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)

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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