MINING: A mining push in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula brings challenges to planning the region’s energy future. (Midwest Energy News)
ALSO: Rate cuts for Minnesota taconite processing plants are still subject to regulatory approval, which means the impact on residential customers is uncertain. (Forum News Service)
***SPONSORED LINK: Energy and the Earth, a free online offering by University of Wisconsin, gives you a big picture perspective on energy issues. Participate for free and at your own pace: www.moocs.wisc.edu ***
TRANSPORTATION: A federal judge has ruled that state and federal transportation agencies violated the law by using faulty projections on traffic and population when developing a planned toll road between Illinois and Indiana. Advocates called it a “key precedent.” (ClimateWire)
CLIMATE: A major EPA study released Monday says global climate change inaction would cause nearly 70,000 premature deaths by the end of the century and cost hundreds of billions of dollars in economic losses. (Washington Post)
RENEWABLES: Democratic presidential hopeful Martin O’Malley’s clean-energy plan calls for 100 percent renewables by 2050. (Utility Dive)
OIL: Bakken crude oil resources are driving Minnesota’s oldest oil refinery to make $100 million in upgrades for expanded capacity. (StarTribune)
COAL:
• A global health commission recommends that countries around the world should stop burning coal within the next five years to avoid serious health consequences. (Associated Press)
• Murray Energy forms a new partnership to start a global commodities marketing and trading firm to bolster its coal sales domestically and abroad. (Pittsburgh Business Times)
SMART METERS: The technology alone may not be enough to achieve all of the goals set forth with smart grids and microgrids. (The Energy Collective)
ETHANOL: A Minnesota ethanol plant shuts down after an explosion over the weekend injured two. (Reuters)
UTILITIES:
• Consumers Energy launches a drone to inspect utility poles and wind turbines and potentially improve customer service. (MLive)
• Tesla CEO Elon Musk assures a room full of utility executives that their future is “actually quite positive.” (EnergyWire)
PROTEST: Federal prosecutors say they will not seek to reinstate a conviction against an 85-year-old nun for a 2012 protest at a Tennessee nuclear facility. (NPR)
***SPONSORED LINK: The Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association presents its annual Michigan Renewable Energy Fair June 26-27. Features include an electric vehicle showcase, workshops, renewable energy demonstrations, kids’ activities, and much more! ***
MICROGRIDS: Advocates issue a report for local officials on how to develop microgrids. (Utility Dive)
COMMENTARY: Regional energy markets and performance-based regulation are among five trends in America’s energy system transition. (Utility Dive)