OHIO: A law firm hired to help Ohio regulators respond to federal subpoenas and public records requests related to the House Bill 6 corruption scandal has multiple ties to state and utility officials who were involved in passing the law. (Energy News Network/Eye on Ohio)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• At the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, President Biden announces $900 million in federal funding to build electric vehicle charging stations in 34 states and Puerto Rico. (Bridge Michigan, Associated Press)
• Local officials delay the approval of a regional electric vehicle readiness plan in Missouri in order to incorporate more public feedback. (Southeast Missourian)
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Southern Environmental Law Center is hiring
The Southern Environmental Law Center—one of the nation’s most powerful environmental defenders, rooted in the South—is hiring an Energy and Climate Communications Manager. This role will oversee regional energy communications, including solar and methane gas issues, to advance climate progress.
COAL:
• With U.S. landfills disproportionately located in low-income, minority communities, some advocates worry these areas will be targets as utilities seek to relocate coal ash waste. (Energy News Network/Chicago Investigative Project)
• Roughly 80% of operating and recently retired U.S. coal plants could host an advanced nuclear power reactor, reducing capital costs by up to 35% compared to a greenfield project, according to the Department of Energy. (Utility Dive)
EMISSIONS: Minneapolis becomes the third U.S. city to pass an emissions-free shipping resolution that encourages carbon neutrality in shipping among corporate importers. (Grist)
UTILITIES:
• Unions and management reach a tentative deal to avert a strike among railroad workers that threatened to disrupt widespread energy fuel supplies. (CNN)
• A Missouri utility denies that billing errors have caused customers to experience skyrocketing cost increases for electricity and other utilities. (KOLR)
PIPELINES:
• Legal experts are closely watching a federal trespassing case involving a Wisconsin tribe and the Line 5 pipeline to determine whether elements of the case could apply in Michigan. (MLive)
• A carbon pipeline developer says it has reached landowner easement agreements covering more than half of the proposed route through Iowa. (AgWeek)
SOLAR:
• The largest solar project planned in Kansas has pitted neighbors against each other over the 2,000-acre project’s use of rural land. (KCUR)
• Customer complaints and state investigations over dubious sales tactics mount against multi-state solar installer Pink Energy, formerly known as Powerhome Solar. (FOX 2)
• A township in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula advances a solar zoning ordinance to regulate private and utility-scale projects. (WLUC)
EFFICIENCY: A Cleveland suburb prepares to undergo energy efficiency infrastructure upgrades to cut electricity costs. (Cleveland.com)
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Fresh Energy is hiring
Fresh Energy, a Minnesota-based clean energy nonprofit, is hiring a Digital Communications Associate to help advance Fresh Energy’s policy, program, and fundraising-related work.
OIL & GAS: South Dakota-based Black Hills Corp. plans to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions across its natural gas distribution system by 2035 through renewable fuel blending, carbon offsets and technology innovations. (S&P GLobal)
GRID: A Kansas group advocating for large energy users raises concerns about potential cost increases under Evergy’s sustainability plan that calls for transmission investments. (Washburn Review)
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