Officials investigate whistleblower’s allegations about Pennsylvania pipeline

PIPELINES: Federal and state officials probe a whistleblower’s allegations that a pipeline to serve an ethane cracker plant in western Pennsylvania is installed with improper corrosion protections. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

CLIMATE: A climate bill to make emissions reductions mandatory easily passes the Rhode Island Senate and heads to the House, where its fate is less certain. (Providence Journal)

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SOLAR:
• A community solar advocacy group in Maine issues a report that says the industry is benefiting the economy in ways not previously seen, as legislators prepare for a hearing that may consider scaling back state subsidies. (Portland Press Herald)
• New Jersey officials consider a policy change that would allow a greater amount of ratepayer subsidies to go to out-of-state developers to build out grid-scale solar projects. (NJ Spotlight)
• Residents and officials oppose a solar project in Connecticut that would clear one-third of a forested site of 157 acres for a 9.9 MW development. (The Day)

OFFSHORE WIND: A British diplomat meets with Maine Gov. Janet Mills to advance a recent agreement to promote mutual interests in offshore wind. (Bangor Daily News)

POWER PLANTS: A coalition opposed to peaker plants located in low-income New York City neighborhoods releases a study that says they can be eliminated with investments in solar and storage. (Politico)

EFFICIENCY: Twelve state attorneys general led by New York file a petition with the Energy Department to eliminate a Trump administration rule that allows inefficient residential furnaces and commercial water heaters. (The Hill)

FRACKING: A Pittsburgh-based journalist initiates studies that may provide a missing link between fracking and impaired health of residents who live near drilling sites in recent published reports. (Pittsburgh City Paper)

DIVESTMENT: A student-led group asks Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey to investigate Harvard University for its endowment’s fossil fuel investments that they say violate a state law that requires charities to invest with prudence. (E&E News, subscription required)

COMMENTARY:
• The chairman of Central Maine Power says bills before the state legislature to curtail Hydro-Quebec’s involvement in transmission referenda infringes on the company’s First Amendment rights. (Sun Journal)
• A Maryland state delegate and an environmental advocate say climate legislation underpins multiple efforts to address health issues in underserved communities. (Maryland Matters)