WIND:
• A major wind project approved in Iowa recently “may be just the first in a series of mega wind projects to advance in the coming months.” (Greentech Media)
• Xcel Energy brings online a 200-megawatt wind project in southwestern Minnesota. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
CLIMATE:
• A new study showing the economic impact of climate change on future generations underscores the need to get Ohio’s clean energy standards back on track, advocates say. (Midwest Energy News)
• One economist says the cost of meeting the Paris climate accord could range between $1.28 trillion and $5.28 trillion; meanwhile other research has pegged the economic benefits as high as $10 trillion for the U.S. alone. (Greenwire, Washington Post archive)
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COAL: U.S. average coal employment falls to record lows after another 3,500 jobs are lost during the most recent quarter. (SNL / Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Utilities are giving more thought to the placement of electric vehicle charging stations in order to increase EV adoption rates, which could contribute to load growth. (Utility Dive)
TRANSMISSION:
• Illinois officials and the developer behind the $1.8 billion, 500-mile Rock Island Clean Line project vow to appeal a recent court decision blocking the plan. (Crain’s Chicago Business)
• Intervenors in the Grain Line Express Clean Line proceeding in Missouri have until mid-September to participate in the case. (Missouri Times)
CLEAN ENERGY: Advocates celebrate the one-year anniversary of the announcement of Minnesota’s Clean Power Plan. (Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder)
PIPELINES:
• A United Nations governing body on indigenous issues says the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe should have a say in resolving differences over the Dakota Access pipeline. (Associated Press)
• Thirty Dakota Access protesters are arrested and charged with trespassing after attempting to block access to construction equipment; at least two more are arrested in North Dakota. (Radio Iowa, Associated Press)
• North Dakota tribes say a pipeline developer did not get permission from them to put an oil and gas pipeline beneath a major lake along the Missouri River. (Associated Press)
SOLAR: A Minnesota community center looks to offset its electric costs with a new solar installation. (Brainerd Dispatch)
NUCLEAR: Exelon’s president and CEO finds it “frustrating” that the nuclear industry is struggling because, he says, technologies are incentivized, instead of outcomes. (POWER Magazine)
OIL AND GAS:
• A new report says roughly 30,000 children in Ohio will suffer asthma attacks each year by 2025 due to smog created by oil and gas operations. (Columbus Dispatch)
• An oil field waste landfill operator is found with high levels of illegal radioactive materials on site. (Bismarck Tribune)
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EMISSIONS: Illinois officials extend the public comment period on a Springfield utility’s updated air pollution permit request. (Springfield State Journal-Register)
COMMENTARY:
• An air quality advocate in Michigan says increased renewable energy standards can help the state comply with the federal Clean Power Plan, “decrease dangerous pollution and save ratepayers money.” (MLive)
• “Utility-scale solar is taking hold here in the Midwest, just as it is in other parts of the nation.” (Union of Concerned Scientists)