Northeast Energy News

‘We don’t have time to wait’: Massachusetts bills seek to slash emissions

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CLIMATE: Massachusetts lawmakers introduce a bill package that sets a target of net-zero emissions by 2050, a goal that Gov. Charlie Baker has expressed support for. (MassLive)

ALSO:
• Environmentalists and the Hogan administration are at odds over whether early climate leader Maryland is still doing enough to combat the crisis. (Bay Journal)
• Vermont businesses descend on the Statehouse to petition legislators to more actively fight climate change. (WCAX)

***SPONSORED LINK: Already on its 10th edition, ACI’s National Conference on Microgrids will be hosted in Boston on March 18-19. The conference will also feature an exclusive tour of the Sterling Municipal Light Department’s Award-Winning Microgrid!

Northeast Energy News

Advocates call federal ruling ‘worst case scenario’ for clean energy

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GRID: Clean energy advocates says a recent FERC ruling could price renewables out of PJM’s capacity markets and provide an advantage to fossil-fuel generation. (Energy News Network)

ALSO:
• New Jersey regulators file a brief saying the FERC decision will make it harder for the state to achieve its climate goals. (NJ Spotlight)
• The Hershey Co. says uncertainty caused by the changes has stalled its efforts to acquire renewable energy credits for its operations. (E&E News, subscription required)

***SPONSORED LINK: Already on its 10th edition, ACI’s National Conference on Microgrids will be hosted in Boston on March 18-19.

Northeast Energy News

Industrial site developer wins Philadelphia refinery auction

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OIL & GAS: A Chicago developer’s $240 million bid wins a bankruptcy auction for a closed Philadelphia refinery, likely ending its use as an oil processing site. (Philadelphia Inquirer) 

ALSO:
• The number of natural gas drilling rigs operating in Pennsylvania is about half of what it was a year ago due to low prices. (Pittsburgh Business Times)
• Pennsylvania environmental regulators more than double the permit fees for shale gas development. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

***SPONSORED LINK: Already on its 10th edition, ACI’s National Conference on Microgrids will be hosted in Boston on March 18-19. The conference will also feature an exclusive tour of the Sterling Municipal Light Department’s Award-Winning Microgrid!

Northeast Energy News

Complaint seeks to force transmission opponents to disclose donors

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TRANSMISSION: An anti-transmission project group in Maine is hit with an ethics complaint by a political action committee funded by Central Maine Power could force the group to disclose its donors. (Bangor Daily News)

OIL & GAS:
• A developer who specializes in rehabilitating former industrial sites is reportedly a bidder on the closed Philadelphia refinery at a bankruptcy auction last week. (Philadelphia Inquirer)
• Federal workplace safety regulators fine the refinery for a series of violations that led to the explosion last summer that closed the facility. (E&E News, subscription)

***SPONSORED LINK: Already on its 10th edition, ACI’s National Conference on Microgrids will be hosted in Boston on March 18-19. The conference will also feature an exclusive tour of the Sterling Municipal Light Department’s Award-Winning Microgrid!

Northeast Energy News

Philadelphia refinery neighborhoods exposed to toxic chemicals

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OIL & GAS: Philadelphia residents living near a now-closed oil refinery were exposed to benzene 21 times the federal limit during and after its operations, in what one scientist calls “a classic environmental justice issue.” (E&E News / NBC / Investigative Reporting Workshop)

ALSO: A closed meeting today could determine the site’s fate as owners could accept a bid or allow a bankruptcy court to conduct an auction. (WHYY)

***SPONSORED LINK: Already on its 10th edition, ACI’s National Conference on Microgrids will be hosted in Boston on March 18-19. The conference will also feature an exclusive tour of the Sterling Municipal Light Department’s Award-Winning Microgrid! Secure your space today!***

EFFICIENCY: New York regulators approve a $2 billion five-year plan to boost energy efficiency and switch energy use away from natural gas. (Albany Times Union)

PIPELINES:
• Pennsylvania fines Sunoco Pipeline nearly $2 million for drilling fluids spilled into a lake in 2017 during construction of the Mariner East pipeline.