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Will Kansas battery plant lift or swallow nearby neighborhood?

By Andy Balaskovitz

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ELECTRIC VEHICLES: A $4 billion electric vehicle battery manufacturing plant taking shape in a rural Kansas town is fueling speculation about whether a nearby low-income housing community could be sold for redevelopment. (Wichita Eagle)

OHIO:

  • A political scientist says there’s a ​“zero-percent chance” Gov. Mike DeWine was unaware of millions of dollars of FirstEnergy contributions supporting his campaign. (Ohio Capital Journal)
  • FirstEnergy’s CEO tells investors the utility will likely have to put ​“a little bit of money on the table” to move past a state criminal investigation and civil suit related to the HB 6 scandal. (Akron Beacon Journal)
  • Ohio Democrats propose legislation that would prohibit utilities from spending ratepayer dollars on political campaigns, require utility political spending disclosures and fine companies for violations. (WOSU)

BIOFUELS: The nation’s first ethanol plant to use carbon capture and storage launches a new program aiming to provide premium prices to corn farmers who grow low-carbon crops. (North Dakota Monitor)

CLEAN ENERGY: Missouri clean energy advocates accuse Ameren of slow-walking its long-term clean energy plans and prolonging its reliance on coal. (First Alert 4)

GEOTHERMAL: Minnesota is among a growing number of states with cities rolling out underground geothermal networks to help meet all-electric building standards and emission-reduction targets. (Canary Media)

CLIMATE: The Quad-Cities area can expect to see more intense flooding and hotter temperatures under climate models that anticipate rising carbon emissions, according to a new climate study. (Cedar Rapids Gazette)

TRANSPORTATION: Illinois Democrats propose legislation that would create a transit agency to oversee public transportation in northeastern Illinois and provide an additional $1.5 billion for public transit. (Sun-Times)

OIL & GAS:

  • The University of North Dakota receives an $11.6 million federal grant towards researching enhanced oil recovery. (KFYR)
  • Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly vetoes a budget line item that would have directed $500,000 to a family with water contaminated by historic oil drilling, saying the funding was outside of the scope of a state remediation fund. (KWCH)
  • Illinois’ attorney general sues a facility owner that it says was responsible for an incident that spilled 250 barrels of crude oil and 1,000 barrels of saltwater brine into nearby waterways. (WTHI)

UTILITIES: The new president of AES Indiana says improving customer service and grid reliability are two top priorities in her new role. (Indianapolis Business Journal)

COMMENTARY:

  • Strong state and federal regulations are needed before companies should be permitted to build carbon pipelines in Illinois, the head of the state’s Sierra Club chapter writes. (Sun-Times)
  • An Ohio oil and gas commission often acts as more of an industry mentor rather than an oversight body in the public’s interest, an editorial board writes. (Cleveland.com, subscription)

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