STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL Affairs Secretary Kathleen Theoharides used the occasion of Earth Day on Wednesday to finalize the state’s new net-zero greenhouse gas emissions limit, but […]
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Energy and the Environment
Posted inEnvironment
Healey calls for exploring expanded carbon pricing
ATTORNEY GENERAL MAURA HEALEY released a white paper on Monday that calls for the creation of a New England task force to explore expanded use of carbon pricing in electricity […]
Posted inEnvironment
Report: Utilities raised concerns on Mayflower
THE UTILITIES THAT SELECTED Mayflower Wind for the state’s second offshore wind procurement raised serious concerns at several stages of the process about the company’s ability to complete the project […]
Posted inEnvironment
Vineyard Wind facing lots of hurdles
A FEDERAL REGULATOR speaking at a conference in Boston on Tuesday posted a slide suggesting Vineyard Wind would be operational in 2023, but the company itself is not saying whether […]
Posted inEnvironment
Good news, bad news on offshore wind
THE OFFSHORE WIND INDUSTRY took one step forward and one step backward on Tuesday. The federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management said its review of the Vineyard Wind offshore wind […]
Posted inEnvironment
Mass. lawmakers, Trump administration spar over Vineyard Wind review
NINE MEMBERS of the Massachusetts congressional delegation asked the General Accountability Office to investigate whether the Trump administration’s extended environmental review of the Vineyard Wind project reflects a bias against […]
Posted inEnvironment
For offshore wind, expect more delays
FEDERAL AGENCIES ASSESSING the environmental impact of Vineyard Wind are now expecting the long-delayed process to wrap up sometime in December, according to a top Baker administration official. The Vineyard […]
Posted inOpinion
Picking apart Rep. Kearney’s fishy argument
YOU MAY HAVE NOTICED a fishy odor from a recent CommonWealth article. It was the smell of red herring, served in an opinion piece by state Rep. Patrick Kearney. On […]
Posted inOpinion
Healey: Stop individual residential electricity sales
THE COMPETITIVE ELECTRIC SUPPLY INDUSTRY has overcharged Massachusetts consumers for far too long. We’ve all seen these companies in action. They go door-to-door, send letters in the mail, and call […]
Posted inThe Download
Mayflower Wind, without contract, moving ahead
Mayflower Wind still doesn’t have a final contract for its offshore wind farm off the coast of Nantucket, but it appears to be moving ahead with the project anyway in […]
Posted inOpinion
Mass. Clean Energy Center needs more funding
OVER 111,000 PEOPLE WORK in Massachusetts’ dynamic clean energy economy, due to a powerful combination of leading policies, strong talent, and key institutions. At the center of this dynamic industry is the […]
Posted inEnvironment
Fishermen, wind farm developers at odds
A GROUP REPRESENTING New England fishing interests on Tuesday called for special travel lanes through offshore wind farms proposed off the coast of Massachusetts and Rhode Island, putting the fishermen […]
Posted inState House News Service, Uncategorized
Offshore wind tax credit doesn’t make cut
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE CLIMATE ADVOCATES and industry groups were critical of the US House this week after a long-term extension of a tax credit designed to assist offshore wind […]
Posted inUncategorized
Healey seeks DPU crackdown on electricity sellers
ATTORNEY GENERAL MAURA HEALEY is asking the state Department of Public Utilities to investigate whether competitive electricity suppliers are charging low-income customers unreasonably high rates and whether those higher charges […]
Posted inEnvironment
Healey takes on grid operator
ATTORNEY GENERAL MAURA HEALEY, backed by the Barr Foundation, is launching a campaign to convince the operator of the regional power grid to embrace renewables and move away from electricity […]
Posted inOpinion
Save the planet and money at the same time
THE AMERICAN OIL AND GAS industry spends a fortune trying to convince us that renewable, clean power sources like wind, solar, and geothermal are still unreliable and expensive. As mayor […]
Posted inOpinion
BU building big milestone in carbon neutrality
THIS WEEK, we broke ground on the most energy efficient large building in Boston’s history. Boston University’s new Center for Computing and Data Sciences is a milestone achievement for green […]
Posted inOpinion
Democratize access to clean energy
THIS FALL, millions of young people mobilized across the world to demand action on climate change. The international day of action, seen in Massachusetts outside city and town halls from Boston, […]
Posted inEnvironment
RI official applauds wind farm layout announcement
THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR of the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council applauded Vineyard Wind and four other companies for agreeing to a common layout for their New England offshore wind […]
Posted inEnvironment
5 offshore wind firms agree to standard configuration
IN A BID to get offshore wind development back on track, Vineyard Wind and the four other companies seeking to build wind farms off the coast of New England have […]
Posted inOpinion
Next steps on offshore wind
AFTER PICKING Mayflower Wind to develop 800 megawatts of offshore wind energy, Massachusetts reached the second major milestone of Section 83C, the pioneering provision in state’s offshore wind legislation in […]
Posted inEnvironment, State House News Service
Weymouth gas project gets final state OK
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE A CONTROVERSIAL NATURAL GAS PROJECT planned for a densely populated waterfront area cleared the final major permitting hurdle Tuesday, further riling opponents who had hoped state […]
Posted inNews Analysis
Who’s in charge of Mass. offshore wind procurements?
THE MOST RECENT offshore wind procurement exposed a major flaw in the selection process, as the state’s three utilities – and not elected officials and their staffers – were charged […]
Posted inOpinion
Zero energy buildings are not high cost
MORE THAN 70 MUNICIPAL LEADERS, architects, engineers, advocates, and residents gathered last year in a room at the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston ready to talk green building and eager […]