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MICHIGAN: A Michigan lawmaker wants to expand the state’s definition of renewable energy to include more fuel made from municipal and industrial solid waste. (Midwest Energy News)

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EPA: An MIT study finds a carbon price or cap-and-trade program would be more cost effective than proposed EPA regulations, some states may be allowed to increase their emissions, and carbon offsets won’t count toward emissions reductions. (ClimateWire, Bloomberg Businessweek, SNL)

EFFICIENCY: FERC seeks a rehearing of a case that disallowed the use of demand response in wholesale auctions, MillerCoors cuts its energy use by more than 15 percent, and a report says clothes dryers waste $4 billion in energy each year. (Transmission & Distribution World, The Hill, USA Today)

SOLAR: A judge questions a Wisconsin decision reducing the size of systems eligible for net metering, and a California solar company plans a new manufacturing plant in Michigan. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, MiBiz)

ILLINOIS: A consumer group and the city of Chicago want state regulators to investigate alleged price gouging by electric suppliers. (Chicago Tribune)

OIL & GAS: A review finds 4 in 10 wells in sensitive areas go uninspected by federal officials, and a Minnesota town issues citations to BNSF Railway for heavy oil train traffic. (Associated Press, KARE)

TRANSMISSION: Wisconsin regulators take public input on a proposed transmission line, and explain why the route doesn’t follow Interstate 90. (Westby Times)

BIOMASS: A Minnesota community college converts its heating system to run on biomass. (Biomass Magazine)

ETHANOL: Boat manufacturers issue warnings about using fuel with higher ethanol levels in small engines. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

COMMENTARY: The U.S. is missing an opportunity to convert trash into energy. (Christian Science Monitor)

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy and is a founding editor of both Midwest Energy News and Southeast Energy News. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he worked as a copy editor, online producer, features editor and night city editor. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and Investigative Reporters and Editors.

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