CLIMATE: As short-term economic concerns erode political support for climate action, activists seek a path forward. (New York Times)

ALSO:
• The Biden administration can still use executive actions to slow emissions, but they likely won’t be enough to meet a pledge to limit warming to 1.5 degrees. (New York Times, Washington Post)
• A survey finds that while 9 in 10 utility executives say reducing emissions is a priority, only 38% of their companies are doing anything about it. (E&E News)
• Activists are pushing companies to adopt policies to actually cut emissions rather than relying on offsets to meet net-zero goals. (ABC News)
• A poll shows Republicans have a generational divide on climate change, with more than half of conservatives under 30 supporting policies to cut emissions. (Axios)

CRYPTOCURRENCY:
• A congressional investigation finds that seven major cryptocurrency companies use enough electricity to power all of the homes in Houston, pushing up costs for other energy consumers. (Grist)
• A Colorado county shuts down four methane-powered cryptocurrency mining operations at oil and gas wells to allow it time to formulate rules for the facilities. (Denver Post)

GRID:
• A team of U.S. researchers studies how power outages affect public health, part of a growing new field known as climate epidemiology. (Inside Climate News)
• Xcel Energy partners with community groups to develop “resilience hubs” in three Minneapolis neighborhoods where solar and storage-powered microgrids will provide emergency back-up power and added grid balancing options. (Energy News Network)
• A report finds smart electric panels can help reduce the need for costly grid upgrades. (Canary Media)

TRANSMISSION: While natural gas companies have spent millions to oppose the Clean Energy Connect transmission line in Maine, backers of the project say Hydro-Québec’s missteps have not helped. (The Narwhal)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• General Motors CEO Mary Barra says she believes the company can overtake Tesla this decade as the top U.S. seller of electric vehicles. (Associated Press)
• Surging demand for materials to make electric vehicle batteries has put a spotlight on a Michigan nickel mine, the only one in the U.S. (MLive)

OIL & GAS:
• Navajo Nation citizen scientists and advocates monitor oil and gas facility emissions in areas where regulators can’t — or won’t — go. (Nexus Media News)
• Environmentalists call on the Biden administration to tighten regulations on public land oil and gas drilling now that hopes for passing a congressional climate bill have languished. (E&E News)

COMMENTARY:
• Climate activist Leah Stokes notes that a year and a half of fruitless negotiating with Sen. Joe Manchin has cost valuable time by delaying other federal actions to reduce emissions. (New York Times)
• National security starts with keeping the lights on, writes a retired Navy admiral who says we must prepare our electric grid for climate change and a rapid transition to clean energy. (Ohio Capital Journal)

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Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy, and has led the project from its inception as Midwest Energy News in 2009. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he held a variety of editing, production, and leadership roles, and played a key role in the newspaper's transition to digital-first publishing. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon.