air, land, and water." Bowman's departure comes at an increasingly challenging time for Pruitt, who has been under intense scrutiny for questionable expenditures and has faced a number of ethics scandals. Read more here.   Why it's notable: Earlier this week two of Pruitt's top aides, mired in controversies, resigned from the agency. Albert Kelly, who was hired to lead the agency's Superfund program last year, resigned Tuesday and Pruitt's head of security, Pasquale Perrotta, resigned on Monday, EPA confirmed.     VOLKSWAGEN CHARGES: Martin Winterkorn, the former CEO of Volkswagen, has been indicted on wire fraud and conspiracy charges over an international emissions scandal, the Department of Justice announced Thursday. The four counts against Winterkorn, who resigned amid the scandal in 2015, are related to Volkswagen's alleged efforts to skirt United States diesel emissions standards. "The indictment unsealed today alleges that Volkswagen's scheme to cheat its legal requirements went all the way to the top of the company. These are serious allegations, and we will prosecute this case to the fullest extent of the law," Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a statement. "I want to thank the Criminal Division's Fraud Section, the Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Michigan as well as our partners at the EPA, FBI and in Germany for their hard work on this important case." The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2015 said it found that Volkswagen had programmed its automobiles to deceive emissions tests -- allegations the automaker admitted to at the time. Read more here.   A turn of events: Earlier in the week states had been rolling out settlements with the car company over the same scandal. On Wednesday, Arizona's attorney general announced that Volkswagen will pay $40 million in a settlement. West Virginia announced the day before that the state had settled with Volkswagen for $2.6 million for lying about its "clean diesel" engines. Read more here.   BUDWEISER AIMS FOR ZERO-EMISSION TRUCK FLEET: Budweiser beer's parent company wants its vehicles to produce zero carbon emissions by 2025. Anheuser-Busch announced Thursday that it will buy 800 hydrogen-electric powered semitrucks from Nikola Motor Company in order to offset the emissions of its current fleet. The company hopes to eventually replace all of its gas powered long-haul fleet with hydrogen and electric vehicles. The integration will begin in 2020. "At Anheuser-Busch we're continuously searching for ways to improve sustainability across our entire value chain and drive our industry forward. The transport industry is one that is ripe for innovative solutions and Nikola is leading the way with hydrogen-electric, zero-emission capabilities. We are very excited by the possibilities our partnership with them can offer," Anheuser-Busch President Michel Doukeris said in a statement. The purchases follow a recent unveiling by the company of 2025 "sustainability goals" that include cutting carbon emissions by a fourth. The company expects that, by replacing its entire semi-truck shipping fleet with renewable powered options, it will reduce its carbon footprint by 18 percent. Read more here.   OUTSIDE THE BELTWAY: Pressure restrictions on TransCanada Corp's Keystone oil pipeline were lifted, Reuters reports. The California Water Board delayed a vote on whether to support the governor's plan to build two multibillion-dollar tunnels to remake the state's water system, The Associated Press reports. U.S. electric utilities are expected to eventually shut hundreds of coal-fired generators, Reuters reports.   FROM THE HILL'S OPINION SECTION: -Pruitt's renewable fuel attacks cost him GOP support in Congress, writes Mike Carr, executive director of New Energy America. -The costs of carbon taxes are real -- and crippling, argue Vance Ginn and Megan Ingram, of the Texas Public Policy Foundation.   IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Check out stories from Wednesday... -US prosecutors charge ex-Volkswagen CEO in diesel scandal -Pruitt once bought house with Oklahoma lobbyist: report -Public affairs official is third aide to leave EPA this week -Anheuser-Busch aims for zero-emissions truck fleet -Six more US scientists selected for Macron's 'Make Our Planet Great Again' program     Please send tips and comments to Timothy Cama, tcama@thehill.com; and Miranda Green, mgreen@thehill.com. Follow us on Twitter: @Timothy_Cama, @mirandacgreen, @thehill         Did a friend forward you this email? 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