EPA: Ohio fracking rule may violate federal law

OHIO: The EPA says a state law that shields details of fracking chemicals from public disclosure violates a federal statute. (Columbus Dispatch)

RENEWABLES: Renewable energy will surpass natural gas as the world’s second largest source of electricity (after coal) by 2016, according to IEA projections, and a new Department of Energy facility will be devoted solely to improving methods of integrating renewable power into the grid. (Associated Press, The Energy Collective)

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CLIMATE: Energy experts project how President Obama’s climate plan will play out for utilities, Republicans plan to focus on jobs instead of science, and scientists hope Obama ​“will be courageous” in continuing to discuss climate change. (ClimateWire, Politico, EnergyWire)

MINNEAPOLIS: Mayoral candidates debate the merits of breaking with Xcel to form a municipal utility, as the city council considers hiring an energy nonprofit to study the details. (Midwest Energy News, Minneapolis Star Tribune)

POLLUTION: SunCoke Energy will pay more than $100 million to settle alleged pollution violations at facilities in Ohio and Illinois. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

ETHANOL: An EPA official says the U.S. ethanol industry will hit the ​“blend wall” -- where production exceeds the amount of ethanol allowed in gasoline -- by next year. (Bloomberg)

OIL: Activists from the Red Lake Nation continue to protest a proposed Enbridge pipeline expansion in northern Minnesota. (Bemidji Pioneer)

KEYSTONE XL: Opponents and backers of Keystone XL are ​“still a little perplexed” by President Obama’s comments on the pipeline in his climate address. (The Hill)

WIND: A UK study examines what to do with decommissioned wind turbines, and a judge rules a Minnesota man must take down a 29-foot wind turbine he erected in his backyard. (BBC, Minneapolis Star Tribune)

NUCLEAR: Neighbors of the Kewaunee nuclear plant in Wisconsin object to storing fuel rods onsite, saying it will discourage redevelopment; and operators of a Nebraska nuclear plant seek to reassure regulators that they are responding to safety concerns. (Green Bay Press-Gazette, Omaha World-Herald)

FRACKING: Halliburton uses spy technology to listen to ​“frac music” underground. (Bloomberg)

COMMENTARY: Why fighting climate change will still largely be up to the states. (Greentech Media)