NJ Transit gets $100M for electric bus, solar upgrades

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Federal transit officials grant $99.49 million to NJ Transit to help it upgrade a bus garage to charge and service dozens of electric buses and add solar canopies. (New Jersey Advance Media, NorthJersey.com)

ALSO:

• A $23.5 million federal grant will help a free seasonal shuttle around Maine’s Acadia National Park swap out most of its propane buses for electric models. (Mainebiz)
• Rhode Island’s transit agency opens up a ​“first-of-its-kind” electric bus station that can charge four buses at a time. (PBN)

WIND: Ørsted has finished its purchase of the 50% stake in Sunrise Wind — a planned 924 MW offshore wind farm near New York — it didn’t already own from Eversource for $152 million. (news release)

SOLAR:

• New Paltz, New York, mothballs a project to install a solar array on a capped landfill after years of failed bids. (Times Union)
• A developer seeks a special exemption to install a 60-acre solar farm in a small Pennsylvania town on land zoned for residential/​agriculture. (Courier Express)
• An electronic parts supplier installs a 10-spot electric vehicle charging station powered by solar at its Middletown, Pennsylvania, campus. (news release)

GRID:

• Almost every Northeast state has signed a joint memorandum of understanding that outlines a framework for enhancing mutually beneficial interregional transmission between their grids. (RTO Insider, subscription)
• The developers of the New England Clean Energy Connect transmission line are about halfway done constructing an up-to-$300 million converter station in Lewiston, Maine, a facility that local officials expect will provide strong tax revenue. (Sun Journal)
• Attendees of a public meeting in Monkton, Maryland, on a proposed transmission line project largely objected to the plan, citing farmland impacts and personal income concerns, although a specific route has yet to be released. (WBAL)

BATTERIES: Pennsylvania lawmakers advance a bill to establish disposal requirements for small-to-medium-sized batteries following lithium-ion battery fires that have repeatedly damaged a recycling facility. (WTAE)

BUILDINGS:

• PSE&G’s latest energy efficiency report suggests more than 380,000 customers have used the utility’s programs to cut $484 million from their bills. (news release)
• Pennsylvania chooses Allentown and Easton to join a state program to help reduce energy costs with energy efficiency improvements. (Lehigh Valley Live)

CLEAN ENERGY: Canton, New York, begins surveying its residents to see who has taken clean energy actions, like subscribing to a community solar project or installing heat pumps. (NCPR)

CLIMATE: A South Portland neighborhood is Maine’s hottest heat island, with temperatures 11.1 degrees Fahrenheit higher than greener nearby communities.