"Changing future industrial processes to use electricity instead of coal, gas, and oil will require even more electric power. Uprating nuclear power plants to make more power has been successful, and many permitted sites can accommodate additional power plants. Uprating transmission lines within existing corridors is also feasible, with line voltage upgrades, advanced conductors, and gas-insulated substations."

"While carving out a compromise on energy permitting between congressional Republicans and Democrats will not be an easy task, it is a fight worth having, and soon. The United States is home to world-renowned innovators, builders, and entrepreneurs – it is time we allow them the license to build our clean energy future." 

Christian Britschgi of Reason reports on New York’s gas stove ban. “New York’s new state budget includes a provision banning gas stoves in new residential construction. CNN reports that only electric stoves will be allowed in buildings under seven stories by 2026 and taller buildings by 2029.” Read the full article here.

Benjamin Storrow of E&E News talks about the permitting challenges that clean energy is facing. “The 146-mile transmission line, known as NECEC, is supplied by hydroelectric dams that have prompted concerns among environmentalists for their land-use impacts. But the project is a pillar of New England’s attempts to green its power supplies by reducing the...

"We believe that a fair and just siting and permitting process for energy infrastructure will result in more successful projects that can still be built fast. But designing good processes will depend on whether we’ve learned from past mistakes. A good siting process looks for places favorable toward a project, offers funding and trusted experts to help communities understand the impacts and risks and gives communities off-ramps to quit a project at various points before a go/no-go decision is made."

"However, this disruptive litigation can directly harm species by delaying projects essential to conserving their habitat. In 2019, a Cottonwood-related lawsuit shut down forest restoration projects throughout New Mexico’s and Arizona’s national forests for more than a year. That delay appears to have contributed to a prescribed fire in New Mexico growing out of control and becoming last year’s Hermit’s Peak fire, which burned 340,000 acres of forest, destroyed wildlife habitat, and degraded water quality. No one wins if a species’ habitat goes up in smoke while the Forest Service is bogged down in litigation and paperwork."