OFFSHORE WIND: As Northeast states rush to get offshore wind farms online, Rhode Island still maintains big advantages in the industry because it was the first state to approve and install such a project. (New York Times)

ALSO: Connecticut legislators push forward with a bill to make offshore wind developers create a compensation fund for environmental degradation or missed economic targets. (The Day)

Check out our job board!
Looking for a clean energy job, or want to spread the word about your open position? Check out our new job listings board! Listings are also included in our weekly newsletter.

CLEAN ENERGY:
• A New York power producer trade group doesn’t want state legislators to let New York Power Authority to build and own renewable energy projects, claiming it would raise costs and not help hit climate goals faster. (Auburn Citizen)
• The head of Massachusetts’ energy and environmental affairs department names a new commissioner to lead the energy resources department. (CommonWealth Magazine)

REGULATION: A Maryland lawmaker plans to hold up the approval of a utility commission nominee over their potential involvement in the oversight and investigation of a fatal apartment complex gas explosion in 2016. (Maryland Matters)

SOLAR:
• Residents of a rural upstate New York county consider the implications of a proposed 40 MW solar project, while the farmer who owns the site views the development as a way for him to keep his farm running. (Adirondack Explorer)
• An agricultural New York county has only seen about 2% of its farmland used for more than two dozen solar farms. (Observer Today)
• A former paper mill is converted into a 17 MW solar farm in north New Jersey. (ROI-NJ)

BUILDINGS:
• New York City environmentalists fear a loophole allows commercial property owners to buy their way out of complying with an ambitious local building efficiency law. (City Limits)
• A net-zero animal shelter in Connecticut uses solar power to heat and electrify the facility. (Zip 06)
• A $2 million workforce program trains New York City public housing residents for green jobs, including building efficiency retrofits. (SI Live)

CLIMATE: Rising temperatures, warmer waters and more rainfall limit the proliferation of phytoplankton in the Gulf of Maine, where the microscopic plants serve as the basis of the food chain. (Maine Public Radio)

UTILITIES: A Connecticut town considers a community energy aggregation program to lower residents’ energy costs as rates at the state’s investor-owned utilities rise dramatically. (CT Insider)

COMMENTARY: A Chesapeake Bay oyster aquaculture leader writes that a recent court decision finding the Conowingo Dam’s license recertification did not follow federal water quality regulations is a win for his industry. (Maryland Matters)

More from the Energy News Network: Midwest | Southeast | Northeast | West

Bridget is a freelance reporter and newsletter writer based in the Washington, D.C., area. She compiles the Northeast Energy News digest. Bridget primarily writes about energy, conservation and the environment. Originally from Philadelphia, she graduated from Emerson College in 2015 with a degree in journalism and a minor in environmental studies. When she isn’t working on a story, she’s normally on a northern Maine lake or traveling abroad to practice her Spanish language skills.