SOLAR:
• Republican lawmakers in Michigan look to settle the value of solar debate after various stakeholders spent months trying unsuccessfully to reach consensus. (Midwest Energy News)
• Minneapolis officials expect the region’s public transportation authority to save $4 million over 25 years by installing solar panels on its bus garages. (CBS Minnesota)
CHOICE: Utilities and their opponents square off in attempting to change Michigan’s Retail Open Access law. (Associated Press)
***SPONSORED LINK: Marking its fifth anniversary, Midwest Energy News will highlight 40 Under 40 Midwest-based leaders who are helping accelerate America’s transition to a clean energy economy. The 2015 40 Under 40 cohort will be announced on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday this week. ***
CLEAN POWER PLAN:
• Opponents eagerly await for the final rule to be published in the Federal Register so they can mount formal challenges. (EnergyWire)
• Three Minnesota utilities say they expect rates to increase in order to comply with the plan. (Minnesota Public Radio)
PIPELINES:
• An Enbridge pipeline leaks, spilling 700 barrels of water during an equipment test last week in Minnesota. (Duluth News Tribune)
• Two years after North Dakota’s largest oil pipeline spill, a landowner with contaminated property sees an end in sight. (Bismarck Tribune)
PLANT CLOSURE: Wisconsin lawmakers pass a bill that would ease the revenue decline for a region where two plants are closing. (Telegraph Herald)
EMISSIONS:
• Industry groups and several states, including Michigan, ask the U.S. Supreme Court to throw out the EPA’s rules for reducing mercury at coal plants. (Greenwire)
• A bipartisan group of federal lawmakers introduce legislation that would delay compliance for some under a stricter ozone standard. (E&E Daily)
FRAC SAND: After a Wisconsin town’s moratorium on frac sand ends, no applications for development have been filed. (LaCrosse Tribune)
WIND: Xcel Energy breaks ground on a 200 MW wind farm in North Dakota. (Associated Press)
CLIMATE:
• A new survey of scientists from a diverse background of disciplines confirms the scientific consensus on human-caused climate change. (Washington Post)
• President Obama said any climate pact reached in Paris is likely to fall short, given how aggressively emissions need to curbed. (Climate Central)
UTILITIES: Exelon officials say they plan to refile a bid today to acquire Pepco in a $6.8 billion merger after regulators rejected a previous deal. (Baltimore Business Journal)
OIL AND GAS: Thousands file for unemployment benefits in North Dakota amid industry downturn. (Bismarck Tribune)
VW POLLUTION CASE:
• Attorneys in Wisconsin add to the list of states pursuing federal class-action lawsuits against VW. (WISC-TV)
• The EPA announces sweeping changes to be more aggressive in testing emissions from cars. (Associated Press)
***SPONSORED LINK: Hear top executives from the area’s RTOs, utilities, transmission developers, and state regulatory agencies discuss and debate critical issues at EUCI’s Transmission Expansion in the Midwest conference November 9-10 in Indianapolis.***
MINING: Small districts in northern Minnesota consider how they can work together to use mining revenues to build new schools. (MinnPost)
RATES: A South Dakota utility says it has reached an agreement with state regulators for a $20 million annual rate increase. (Associated Press)
COMMENTARY: Environmental groups say Ohio lawmakers “need to embrace markets rather than polluters” when considering the state’s clean-energy freeze. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
CORRECTION: An item in Friday’s digest had an incorrect link. Commentary from a craft brewery owner on finding ways to reroute oil transportation away from the Straits of Mackinac can be found here.