SOLAR: A bill being considered by New Jersey legislators would boost large solar projects by opening up farmland, reversing a previous policy that avoided those locations. (NJ Spotlight)
ALSO: Vermont regulators fine the developer of the state’s largest solar project $57,500 for violations of its permit during construction of the facility. (VT Digger)
***SPONSORED LINK: Register today for Veterans Advanced Energy Week, August 10-13, a virtual learning experience dedicated to military veterans and spouses in advanced energy and national security. Learn more at www.vetsenergyproject.org. ***
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE: The director of the Massachusetts governor’s office for environmental justice says her goal is to get a contact person for equity issues in every executive office. (WBUR)
RENEWABLE ENERGY: An environmental group releases a plan for economic recovery in Pennsylvania based on nature-based tourism, agriculture and renewable energy. (StateImpact Pennsylvania)
CLIMATE: A Massachusetts House committee clears a suite of climate-related bills for final action this week before the session wraps up. (State House News Service)
OFFSHORE WIND:
• Massachusetts backs away from a proposal to create an independent network of transmission interconnections for multiple offshore wind farms, citing the insufficient size of its projects. (E&E News, subscription required)
• While only seven wind turbines currently exist off the East Coast, advocates see hundreds more in coming years as projects begin construction. (E&E News, subscription required)
EMISSIONS: A Pennsylvania state senator says a consultant hired by the state to do climate modeling for an assessment of joining a regional emissions compact has a conflict of interest by also endorsing membership. (Daily American)
TRANSMISSION: Current and former Maine legislators write to Hydro-Quebec demanding it stay out of state elections and cease funding efforts to defeat a referendum designed to thwart its power line to export electricity to Massachusetts. (CommonWealth Magazine)
GRID: New England’s grid operator analyzes power use for the first six weeks of the summer and finds no significant change from models run last year to predict demand, despite COVID-19. (RTO Insider, subscription required)
***SPONSORED LINK: Register today for Fresh Energy’s Truly Affordable Webinar Series on Thursdays in July! Now more than ever the topic of affordable, energy efficient housing has become even more critical.***
CYBERSECURITY: The New York Power Authority and Siemens partner to create an innovation center to develop and test cybersecurity solutions for the power industry. (Niagara Publications)
COMMENTARY:
• A social justice advocate says a Clean Energy Equity office in New Jersey would help provide economic opportunity for underserved communities by providing worker training. (NJ Spotlight)
• A Pennsylvania legislator says policies like joining a regional emissions compact undermine the state’s economic legacy of providing jobs in energy and manufacturing. (Observer-Reporter)