Some two generations since the first Earth Day, five Connecticut environmentalists reflect on its legacy and what it means for the future.
Jan Ellen Spiegel
Jan Ellen is CT Mirror's regular freelance Environment and Energy Reporter. As a freelance reporter, her stories have also appeared in The New York Times, The Boston Globe, Yale Climate Connections, and elsewhere. She is a former editor at The Hartford Courant, where she handled national politics including coverage of the controversial 2000 and 2004 presidential elections. She was an editor at the Gazette in Colorado Springs and spent more than 20 years as a TV and radio producer at CBS News and CNN in New York and in the Boston broadcast market. In 2013 she was the recipient of a Knight Journalism Fellowship at MIT on energy and climate. She graduated from the University of Michigan and attended Boston University’s graduate film program.
Posted inEnergy & Environment
CT plans a green hydrogen path, but it has potholes
Green hydrogen is considered carbon-free from start to finish, but the technology is expensive, and the product is hard to transport and use.
Posted inEnergy & Environment, Transportation
Climate change and transportation legislation is back, without the TCI part
Senate Bill 4, a comprehensive climate and transportation bill, would start several large clean transportation programs.
Posted inEnergy & Environment
Proposed Killingly power plant dealt another blow
Two rulings in recent weeks spell the end of the line for the proposed Killingly natural gas plant, as far as ISO-New England is concerned.
Posted inEnergy & Environment
Here’s what you need to know about Russia, Ukraine and your oil and gas
Russia’s stash of oil and natural gas has folks in the U.S. and Europe on edge as the invasion of Ukraine spills into its fifth day.
Posted inEnergy & Environment
New England takes a detour on grid reform; griping ensues
After years of pushing to reform New England’s electric grid, DEEP Commissioner Katie Dykes agreed to delay the first big change.
Posted inEnergy & Environment
Solar program reform efforts likely in the legislature, but already face hurdles
There is already disagreement over which solar program caps to alter, how they should be altered, and what, if any, other rules should be overhauled.
Posted inEnergy & Environment
Killingly power plant owners win a round after court decision
Just as those who have opposed the construction of a natural gas power plant in Killingly were tasting victory, a court has taken it away.
Posted inEnergy & Environment
Will climate change have something to say about the Tweed Airport expansion? Experts think so
A tropical storm was a reminder that in a showdown between climate change and Tweed airport, climate change could win.
Posted inEnergy & Environment
Federal decision goes against proposed Killingly gas power plant
Federal authorities OK’d a request by ISO-New England to keep the proposed Killingly gas plant out of its plans.
Posted inNews
Best of 2021: Connecticut farmers are finding there’s no easy way to deal with climate extremes
Farmers around the state are coping with extreme weather, multiple outcomes of climate change, and the unpredictability of the future.
Posted inEnergy & Environment
Lamont aims to succeed on climate where the legislature failed
The governor unveils a wide-ranging executive order addressing a broad spectrum of climate change measures.
Posted inEnergy & Environment
The price of energy is going up in CT. Could it have been avoided?
Some are frustrated with 10 years of programs that should have helped residents insulate themselves from spikes in energy costs.
Posted inEnergy & Environment
Killingly power plant dealt a major setback as ISO-NE abandons plans
ISO-New England has requested permission to cut Killingly from its plans, elating environmental activists who oppose the power plant.
Posted inEnergy & Environment
Flood insurance rules are changing, but some say not enough
FEMA’s new flood insurance program kicks in Friday, but how the new system actually works is murky.