Climate Clips: A session’s worth of energy debates in one long afternoon

A package of bills from legislative leaders designed to generate more energy in Maryland and reduce ratepayer costs, includes giving nuclear energy “tier 1” status, making it eligible for certain state clean energy subsidies. But House Economic Matters Chair C.T. Wilson (D-Charles), an architect of the just-introduced measures, said he invited NEI to speak to his committee not to hype nuclear power, but to inject a dose of reality, because the newer technologies still won’t be ready for several years.

See the full story at Maryland Matters.

More DMV News

Clean Energy Companies are Blitzing Capitol Hill to Save IRA Tax Credits
Electrek
A coalition of clean energy groups – representing over 2,000 companies and hundreds of billions in private investment – is holding more than 100 meetings today with bipartisan members of Congress to underscore the critical role of IRA clean energy tax credits.

117 More Data Centers in Pipeline, Loudoun Chamber Members Told
Loudoun Now
Members of the Loudoun Chamber of Commerce gathered Wednesday morning to hear from County Chair Phyllis J. Randall (D-At Large), Vice Chair Michael Turner (D-Ashburn), and Supervisor Laura A. TeKrony (D-Little River) about their plans to address the biggest challenges and opportunities facing the community.

As Energy Rates Rise, Maryland Democrats Aim to Generate More Power
Washington Post
Maryland’s Democratic leadership in the General Assembly on Monday introduced a package of bills geared toward expanding the state’s energy generation capacity, part of an effort to stop rapidly rising energy costs that have been passed on to utility customers.

First-Ever Electric Rail Car Mover Gets to Work at Port of Baltimore [Video]
Electrek
The Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore has announced a first for the contemporary American maritime industry: a battery-electric rail car mover that can organize the rail yard without dirtying up the air around it.

National and International News

Trump’s Climate Spending Freeze is Already Causing Serious Economic Harm
Canary Media
For David Funk, president of Zero Emissions Northwest, the Trump administration’s order to halt the flow of funds from the Inflation Reduction Act and 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law is already hitting home — not just for him and his employees but for the rural businesses they serve.

Trump Just Canceled the Federal NEVI EV Charger Program
Electrek
Trump’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has issued a memo ordering states to suspend all state EV infrastructure deployment plans under the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program.

In Seattle, Advocacy Groups Pitch ‘Social Housing’ as a Climate Solution
Grist
In 2023, Seattle voters authorized the city to create a new organization to develop “social housing,” a type of publicly-owned affordable housing that accommodates low- and middle-income renters. Now, as residents prepare to vote on another ballot initiative on whether and how to fund the developer, local advocacy organizations are pitching social housing as a climate solution.

Ultra-efficient AI Won’t Solve Data Centers’ Climate Problem. This Might.
Washington Post
When Chinese AI start-up DeepSeek announced a chatbot that matched the performance of cutting-edge models such as ChatGPT with a fraction of the computing power, it sparked a glimmer of hope that AI might be less of an energy hog than people had feared.

US ‘Needs More Storage’ to Ensure Grid Reliability, Resilience: SEIA
Utility Dive
The United States should deploy 10 million distributed energy storage installations and reach 700 GWh in total deployed storage capacity to meet its energy needs by 2030, the Solar Energy Industries Association said on Jan. 28.