Happy Friday everyone. We hope you all enjoyed the holidays. Now let’s get back to it.
See below for a lot more articles and opinion pieces. Enjoy and have a great weekend.
Here are a few highlights from this week.
This is great news out of Lawrence. From the Eagle Tribune, Governor, Columbia Gas announce ‘substantial completion’ of gas restoration; say service back to 98 percent of customers, “The work to restore service to more than 10,000 homes affected by the gas disaster is pretty much done, but the mission is not accomplished, state and local officials said at a press conference early Wednesday afternoon. With natural gas service restored to 98 percent of residential and business customers, Gov. Baker, local municipal leaders and Columbia Gas announced the substantial completion of the gas restoration efforts in the Merrimack Valley…Officials said 150 customers are still without gas service, most of whom decided to “self-mitigate,” or complete necessary assessments and installations themselves on their own timeline, independent of Columbia Gas contractors, or have extenuating circumstances such as damages to their homes.
We end this week on some it’s good now but not later climate change news. From MSN.com, ‘We live in a lobstocracy’: Maine town is feeling the effects of climate change, “The American lobster is a symbol of Maine, central to the state’s ethos and economy…Lobster attracts tourists, feeds locals and is a lifeblood for coastal towns. It’s (sic) importance has even swelled in recent years as lobsters have been caught in record numbers. Lobster landings – or the amount of lobster caught – have risen fivefold in the past three decades. Lobster has become a half-billion-dollar industry in Maine. And the reason for the boom, according to scientists, is climate change. The Gulf of Maine is warming faster than 99% of the world’s waters, rising at three times the global average. That warming has created optimal conditions for lobsters to reproduce and survive into adulthood…But while the warming waters have resulted in a lobster bonanza, scientists say climate change will ultimately bring a bust to the boom: As the Gulf of Maine continues to warm, that temperature sweet spot for lobsters will continue to move north. That could result in a similar spike in lobsters in Canada, but leave Maine’s industry broken.
That’s it for this week. Enjoy the news below and have a wonderful weekend.
France Will Save $44.5 Billion By Betting on Renewable Energy, Says Government Agency, Bloomberg L.P.
TGIF! Let’s get to it.
That’s it for this afternoon. Have a great weekend and we’ll be back in your inboxes next Friday.
Several good news stories about solar in New England.
Holyoke Gas & Electric, a municipal power utility, is storing solar-generated electricity at the former Mount Tom Power Station coal-and-oil fired electricity plant. A solar array generates the power and the storage system is comprised of lithium ion batteries housed in shipping containers.
More news follows below. Have a great weekend.
Connecticut’s “Zero Carbon” program received over 100 submissions for solar, wind hydro and nuclear facilities. The Hartford Courant reports that “The participation of Dominion Energy, owner of the Millstone plant, has been a major point of controversy. The plant’s owners hinted that they might be forced to close the nuclear facility unless they were given the opportunity to compete in the new program, which could pay them higher rates for the power they produce.” But a preliminary state report estimates that Dominion and Millstone are expected to remain “highly profitable” through 2035.
This week the first two stories we bring you are law related.
That’s all for this week. Have a great weekend.
Midwest Utility Turning to Cows, Landfills for a Gas Alternative, Bloomberg L.P.
Surging Demand for Electric Vehicles, Bloomberg L.P.