EMISSIONS: Two states and New York City will argue before a federal appeals court that the EPA fails to address a pollutant that drifts over them from upwind power plants and other sources. (Bloomberg)
ALSO: Federal environmental officials approve updated clean air plans for New York and New Jersey. (Bloomberg, subscription required)
***SPONSORED LINK: Applications are now open for the Veterans Advanced Energy Fellowship, a yearlong program for high-performing, high-potential military veterans in advanced energy, presented by the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center. Learn more at www.vetsenergyproject.org/fellowship***
SOLAR: A New England startup pairs community solar projects with farmers who need revenue from their unused land. (The Rising)
OIL & GAS:
• A Pennsylvania congressman and energy companies successfully lobbied for changes to a federal loan program for businesses hurt by the coronavirus pandemic that could help gas drillers in the state. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• The developer of a biogas plant at the former site of a Philadelphia refinery terminates its lease that was holding up a bankruptcy sale and says it will negotiate an agreement with the new owner. (WHYY)
• Pennsylvania legislators and natural gas industry representatives tell a virtual energy forum that the industry can lead an economic revival post-COVID-19. (Erie News Now)
PIPELINES: Residents of a western Maryland county say a pending pipeline from Pennsylvania to West Virginia threatens their water quality. (WDVM)
TRANSPORTATION: Transportation advocates worry that financial damage done to public transit systems by the coronavirus pandemic will cause irreparable harm that will force more people to rely on private cars. (E&E News, subscription required)
WASTE-TO-ENERGY: Subscribing towns to a trash-burning facility in Connecticut reject a $333 million renovation, leaving officials to consider shipping garbage out-of-state. (CT Mirror)
POWER PLANTS: Cleanup of a defunct power plant site in Connecticut by its former operator is delayed because its new owner has not yet given permission. (New Haven Register, subscription required)
UTILITIES:
• New York officials and a public utility pushed a plan last year to limit press access to its deliberations that was abandoned after public exposure. (Politico)
• A New Jersey utility continues to use drones to inspect power lines as it limits public interaction during the coronavirus outbreak. (NJ101.5)
CLIMATE: If Harvard won’t divest from fossil fuels, what does its net-zero pledge actually mean? (Grist)
COMMENTARY: The Sierra Club says states should leave the organized energy markets if their decisions and recent orders by federal regulators undermine efforts to encourage clean resources and hurt consumers. (Utility Dive)