OHIO:
• Sam Randazzo, the former chairman of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, helped draft language in the state’s nuclear plant bailout law that would have made it more difficult to develop renewable energy projects while benefiting a former client, emails show. (Cleveland.com)
• FirstEnergy made significant contributions to a dark money group supporting Gov. Mike DeWine and his daughter’s bid for a county prosecutor job, according to 2019 tax records. (Cincinnati Enquirer)
STORAGE: A state economic development study says Iowa needs stronger policies or incentives to boost energy storage in the coming years to support growth in wind and solar power. (Energy News Network)
BIOFUELS: Waste being stored at and in some cases reused by a Nebraska ethanol plant is likely polluting nearby water and soil and posing a public health threat, researchers say. (The Guardian)
SOLAR:
• At least 15 solar projects of 1,000 acres or more are slated to come online in Indiana by 2024, drawing opposition from some rural residents. (The Republic)
• Consumers Energy announces eight new solar projects totaling 16 MW that are now online in two eastern Michigan counties. (WNEM)
• Local officials in Ohio consider joining a partnership with municipalities statewide to purchase solar power under community choice aggregation. (Zanesville Times Recorder)
• Developer Apex Clean Energy is launching a community grant program for local nonprofits near a planned solar development in southeastern Michigan. (Monroe News)
• Two Michigan solar companies form a partnership to expand solar development in the northern Lower Peninsula. (Traverse City Ticker)
EMISSIONS: Traffic is a key driver of air pollution in Minnesota, which is disproportionately affecting low-income areas and communities of color, a state agency reports. (MPR News)
COAL: Officials continue to search for a new owner for North Dakota’s largest coal plant, which is slated for a fall 2022 closure. (Jamestown Sun)
CLIMATE: A Kansas resident who has spent more than 50 years researching climate science was an early adopter of clean energy and efficiency to power his home. (Wichita Eagle)
PIPELINES: Eight people were arrested over the weekend in northern Minnesota as a couple hundred people gathered to protest construction of the Line 3 pipeline replacement. (MPR News)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: General Motors launches a new marketing campaign to reshape its image as a clean vehicle company as it prepares to roll out more than two dozen new EV models in the coming years. (Associated Press)
COMMENTARY:
• No obvious frontrunner has emerged to replace state Rep. Michael Madigan as Illinois’ House Speaker, who is embroiled in controversy involving contracts with utility ComEd, a columnist says. (Chicago Sun-Times)
• Des Moines, Iowa, officials should avoid relying on renewable energy certificates to meet a planned carbon-free energy target by 2030, says the founder of the Iowa Association of Political Scientists. (Des Moines Register)