OIL: Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz says it’s time to reconsider the U.S. ban on exporting crude oil. (New York Times)

ALSO: North Dakota’s oil production increases at a slower rate as it approaches 1 million barrels per day. (Bismarck Tribune)

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ETHANOL: In Iowa, hopes remain high for the future of cellulosic biofuels, even as the ethanol industry loses clout in Washington. (Greenwire, Sioux Falls Argus Leader)

WIND: Siemens will supply more than $1 billion worth of turbines, manufactured in Kansas and Iowa, for MidAmerican Energy’s Iowa wind expansion. (Bloomberg)

CLIMATE: Wisconsin is on track to cut its carbon emissions by 22 percent from 2005 to 2020. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

COAL: An Illinois coal plant operator says its ash ponds are safe, and the FutureGen project faces a new lawsuit. (Associated Press, Decatur Herald & Review)

FRAC SAND: New Minnesota guidelines provide communities a blueprint for regulating frac sand mining. (Winona Daily News)

FRACKING: An Illinois environmental group says the state’s fracking rules overlook a major hazard: Tornadoes. (Carbondale Southern)

HYDRO: Why a Wisconsin company is buying up old hydroelectric dams. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

NUCLEAR: Waste from Illinois’ Zion nuclear plant, in the process of being decommissioned, will remain stored on-site indefinitely. (Chicago Tribune)

SOLAR: Consumers Energy will purchase power from 31 solar projects in Michigan. (CBS Detroit)

MEDIA: What Reddit learned from banning climate deniers from its science forums. (Grist)

COMMENTARY: Why Michigan should commit to more renewable energy, and conservatives are strangely quiet as another light bulb deadline approaches. (The Equation, CleanTechnica)