CLEAN ENERGY: A conservative clean energy group launches a landowner rights initiative in Iowa to help counter local opposition to wind and solar projects. (Energy News Network)
ALSO: Vectren officials say the utility’s planned shift from coal to renewables and natural gas will save more than $320 million over the next 20 years and cut carbon emissions about 75%. (Evansville Courier & Press)
***SPONSORED LINK: Coping and Building Better in This Moment is the first in a summer series of town hall conversations from Elevate Energy. Register on Eventbrite for the June 18, 4-5 pm event and join the discussion.***
PIPELINES: The Trump administration asks the U.S. Supreme Court to revive a permit program that would allow the Keystone XL and other oil and gas pipelines to cross waterways with little review. (Associated Press)
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE:
• Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot proposes more stringent demolition requirements following the implosion of a former coal plant that covered the Little Village neighborhood in dust. (Chicago Sun-Times)
• Residents in north Minneapolis push for equity in an area with high pollution and health disparities. (InsideClimate News)
• Reduced traffic during the pandemic has lowered some air emissions in Detroit, though the region is still disproportionately impacted by industrial pollution, state officials say. (WEMU)
COAL: The remediation and sale of a former western Michigan coal plant is complete, and the site will now be used as a marine port terminal. (MiBiz)
SOLAR:
• A Michigan lawmaker from the Upper Peninsula testifies in support of his bill that would remove the cap on the number of customers who qualify for utility distributed generation programs. (WLUC)
• A solar group buying program in an eastern Iowa county looks to boost installations among homeowners. (Bellevue Herald-Leader)
• Rooftop solar panels at an Indiana county jail catch fire, though no injuries were reported. (WISH)
• Utilities remain largely silent on a proposal before federal regulators that would effectively overturn net metering programs nationwide. (Utility Dive)
• A housing development in northwestern Indiana includes rooftop solar panels to offset the building’s energy use. (Times of Northwest Indiana)
***SPONSORED LINK: Center Out: A Strategy for Climate Success will be hosted by the Great Plains Institute on June 25. Join the conversation about how the Midwest can lead the clean energy transformation. Click here for more and to RSVP.***
GRID: Transmission projects will be crucial to move wind and solar power from rural areas like the Great Plains to cities, experts say. (Bloomberg)
UTILITIES: Wisconsin regulators urge the state’s utilities to be flexible with customers who may have difficulty paying bills once a moratorium on disconnections is lifted on July 25. (WXPR)