Friday PA Environment & Energy NewsClips - 5.16.25

“The people have a right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic and esthetic values of the environment. Pennsylvania's public natural resources are the common property of all the people, including generations yet to come. As trustee of these resources, the Commonwealth shall conserve and maintain them for the benefit of all the people.”

-- Article I, Section 27 Pennsylvania Constitution  [It’s Not A Suggestion]

House Voting Schedule

June 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, 16, 17, 18, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 30

-- Committee Schedule

Senate Voting Schedule

June 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30

-- Committee Schedule

TODAY’s Calendar Of Events 

May 19-- House Environmental & Natural Resource Protection Committee hearing on House Bill 501 (Otten-D-Chester) establishes the PA Reliable Energy Sustainability Standard to modernize Pennsylvania’s outdated energy standards, incentivizing innovation in nuclear and renewable energy, including battery storage, to remain competitive with other states, part of Governor’s Lightning Energy Plan. Room G-50 Irvis Building. 10:00 a.m.

May 20-- Pennsylvania Energy Development Authority meeting.  Room 105 Rachel Carson Building. 10:00 a.m. Contact: Geoff Bristow, gbristow@pa.gov  or (717) 783-8411.  Click Here for options to join remotely.   (formal notice)  

-- Gov. Shapiro: Lightning Plan Tax Credit Bill, Community Energy Pass PA House  [PaEN]

-- PUC Sets June Hearings On Proposed 11.4% Natural Gas Rate Increase By Columbia Gas  [PaEN]

-- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Summer Electricity Assessment Sees Adequate Generating Resources To Meet Normal Operating Conditions; Higher Natural Gas Prices Driving Electricity Prices Higher  [PaEN]

-- Inside Climate News - Jon Hurdle: Lawyers Spar Over Whether DEP Has Authority To Issue Carbon Pollution Allowances To Power Plants [RGGI]

-- WTAE: Sky’s The Limit For Sustainability At New Pittsburgh Airport Terminal

-- Halfmoon Creek Watershed Conservationists From Centre, Huntingdon Counties Visit The Chesapeake Bay  [PaEN] 

-- Chesapeake Bay Journal: Indigenous Tribes Ask For Seat In Chesapeake Bay Program 

-- Forests For The Chesapeake Bay: Forests Are For The Birds; Upcoming Events

-- Meadville Tribune: Allegheny College Watershed Conservation Research Center Received Grant

-- Trout Unlimited: US House Passes 'Good Samaritan' Legislation To Encourage Community Partnerships To Clean Up Abandoned Coal Mines  [PaEN] 

-- MCall - Anthony Salamone: Despite Local Objections, DEP Allows Keystone Cement To Move Hazardous Waste Via Train Along A Lehigh Valley Creek

-- May 17 - Pennsylvania Bulletin Now Available

-- Registration Now Open!  Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful Annual Conference Oct. 15-16 In State College  [PaEN] 

-- Planet Philadelphia Radio Show: May 16 - Protecting Our Land, 4:00 p.m. 

-- Health, DCNR, DEP Recognize Student Art Promoting Lyme Disease Prevention To Raise Awareness

-- The Derrick: Mayfly Season Signals Healthy Waters And Happy Anglers  [PDF of Article] 

Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant Restart/Data Centers

-- Bloomberg: Vistra Buys Power Plants From Lotus Infrastructure Partners In PA, Other States To Power A.I. Data Centers 

-- The Center Square: PJM Power Demand Surge Inevitable, But Not Insurmountable  

-- Utility Dive: Only A Fraction Of Proposed Data Centers Will Get Built; Utilities Are Wising Up 

-- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Summer Electricity Assessment Sees Adequate Generating Resources To Meet Normal Operating Conditions; Higher Natural Gas Prices Driving Electricity Prices Higher  [PaEN]

International/National Impacts On PA Natural Gas

[Energy Independence Means Renewables]

-- Vistra To Acquire 2 Natural Gas Power Plants In PA, Other States

-- Bloomberg: Vistra Buys Power Plants From Lotus Infrastructure Partners In PA, Other States To Power A.I. Data Centers 

-- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Summer Electricity Assessment Sees Adequate Generating Resources To Meet Normal Operating Conditions; Higher Natural Gas Prices Driving Electricity Prices Higher  [PaEN]

New Federal Administration

-- PA Capital-Star: Is Congress Trampling On State Laws Protecting Property Rights Against Pipelines

-- WHYY: President Wants To End LIHEAP, 300,000 PA Households Could Struggle To Pay Heating Bills

-- Reuters: ‘Rogue,’ Unreported Communication Devices Found In Chinese Solar Power Inverters

PA Politics - Everything Is Connected

-- Gov. Shapiro Announces Plan To Protect Pennsylvanians’ Health Care From Private Equity Firms

-- Post-Gazette: Gov. Shapiro Wants Attorney General To Have Power To Stop Private Equity ‘Havoc’ With Hospitals 

-- TribLive: As Rite Aid Collapses, Customers, Other Pharmacies Bear The Impact 

-- Post-Gazette: With Threat Of Medicaid Cuts, Fayette County Medical Providers Wonder: ‘How Much Worse Will It Get?’

-- Inquirer Guest Essay: Republicans Want To Kick At Least 8.6 Million Americans Off Their Health Insurance - By Fmr. Sen. Bob Casey [Medicaid]

-- Post-Gazette Guest Essay: Pennsylvania Needs A Marijuana Control Board - By Sen. Dan Laughlin (R-Erie)

-- PennLive: Taxpayer-Funded Private Cyber School Attracts 26,000 Students Over 5 Years

-- TribLive: Meeting On Penn State Campus Closures Set For Next Week

-- WITF/NPR: Walmart Says Higher Prices From President’s Tariffs Coming As Soon As This Month

-- WSJ: Walmart’s Tariff Price Hikes Open Door To Increases From ‘Everybody Else’ 

-- WSJ: Federal DHS Is Considering Reality TV Show Where Immigrants Compete For Citizenship: ‘This Isn’t The Hunger Games For Immigrants’ Says Producer 

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Diversity - Equity - Inclusion

[Posted: May 16, 2025]  PA Environment Digest