January 16, 2020 9:14 AM EDT
Electricity is almost always invisible. Same with the workings of the power grid. But a new decision on energy policy by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is pulling back the curtain and picking a fight with just about everyone just when popular demand for clean energy is pushing our energy system to adapt and grow. For the business types, think of the grid as a trading platform – the rules set who is able to do business on the grid.
December 17, 2019 1:34 PM EDT
The FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) decision expected Thursday will allow PJM to counteract the intended effects of state energy policies supporting nuclear and renewable energy. But the decision is expected to allow PJM to ignore a larger, and more common state policy protecting monopolies from competition. Read more >
December 11, 2019 12:38 PM EDT
Despite the environmental, economic, and reliability benefits of switching to a renewables future, New Orleans, Louisiana is being blocked by local utility monopoly, Entergy.
December 10, 2019 10:09 AM EDT
After hundreds of pages of expert testimony (including testimony from UCS), thousands of public comments, and two rounds of legal briefing, a Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) administrative law judge will issue a recommended decision later this month on whether DTE’s integrated resource plan should be rejected, modified, or approved. UCS and numerous other stakeholders are urging the MPSC to reject DTE’s flawed resource plan and direct the company to redo its analysis. Here’s why. Read more >
December 5, 2019 1:56 PM EDT
This is the fourth of a four-part blog series on East Boston, a Controversial Substation, and Opportunities for a Clean Energy Transition.
In recent weeks via this blog we have explored a proposal from Boston-area electric utility Eversource to locate a risky high-voltage substation in a densely populated neighborhood in East Boston. We have covered the characteristics of East Boston and the range of environmental justice issues it faces, the community’s concerns around the project, and our own analysis of a local clean energy alternative.
This blog post is aimed at the decision-makers who are tasked with determining the wisdom of allowing the project to proceed, or of requiring more information and a more reality-based exploration of risks and opportunities. Below is an open letter from Juan Ramos, a Union of Concerned Scientists colleague and a resident of East Boston, asking the Massachusetts Energy Facilities Siting Board (EFSB) to listen to the people of East Boston; to base their decision on up-to-date, transparent, and sufficient data; and not to approve the current substation proposal from Eversource. Add your name to this open letter! Read more >
