OHIO: The state Senate names the final members to the SB 310 study committee, the Sierra Club says Ohio utilities are “throwing spaghetti against the wall and trying to see what will stick” to keep coal plants viable, and FirstEnergy rejects a report claiming the utility is in a “financial spiral.” (Columbus Business First, Akron Beacon Journal)
GEOTHERMAL: A small Iowa town launches a geothermal district heating system, believed to be the first of its kind in the Midwest. (Midwest Energy News)
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WISCONSIN: At a hearing in Madison, up to 200 people protest another Wisconsin utility’s proposed rate structure changes that opponents say are intended to discourage solar power. (Wisconsin State Journal)
SOLAR: Amid the PV boom, solar thermal systems are often overlooked; and customers flock to the “made in Minnesota” solar program. (Midwest Energy News)
GRID: The PJM Interconnection tries to preserve demand response as an option in its capacity auctions. (EnergyWire)
OIL AND GAS: A report finds broad discrepancy between oil companies’ claims to investors about reserves and what they report to the SEC, Enbridge has finished cleanup of the Kalamazoo River from a 2010 pipeline spill, and a coalition of fracking supporters will meet next week in Illinois. (Bloomberg, MLive, Carbondale Southern Illinoisan)
COAL: Scientists say coal mining, not fracking, is to blame for a large methane hot spot revealed in satellite images; and comments on a proposed Illinois coal mine are mostly in opposition. (Bloomberg, Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette)
CLIMATE: Studies find shifting to clean energy could save the global economy trillions of dollars, and researchers find that fewer than half of U.S. states are preparing for climate change impacts. (InsideClimate News, McClatchy)
NUCLEAR: A nuclear industry lobbying group releases a report predicting millions of dollars in economic impact if Exelon’s nuclear plants shut down. (Quad-City Business Journal)
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INDIANA: The Indiana Farm Bureau highlights the state’s renewable energy advances. (Indiana Public Media)
COMMENTARY: “The GOP’s incoherent climate shuck-and-jive is under pressure and the cracks are starting to show.” (Grist)