Energy News for week ending April 20, 2018

RGGI Pays Off | Palm Trees | Sox Go Green

Happy Friday Afternoon.

First up in the news this week is from Inside Climate News where we learn that our friends at the Analysis Group released a report Tuesday about the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) that showed some unexpected benefits. They report, “The nine Eastern states gained $1.4 billion in economic benefits from RGGI over the past three years because of the way they invested proceeds from the cap-and-trade program…The biggest payoff came in investments in energy efficiency programs, which have led to more businesses and jobs in activities such as energy audits and installing energy-efficiency equipment. The analysts also found that the cap-and-trade system has not undermined the reliability of the electricity grid, and it has not led to a net increase in electricity bills.”

Who doesn’t love palm trees? Greentech Media reports “A team of researchers is working to complete the design for a novel 50-megawatt offshore wind turbine…The blades for the so-called Segmented Ultralight Morphing Rotor (SUMR) wind turbine would…face downwind. The “go-with-the-flow” design was inspired by palm trees, which have evolved to withstand hurricane gales. Just as palm fronds bend and yield to the direction of the wind, the segmented blades for the SUMR turbine will fold together, aligned with the wind direction, in strong winds.”

The Red Sox are on quite a roll this season. For some activists though the chant of “Let’s Go Red Sox” should be “Sox Go Green.” From the Eagle Tribune, “Fenway Park already has its Green Monster — and now environmental activists want the whole ballpark to ‘go green’… activists from Environment Massachusetts and MASSPIRG Students have announced the launch of their “Sox Go Green” campaign. They’re asking the franchise to obtain 100 percent of the energy used for Fenway Park, team operations, and the team’s spring training facility in Florida from renewable resources like solar and wind power within five years.” Whatever the Red Sox decide, we certainly don’t want them to change whatever energy they have going in their bats right now.

As always you can find energy events at Northeast Energy News. Have a great weekend.

Natural Gas/Oil/Pipeline/Drilling

FERC issues NOI seeking comments on gas pipeline evaluations, Utility Dive

Zinke hints at Maine exemption for offshore gas drilling, Penn Energy

For public hearing on fracking, public shows up, but hearing is delayed, Thehour.com

Oil leaking into Mystic River in Boston believed to be coming from Eversource pipe, The Boston Globe

Footprint cuts ties with Iberdrola, The Salem News

Two years after pipeline shelved, opposition groups continue fighting fossil fuel development, The Keene Sentinel

Columbia Gas seeks rate hike, MassLive.com

As FERC Review of NatGas Pipeline Policy Nears, House Lawmakers Divided Over Priorities, Natural Gas Intelligence

FERC Whipsawed on Pipeline Policy in House Hearing, RTO Insider

Parents Didn’t Want Fracking Near Their School. So the Oil Company Chose a Poorer School, Instead., Mother Jones