Minnesota state appeals court ruled in favor of the Line 3 pipeline on Monday, upholding key approvals by state regulators. The three-judge panel found Minnesota’s Public Utility Commission did not act improperly when it granted Enbridge permits concerning the route and “certificate of need” for its controversial tar sands oil … [continued]
New reporting highlights the disproportionate burden, caused at both ends of the climate change cycle, borne by women. In Minnesota, where Enbridge is seeking to build its controversial Line 3 tar sands oil pipeline, warnings from Indigenous groups over the link between the influx of extractive industry workers and sexual violence are coming to … [continued]
Courtesy of Union Of Concerned Scientists. By Samantha Houston This blog post was written with substantial input from Alyssa Tsuchiya. On Friday, a Minnesota administrative law judge ruled the state can proceed with finalizing new clean car standards that will give Minnesotans more control over air quality improvements and progress toward the state’s greenhouse … [continued]
Enbridge continued operating its Line 5 oil pipeline through the environmentally ultra-sensitive Straits of Mackinac, defying an order by Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to shut down the pipeline. The Canadian pipeline company’s defiance of the order is a dramatic development in a long-running showdown between it and Michigan. Enbridge, which … [continued]
Originally published on the NRDC Expert Blog. By Simon Mui The proposal to adopt a Clean Cars Minnesota program was given a greenlight today. An Administrative Law Judge ruled — as part of her report issued today — that the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) could move forward based on the extensive, … [continued]
Originally published at ilsr.org. The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission has required that Xcel Energy, the largest electricity provider in Minnesota, conduct annual hosting capacity analysis reports since 2016. These reports identify where the grid can accommodate additional distributed generation capacity (including rooftop and community solar) and the results are displayed on … [continued]
Originally published on the NRDC Expert Blog. By Kathy Harris, Walton Shepherd Virginia Governor Northam signed into law a bill to join 17 other states that have adopted or are considering adoption of a “Clean Cars” program — setting the Commonwealth up to become the leader in electric vehicles in the South. … [continued]
Originally published on ILSR.org Since rooftop solar became possible, electric utilities have struggled to incorporate it into their outdated business model. In recent years, this lag in utility recognition has become increasingly problematic, risking the health, environmental, and financial impacts of over-investment in large fossil fuel power plants. In over … [continued]
In both 2019 and 2020, project developers in the United States installed more wind power capacity than any other generating technology. According to data recently published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) in its Preliminary Monthly Electric Generator Inventory, annual wind turbine capacity additions in the United States set … [continued]
It’s no secret that transportation is the largest source of carbon emissions in the United States. So it’s not surprising that, besides promoting the use of public transit, biking, and walking, cities are also embracing electric vehicles (EVs) in their quest to cut carbon emissions. But some are thinking outside of the box: In addition to … [continued]
