SOLAR: Seeing an “existential threat” to their bottom line, utilities organize to roll back incentives for distributed solar power. (New York Times)

POLLUTION: A shift from coal to natural gas is reducing smog in central Ohio; and a new study finds increased cancer risk from benzene, a chemical found in crude oil and gasoline. (Columbus Dispatch)

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TRANSMISSION: An interstate transmission compact being considered by Kansas legislators could help bring more wind and solar power to market. (Stateline)

EFFICIENCY: While fighting Ohio efficiency rules, FirstEnergy continues to distribute CFL bulbs to customers, in what advocates call “an antique approach” to conserving energy. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)

OIL: The Obama administration delays new safety regulations for trains carrying crude oil, Exxon reverses a decision to end temporary housing payments for residents affected by an Arkansas oil spill, and Enbridge will pay $425,000 to settle charges it made illegal discharges while testing a Minnesota pipeline. (Associated Press, InsideClimate News, Minneapolis Star Tribune)

FRACKING:
• Hundreds are expected at an anti-fracking rally in Youngstown, Ohio today. (Youngstown Vindicator)
• Experts say the anti-fracking movement is driven in part by perceived arrogance and lack of transparency by the drilling industry. (Associated Press)
• The allure of drilling royalties creates a dilemma in Ohio’s Amish country. (Associated Press)
• Fracking in Illinois is still months away as the state slowly implements new drilling regulations. (Springfield State Journal-Register)
• A new drilling fight emerges in the northern part of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. (Detroit News)

BAKKEN: A company in North Dakota deploys new “grid shack” technology to reduce natural gas flaring in the oil fields. (Forum News Service)

WIND: For the third time, a court rejects a challenge to an Illinois county’s wind ordinance. (Chicago Tribune)

KEYSTONE XL: President Obama wades into the Keystone XL pipeline debate, questioning industry job claims and noting the project could lead to higher gasoline prices in some areas. (The Hill)

AGRICULTURE: While Wisconsin seeks to prohibit stray voltage lawsuits against utilities, at least six such cases are currently underway in Minnesota. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)

TRANSPORTATION: UPS says it can cut fuel costs for long-haul trucks by 40 percent by switching to natural gas, and Michigan researchers work to improve electric vehicle batteries. (Bloomberg, CBS Detroit)

COMMENTARY: The five most important names in renewable energy that you’ve never heard of, and how fracking benefits Wisconsin companies other than sand miners. (Grist, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

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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