“Electrification Is Not Enough For Decarbonization” – Consumers Energy
A new workgroup seeks to address some questions about the future of infrastructure in a state that continues to lag in regulatory and technical innovation.
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Utilities
Centralization: Economy of Scale? Looming Disaster? Lil Bit of Both?
Streetcars, gas and water pipes, power lines, and other “invisible networks,” to borrow a line from the title of Ann Durkin Keating’s book, make up a vibrant history of infrastructure in which centralization vs. decentralization is a big debate.
Read MoreSidebar: What Actually Happens To Those Overdue Water Bills?
A followup to the Dennis Kefallinos article with a response from the Water Department on why the delinquent property owner has been allowed to rack up several hundred thousand dollars in delinquent bills. The response may have opened up more questions than it answered.
Read MoreDebt or Asset? How Utility Shutoffs Are About To Be A Big Problem.
Springtime and mounting debt related to COVID19 means utility shutoffs are coming. At least probably. Here are some ideas for how we can fix our broken systems for utility billing– and how we subsidize utilities through programs like LIHEAP without actually moving the needle on energy poverty.
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BUILD GREEN Act Charges Forward With Electric Transit. Is It The Right Move?
Public utilities are apprehensive about vehicle electrification because it’ll require a huge amount of investment in grid infrastructure. A new legislative proposal to electrify transit systems might make this a bit easier by delivering a big economy of scale.
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MPSC December Meeting: Neighborhood-Level Equity and Energy
Dr. Tony G. Reames of the University of Michigan, Briana Parker of Elevate Energy, and others presented at an MPSC meeting on some approaches to the question of equity in energy efficiency for low-income communities and communities of color.
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Facing A Crisis of COVID, Evictions, and Utility Shutoffs
COVID19 is exposing a particularly ugly nexus between energy insecurity and housing insecurity, referred to in a few separate presentations at a recent workgroup meeting of the Michigan Public Service Commission.
Read MoreMonopolies Kill My Dreams Of Better Things
Today a DTE representative uttered probably the least inspiring words that one can ever hear in a volunteer workgroup meeting.
Read MoreDetroiters Grapple With Questions of Energy Future
Yesterday evening, concerned citizens, activists, and energy professionals packed a lecture room at Wayne County Community College in downtown Detroit
Read MoreThe Red-Blooded, Gas-Fired Future of Midwestern Energy
I attended a forum on DTE’s Integrated Resource Plan Tuesday. The state’s public service commission, an entity that seems to
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