CLIMATE: House Democrats are expected to release a plan today to achieve net-zero emissions in the U.S. by 2050, while prioritizing environmental justice communities. (New York Times)
ALSO:
• Amid a broadening national conversation on racial equity in the climate movement, NAACP senior director Jacqui Patterson talks about the group’s longstanding work on climate and clean energy. (Energy News Network)
• The New Jersey Senate passes a bill that gives “overburdened communities” a say in the approval process of new facilities that add polluting sources. (NJ Spotlight)
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COAL:
• Eighty local, regional and national organizations roll out a National Economic Transition Platform to support struggling coal mining towns. (InsideClimate News)
• Coal communities are increasingly relying on federal health programs due to continuing layoffs and declining state revenues from coal and oil. (Energy News Network)
• The Supreme Court rejects a petition to review a dispute over a Navajo Nation coal mine and power plant in New Mexico. (Bloomberg Law, subscription)
TRANSPORTATION: President Trump threatens to veto a $1.5 trillion infrastructure plan, as Republicans claim it is “heavily biased against rural America.” (The Hill)
PIPELINES: The U.S. Supreme Court wants the Trump administration’s views before it rules on New Jersey’s decision to block the PennEast pipeline by preventing seizure of state land along the pipeline’s route. (Bloomberg Law)
OIL & GAS: New polling shows significantly low support for oil and gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge across the political spectrum. (Alaska Native News)
WIND: Both offshore wind turbines are now in place at Dominion Energy’s pilot project off the coast of Virginia Beach, and will undergo testing before starting up later this summer. (Greentech Media)
SOLAR:
• A federal study finds the expected lifespan of solar projects now exceeds 32 years on average, up from 21.5 years in 2007. (Greentech Media)
• A solar industry group finds the value of solar sent back to the grid from Michigan utility customers exceeds retail rates currently paid under net metering. (PV Magazine)
• A Black Maryland woman founds a solar company to develop community solar projects for underserved communities. (Black Enterprise)
STORAGE: A pumped-hydro storage startup wins a contract from New York to construct a pilot project for an underground system. (Grist)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Automakers are working with tech startups on ways to reuse electric vehicle batteries as a grid resource. (Greentech Media)
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UTILITIES:
• California lawmakers pass a bill that would initiate a government takeover of PG&E if the utility doesn’t meet certain bankruptcy deadlines or fails to perform required safety work. (Bloomberg Law, subscription)
• Indiana regulators deny 10 utilities’ request to charge customers for electricity and natural gas that wasn’t used during the pandemic. (Times of Northwest Indiana)
COMMENTARY: An energy policy expert at a free-market think tank explains why conservatives are divided over a proposal to federalize net metering. (Utility Dive)