SOLAR: While some Maine wild blueberry farmers hope mounting solar panels over their crop will help protect farmland and boost the industry, University of Maine research suggests affected plants could produce fewer berries. (Energy News Network)

ALSO:
• Residents near a Connecticut solar array work to get the developer to follow its project agreement and replace extensive dead landscaping. (CT Post)
• Developers say a planned solar panel assembly plant in upstate New York will be operational by July 2023. (Solar Power World)

PUBLIC TRANSIT:
• Federal transportation officials release a lengthy report detailing their conclusions following a long inspection of Boston’s transit agency, identifying numerous safety and workplace culture concerns. (Boston.com, Boston Globe)
• Officials behind a planned but much delayed train line connecting the suburban Maryland cities encircling Washington, D.C., reach a labor agreement with their new contractor. (Washington Post)
• New York City installs automatic cameras to enforce its dedicated bus lanes, which are frequently clogged by illegally parked cars. (Politico)

TRANSPORTATION:
• New Jersey officials are failing to take traffic congestion around New York City as seriously as New York officials, activists say. (New Jersey Monitor)
• New Jersey’s governor defends his turnpike widening plan without acknowledging the seemingly unavoidable bottleneck that is the Holland Tunnel. (Gothamist)

FOSSIL FUELS: Massachusetts climate activists, spurred by their recent legislative win enabling 10 cities and towns to ban gas in new buildings, want to expand that authority to every jurisdiction. (S&P Global)

CLIMATE:
• The flash drought across much of the Northeast looks different from western droughts, but still has major ecological and human impacts. (Grist)
• A Portland nonprofit leader connects young and new Mainers with local activists to focus on civic engagement around a common concern: climate change. (Bangor Daily News)
• This year, Connecticut schools must teach students about climate change within their science courses. (Yale Climate Connections)
• New Hampshire’s coastal towns could see at least one foot of sea level rise by 2050, according to a federal estimate. (WMUR)

CLEAN ENERGY: South Portland, Maine, kicks off a new electrification rebate program, with varying financial incentives to purchase electrified equipment from leaf blowers to cargo e-bikes. (News Center Maine)

BUILDINGS:
• Vermont marijuana growers receive indirect taxpayer subsidies through rebates for taking energy efficiency measures at their power-hungry grow houses. (Seven Days)
• A Maryland county becomes the first county in the nation to be certified LEED Platinum by the U.S. Green Building Council. (WBAL)

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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.