COAL: A letter of intent to sue by environmental groups is meant to trigger state or federal action against a troubled Illinois coal mine over the release of toxic PFAs while attempting to extinguish an underground fire. (Energy News Network)
ALSO: Reaction is mixed to WEC Energy Group’s recently announced plan to eliminate coal by 2035, as some advocates raise concerns about its proposed shift primarily to natural gas. (Wisconsin State Journal)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Consumers Energy anticipates up to 1 million electric vehicles operating in its Michigan service territory by 2030, but the utility doesn’t foresee grid challenges if customers use off-peak charging. (Detroit News)
SOLAR:
• Midwest solar projects are testing the potential of incorporating native plants and sheep grazing to improve solar’s ecological benefits. (Associated Press)
• A Michigan lawmaker says the chairperson of the House Energy Committee is not allowing a vote on a bill that would lift the cap on small-scale solar projects that qualify for the state’s distributed generation program. (Michigan Radio)
• Ameren Missouri is partnering with universities and local governments to increase solar capacity in the eastern part of the state. (Missouri Times)
• A western Illinois manufacturing plant installs a 1.8 MW solar project that’s expected to provide about two-thirds of the facility’s power needs during the day. (Herald-Whig)
CARBON CAPTURE: A debate is growing in Iowa over whether the developer of a carbon dioxide pipeline should be required to release the names and contact information of landowners who would be affected by the project. (Globe Gazette)
CLIMATE: The owner of a clean energy training center in Minnesota is among dozens of advocates from the state traveling to the global climate summit in Scotland to promote local climate initiatives. (Star Tribune)
WIND: The developer of a planned 300 MW wind project in central Illinois awards $5,000 grants to local schools and governments for local quality of life projects. (Pantagraph)
OIL & GAS: The Public Utilities Commission of Missouri urges federal regulators to allow a St. Louis-area natural gas pipeline to continue operating to maintain adequate gas supplies. (KSDK)
TRANSPORTATION: U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio is leading the policy effort to promote the development of sustainable jet fuels. (WVXU)
BIOFUELS: The Iowa Department of Transportation will have 10 snowplows this winter that run on biodiesel. (CBS 2)
COMMENTARY:
• A Michigan coalition’s plan to invest $600 million in clean transportation infrastructure would help ensure the state remains a hub for clean mobility investment, says the head of an advanced energy trade group. (Energy News Network)
• A pipeline activist responds to a recent Enbridge op-ed by saying the “clock is ticking ever louder” in the Great Lakes over a potential Line 5 spill. (Traverse City Record-Eagle)