20 March 2025 • Supported by

PIPELINES

• Greenpeace says it will appeal a North Dakota jury’s decision that it must pay a fossil fuel company more than $660 million in damages for its role in supporting protests against the Dakota Access pipeline. (Associated Press) 
• Legal experts say the verdict could have a chilling effect on public protest and free speech, but also that Greenpeace has a good case for an appeal, which could eventually make it to the U.S. Supreme Court. (E&E News)
• A federal appeals court considers whether it should stay involved in a lawsuit over Michigan’s Line 5 pipeline or leave the matter to a state court. (E&E News)

CLEAN ENERGY

• Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison files a lawsuit with other states against the U.S. EPA and Citibank accusing them of illegally withholding funds from state green bank programs. (Star Tribune)

POWER PLANTS

• The Ohio Senate unanimously passes legislation that would eliminate subsidies for coal-fired power plants but fast-track approval of new power plants, pipelines and transmission projects. (Ohio Capital Journal)
• Michigan environmental advocates warn that President Trump’s effort to roll back pollution regulations on coal-fired power plants threatens to increase asthma, heart attacks and premature deaths. (MLive)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

• Michigan utility regulators say utilities can’t stop residents from using electric vehicle batteries for backup power during power outages. (MLive)
• Hundreds turn out for a demonstration at a suburban Chicago Tesla dealership against CEO Elon Musk’s dismantling of federal agencies. (Chicago Tribune)

UTILITIES

• Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe has about a week to act on sweeping legislation that would let utilities charge ratepayers for construction costs before projects are complete and also make it harder to retire power plants. (KY3)  

GRID

• Midwest grid operator MISO asks federal regulators for permission to fast-track certain generation projects to avoid a looming reliability threat. (E&E News) 
• The Department of Energy seeks public input on a planned electric transmission corridor that would pass through parts of Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, and five tribal reservations. (News Channel Nebraska)

FOSSIL FUELS

• A propane leak at a major oil refinery in Minnesota prompts evacuations and the temporary shutdown of a highway but no reported injuries. (Star Tribune) 

BIOFUELS

• Ethanol boosters note the irony of South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden’s “Open for Opportunity” tour a week after he signed a bill they say will make it difficult or impossible to build carbon capture pipelines in the state. (SD Searchlight)

NEW FROM CANARY MEDIA

• Jeff St. John breaks down a new report warning that Americans will suffer higher energy bills if Inflation Reduction Act incentives are repealed.
• Michael Grunwald’s Eating the Earth column returns with an examination of how climate progress within the food system may still be possible over the next four years.