MICHIGAN: Democratic legislators introduce bills to double the state’s renewable energy and efficiency standards. (Midwest Energy News)
TRANSMISSION: Wisconsin officials give final approval to a $580 million transmission line, opponents are expected to appeal. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
***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.***
OIL AND GAS: A new study finds that oil and has drilling from 2000-2012 has consumed about 7 million acres of range, agricultural and forest land. (Midwest Energy News)
ALSO:
• The USGS releases a report linking thousands of earthquakes to oil and gas activity. (New York Times)
• North Dakota’s senate approves a bill to cut drilling taxes. (Bismarck Tribune)
• Oklahoma lawmakers advance a bill to limit local authority over oil and gas operations. (Tulsa World)
UTILITIES:
• MLive will host a live chat today with a Consumers Energy executive to discuss Michigan’s capacity shortfall (background here). (MLive, Midwest Energy News archive)
• Michigan regulators sign off on Wisconsin Energy’s acquisition of Integrys. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
• Illinois utilities push back against accusations they’re profiting from a recent capacity auction. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
CLIMATE: The White House announces an initiative to curb carbon emissions from agricultural practices. (Washington Post)
NUCLEAR:
• Dynegy says it may have to cut jobs in downstate Illinois if lawmakers pass a bill to help Exelon’s nuclear plants. (Crain’s Chicago Business)
• An environmental group appeals a license extension for a Missouri nuclear plant. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
SOLAR: Farmers discuss the benefits of solar power at a workshop in rural Iowa. (Agri News)
COAL:
• An Ohio utility says it is burning 15 percent less coal than it was a year ago. (Columbus Business First)
• An abandoned coal mine creates a safety hazard for an Indiana highway. (WTHI-TV)
ELECTRIC CARS: Entrepreneurs take on the problem of charging electric cars in cities with large numbers of apartment-dwellers. (New York Times)
TRANSPORTATION: U.S. automobile travel grows for the 12th consecutive month. (Reuters)
***SPONSORED LINK: What is the media’s role in addressing environmental challenges? Join Ensia magazine for a conversation with journalist Marc Gunther May 20 at the University of Minnesota. Free and open to the public.***
TECHNOLOGY: An Indiana high school installs floor tiles that generate electricity as students walk over them. (Indiana Daily Student)
COMMENTARY: Wind and solar will be our dominant energy sources sooner than you think. (Scientific American)