"Grid: PJM Weathered Cold Snap And Policy Storm"
"Hunkered down in the PJM Interconnection operations center near Valley Forge, Pa., shift supervisor Brian Oakes waited for a distress call."
"Hunkered down in the PJM Interconnection operations center near Valley Forge, Pa., shift supervisor Brian Oakes waited for a distress call."
The battle over environment and energy issues may ultimately come down to U.S. courts, where, unlike Congress and White House, the GOP doesn't hold sway ... yet. This week's TipSheet looks at a dozen major legal issues making news in 2018, like wetlands protection, and offers story ideas and resources to cover them.
"Citing a 'long-term systemic failure' at the California Department of Water Resources, independent forensic investigators released their final report Friday on the nearly-catastrophic emergency last February at Oroville Dam."
"When John Muir helped establish the National Park Service, he argued that such parks were vital to help people unplug from the world. 'Break clear away, once in a while, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods,' Muir was quoted as saying in 1915. But these days at Yosemite National Park, hikers to Half Dome are likely to encounter people talking on cell phones as they climb to the top."
"A Danish biotechnology company is trying to fight climate change — one laundry load at a time. Its secret weapon: mushrooms like those in a dormant forest outside Copenhagen."
"Two months after proposing to open a massive area of the Gulf of Mexico to oil and gas companies for offshore drilling, the Trump administration has halted a study that aimed to make drilling platforms safer."
"The highly digital modern world also demands a more reliable grid, capable of providing high-quality power to facilities like hospitals or data centers, where even brief brownouts can cost money or lives."
As President Trump continues to fill environment and energy leadership positions in 2018, one source of stories will be potential conflicts of interest for appointed regulators and agency leaders. This week's TipSheet runs down more than 20 key appointments to watch at EPA, Interior, Ag, Energy and more.
"The Trump administration violated the law by wrongly withholding funds for a popular Energy Department program supporting innovation, the Government Accountability Office said Tuesday."
How the U.S. economy uses energy has huge impacts on the environment. So this week's TipSheet helps journalists understand the economy-energy-environment nexus, detailing nine top trends to watch on fossil fuels and alternative energy in 2018. Plus, a list of helpful sources for tracking energy markets.