OHIO: A new report finds 89,000 clean energy jobs in Ohio, which are now at risk because of a legislative “freeze” to the state’s renewable energy and efficiency standards. (Toledo Blade)
ALSO: Opponents push back against American Electric Power’s demand for a quick decision on its latest plan to guarantee income for its coal plants. (Columbus Business First)
***SPONSORED LINK: EPA’s section 111(D) is driving generation and transmission in MISO. Infocast’s MISO Market Summit 2015 will bring policy-makers together with utility, IPP and DR executives to explore the opportunities to solve reliability and power market problems.***
TRANSMISSION:
• A new report offers tactics for developers of transmission lines to avoid having to use eminent domain. (Midwest Energy News)
• A transmission line connecting Minnesota to Canada will be a test case for a Department of Energy effort to streamline the approval process. (SNL)
CLIMATE: South Dakota is the latest state to adopt science standards requiring students to learn about climate change. (Midwest Energy News)
MINNESOTA: Legislation passed literally at the last minute, and facing a possible veto, will allow municipal utilities and co-ops to impose additional charges on solar customers, while opening the door to lower rates for large industrial users. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
UTILITIES:
• FirstEnergy’s new CEO defuses shareholder anger over the utility’s direction. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
• Protesters confront shareholders of a Madison utility for its reliance on coal. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
• A new report outlines alternative business models for utilities. (Greentech Media)
WIND:
• An Energy Department report says taller turbines could bring wind energy to all 50 states. (New York Times)
• Wildlife advocates say new rules are needed to protect birds from wind farms. (Associated Press)
POLLUTION: Marathon Petroleum will pay $3 million in fines and spend $2.8 million on upgrades to settle Clean Air Act violations at facilities in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. (Associated Press)
PIPELINES: Iowa officials are investigating a landowner’s charge that he was offered prostitutes by a pipeline developer. (Cedar Rapids Gazette)
FRACKING: A study finds high levels of airborne pollutants at drilling sites in an Ohio county. (InsideClimate News)
COAL:
• Critics say St. Louis-based Peabody Energy was exploiting the Ebola crisis to promote coal. (The Guardian)
• Co-ops want federal regulators to re-assess how railroad coal shipping charges are determined. (Electric Co-op Today)
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SOLAR: A Michigan man wants to start a buying club to help neighbors save money on solar panels. (Houghton Mining Gazette)
NATURAL GAS: Operations begin at a new Illinois power plant. (Associated Press)