Outages, flooding persist in Maine, threaten Christmas celebrations

COAL:

• A U.S. senator from Pennsylvania sponsors two bills that would help coal miners with black lung disease receive company benefits for themselves or their surviving families. (WITF)
• Aiming to reverse population depletion related to extensive coal mining and logging in the area, a freshwater mussel restoration project will soon begin along Pennsylvania’s Susquehanna River. (Penn Live Patriot-News)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• Massachusetts begins soliciting companies to file subsidy applications to improve the state’s highway electric vehicle charging network as lawmakers and climate activists say the state needs to move faster. (Boston Globe)
• A New Jersey legislative committee considers a bill to lower power rates for commercial electric vehicle charger operators to help speed up DC fast charger installs, provoking debate as to who should pay for the subsidy. (RTO Insider, subscription)
• E-scooter company Bird, which operates around New York City, declares bankruptcy but says it will continue operating as it restructures. (Gizmodo)
• Rhode Island is adding new electric vehicle chargers to two sites along I-95 as part of its ​“alternative fuel corridor” plan. (PBN)

POLICY: The Maryland Commission on Climate Change issues its annual report with recommendations to guide state environment officials’ work, measures that could make it into the state’s upcoming, updated climate strategy. (Maryland Matters)

WORKFORCE: The developers of Vineyard Wind have reported almost 1,800 new jobs created during the project’s development, but the workforce’s fluctuating size makes it hard to quantify. (WBUR)

BUILDINGS:

• The University of Maine’s 3D-printed biobased housing prototype has survived its first year outside, a seemingly basic requirement but a significant milestone toward scaling up production of affordable, sustainable dwellings in Maine. (Mainebiz)
• Philadelphia’s narrow, pedestrian-focused colonial section shows how America could have walkable, European-style streets. (NextCity)

TRANSIT: A bike share company plans to add 750 new electric bikes to subway stations across the Boston area in the coming months, increasing its total area fleet size to over 5,000. (Boston Globe)

CLIMATE: After holding the position for nearly three decades, Vermont’s state climatologist sees her work increasingly finding the spotlight as more attention is given to the climate crisis. (VT Digger)