OIL TRAINS:
• Crude oil that caught fire after a derailment in North Dakota had been treated to make it less volatile. (Associated Press)
• New federal safety rules may make it harder for the public to know about shipments moving through their cities. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
OHIO: The state inspector general clears the Kasich administration in a dispute over the dismissal of a state EPA employee who opposed coal-mining permits. (Columbus Dispatch)
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CLEAN POWER PLAN:
• Even after meeting its own needs, Iowa will have enough wind capacity to help neighboring states meet carbon reduction targets, according to a recent report. (Midwest Energy News)
• Midwest states are seeking to establish an emissions trading platform to meet carbon goals. (Reuters)
• Sen. Mitch McConnell’s assertion that states can’t collaborate on the Clean Power Plan is contradicted by a Bush-era precedent. (Greenwire)
SOLAR: Illinois solar producers say they’re up against utilities with “much bigger pockets” as the legislature debates energy policy. (Northwest Herald)
FRACKING: A journal issues a correction on a study that downplayed pollution concerns about fracking after failing to disclose the lead author was paid by Chesapeake Energy. (InsideClimate News)
MICHIGAN:
• The director of the University of Michigan’s Energy Institute says political debates in Lansing rarely consider the full benefits of renewable energy. (Midwest Energy News)
• Advocates say some legislative proposals would be “a true climate disaster.” (Great Lakes Echo)
UTILITIES: Ameren’s new CEO discusses the industry’s uncertainty. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
COAL: At least 85 workers are laid off from an Illinois coal mine. (Carbondale Southern Illinoisan)
OIL AND GAS:
• Investors are urged to avoid Alberta’s oil sands after a provincial election tips the balance of power. (Bloomberg)
• Ohio investigators say they have “no specific timeline” for investigating a spill of 2,000 gallons of waste from an injection facility. (Youngstown Vindicator)
ETHANOL: A study finds ethanol refineries may be producing more pollution than previously thought. (Yale E360)
ELECTRIC CARS: GM says “the future is electric,” but expects to fall short of its goal of 500,000 EV sales by 2017. (MLive, Detroit News)
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EFFICIENCY: University of Minnesota students win a national competition to design a house that produces more energy than it consumes. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
COMMENTARY: Conservative clean-energy activist Debbie Dooley recaps a recent visit to Minnesota. (Midwest Energy News)