HYDROPOWER: Officials in New York and New England embrace Canadian hydropower as a more efficient path to low carbon emissions, but many environmentalists say it comes with unacceptable costs. (InsideClimateNews)
OFFSHORE WIND:
• Advocates in New Hampshire hope delays caused by COVID-19 gives the state a chance to catch up to its New England neighbors in developing offshore wind. (Energy News Network)
• National Grid and Orsted say they have assembled teams to begin repairs on a transmission cable for the Block Island offshore wind project. (news release)
PIPELINES: Federal regulators open an investigation into the two unplanned shutdowns of a Massachusetts compressor station that have delayed the facility’s opening. (WBUR)
SOLAR: New Jersey regulators adopt a two-year community solar pilot program that ensures participation by underserved and low-income communities. (Solar Power World)
GRID: The New England grid operator endorses a “net carbon pricing” regime that it says avoids the political impediments to a carbon tax while creating incentives for electricity wholesalers to buy cleaner resources. (CommonWealth Magazine)
TECHNOLOGY: A Connecticut start-up patents a technology that turns waste into a burnable char that eliminates the need for trash incinerators. (Hartford Business)
CLIMATE: The U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether a climate lawsuit by the City of Baltimore against oil companies should be heard in state or federal court. (Reuters)
ACTIVISM: Students rally in Bangor, Maine to ask city leaders to declare a climate emergency. (NewsCenterMaine)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Vermont advocates discuss ways to electrify rural transit at an annual meeting. (RTO Insider, subscription required)
UTILITIES: Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont signs a bill from an emergency legislative session that gives consumers credits and reimburses them for lost food during extended electric utility outages. (The Advocate)
COMMENTARY:
• The Green Party says New Jersey must adopt smart meters as part of its energy strategy to improve system resilience. (NJ.com)
• Electrifying trucks plays an oversized role in bringing the transportation sector to zero emissions. (Environmental Defense Fund)