Despite shutdowns, coal still powers much of Minnesota

COAL: The Interior Department will investigate whether coal companies are lowballing the value of coal mined on public lands to avoid paying royalties to the government. (The Hill)

ALSO: A string of recently announced coal plant shutdowns in Minnesota represent only about 3 percent of the state’s CO2 emissions, and an Indiana TV station does an extensive report on the health impact of coal emissions. (Minneapolis Star Tribune, WTHR)

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CARBON CAPTURE: Ohio State University researchers develop a process that can capture 99 percent of the CO2 emissions from coal, but the technology still has to be proven in a real-world setting. (Midwest Energy News)

NUCLEAR: A Wisconsin lawmaker seeks to add nuclear power to the state’s renewable energy standard, and MidAmerican Energy says it is still considering a new nuclear plant in Iowa. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Des Moines Register)

CLIMATE: The EPA opens a 60-day comment period for its climate change plan, which will ​“integrate, or mainstream, considerations of climate change into its programs, policies, rules and operations.” (The Hill)

TRANSMISSION: American Transmission Company scales back a plan to expand a transmission line into Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. (LaCrosse Tribune)

SOLAR: As the solar industry expands, so does the need for disposing of hazardous waste from the production process. (Associated Press)

FRAC SAND: Wisconsin regulators say a frac sand mine is failing to follow its own dust control plan, and sets a deadline to correct the problem. (LaCrosse Tribune)

ETHANOL: A corn shortage has forced at least 20 ethanol plants to shut down. (Associated Press)

TRANSPORTATION: A new study finds more than 460 Midwest manufacturers will benefit from the expansion of high-speed rail. (Associated Press)

KEYSTONE XL: Rep. Fred Upton says he’s ​“not overly optimistic” the Keystone XL pipeline will be approved, Secretary of State John Kerry offers few hints on where he stands on the issue. (Kalamazoo Gazette, Politico)

TECHNOLOGY: Electric car execs say batteries are improving at a ​“revolutionary” pace of about 5 to 8 percent per year. (GigaOM)

WIND: Wisconsin regulators won’t require an environmental impact statement for a proposed wind farm in St. Croix county. (Pierce County Herald)

COMMENTARY: The president’s climate rhetoric needs to move beyond green jobs and energy independence, and why Germany has more solar than the U.S. (Washington Post, Grist)