Midwest

Fossil fuels

In Appalachia, fracking is not the job creator the industry claims

Oil and gas production isn’t translating to more jobs for residents of heavily fracked communities, new research shows.

By Kathiann M. Kowalski . 14 August 2025
Fossil fuels

Ohio finally ends subsidies for two scandal-linked coal plants

Under the state’s infamous HB6 law, customers had to pay over half a billion dollars to keep the two 1950s-era plants running. A new law ends the subsidies this month.

By Kathiann M. Kowalski . 7 August 2025
Electrification

Meet Minnesota’s electric coffee roasting pioneers

Minneapolis-based Coffeewomple is one of the first U.S. roasters to use a commercial-scale electric coffee roaster, navigating higher costs for climate benefits.

By Dan Haugen . 5 August 2025
Electric vehicles

Can EV ambassadors help Chicago drivers go electric?

Aiming to help Illinois get 1 million EVs on the road by 2030, the state’s largest utility is tapping community leaders to convince neighbors to ditch gas cars.

By Kari Lydersen . 5 August 2025
Utilities

HB 6 regulatory cases weigh what FirstEnergy’s Ohio utilities should pay

The company's utilities argue they obeyed Ohio’s corporate separation law and that other issues merit only minor consequences. Opponents disagree.

By Kathiann M. Kowalski . 1 August 2025
Nuclear

A retired nuclear plant in Michigan is about to restart, a first for US

The 800-MW Palisades plant received key federal approvals to open three years after shutting down and has ambitious plans to be operational by the end of 2025.

By Eric Wesoff . 29 July 2025
Transmission

Trump admin cancels $4.9B loan for biggest transmission line in US

The Grain Belt Express is over a decade in the making and would bring huge amounts of cheap wind and solar from the plains to the East. Its future is now murky.

By Jeff St. John . 23 July 2025
Fossil fuels

Trump’s EPA delays rules requiring toxic coal ash cleanup

The agency’s move to extend compliance deadlines for “legacy” coal ash dumps is the latest in a string of Trump admin attacks on environmental regulations.

By Kari Lydersen . 22 July 2025
Carbon capture

In Ohio, oil and gas industry is steering new carbon capture bill

Newly obtained public records show that the industry has worked hard to ensure the legislation prioritizes their interests over climate change concerns.

By Kathiann M. Kowalski . 22 July 2025
Clean energy

Trump’s rural energy freeze hits Midwest, GOP districts hardest

More than three-quarters of federal Rural Energy for America Program grants over the last decade have gone to Republican congressional districts.

By Kari Lydersen . 17 July 2025