BIOGAS: The potential for generating energy from anaerobic digesters could address water quality issues and increase clean energy from Wisconsin farms, though economic and technical challenges remain with bringing biogas to the market. (Midwest Energy News)
UTILITIES: Republican lawmakers in Wisconsin want state regulators to review contracts put in place by We Energies 15 years ago, saying the utility’s rate of return on some projects is too high and may be impacting rates. (Associated Press)
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SOLAR: IKEA is installing a 470,000-square-foot solar array at a new distribution center in Illinois, making it the largest rooftop solar project in the state. (Yale Climate Connections)
WIND: North Dakota is among several states where new wind development is bringing strong opposition from lawmakers who oppose industry incentives. (ClimateWire)
NUCLEAR: More than 1,000 gallons of sulfuric acid is found leaking from a nuclear plant in southwest Michigan. (MLive)
OIL AND GAS: The U.S. EPA withdraws a request that operators of existing oil and gas wells provide extensive data about methane emissions. (Washington Post)
POLICY: The Senate votes 62-37 to confirm former Texas Gov. Rick Perry as head of the Energy Department, an agency he had once pledged as a presidential candidate to eliminate. (New York Times)
PIPELINES:
• A public hearing next week on a plan to increase the capacity of an oil pipeline through northern Minnesota is expected to draw a large crowd. (Forum News Service)
• Prosecutors withdraw a subpoena for a man who had been ordered to testify about a violent clash between law enforcement and Dakota Access protesters. (Associated Press)
• The flood risk at the site of the last Dakota Access pipeline protest in North Dakota has been greatly reduced. (Associated Press)
COAL:
• President Trump is expected to sign an executive order next week lifting the ban on new federal coal mining leases. (Reuters)
• Ohio-based American Electric Power saw a slight increase in coal costs in 2016, filings show. (Platts)
OIL AND GAS: A Minnesota town will hold a public meeting next week on Xcel Energy’s plan to build a gas pipeline to service a plant it is converting from coal to natural gas. (Patch)
DEMAND RESPONSE: Michigan-based Consumers Energy offers customers a variety of incentives to reduce their energy demand during summer months. (MLive)
COMMENTARY: Illinois renewable energy advocates say installers are seeing success based on solar’s economic and energy security benefits. (Rock River Times)