GOLDEN CRESCENT AND 1000 ISLAND NEWS

March 6, 2026   In the quest to transform our energy systems, policymakers often promise a magical alchemy: turn away from reliable but "dirty" sources like coal, oil, and even nuclear, and replace them with abundant, cheap green energy. New York State has been a laboratory for this experiment since the early 2000s, aggressively phasing out fossil fuels and nuclear plants under the banner of environmental virtue. The result? Skyrocketing electricity bills for residents, even as overall consumption has declined. New York's experience offers a stark warning: green dreams can turn into economic nightmares  when they ignore basic math  and reality. Back in 2007, New York generated about 150 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity in-state. Coal accounted for roughly 14% of that mix, petroleum products (mostly oil) about 6%, and nuclear a robust 28%. Renewables, primarily hydroelectricity, made up around 20%, with natural gas filling much of the rest. Fast-forward to 2021 -- the l...

Thu, March 5, 2026   OKLAHOMA CITY, March 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Dozens of groups made up of farmers, ranchers, tribal members, energy workers, and grassroots organizations will gather at the Oklahoma State Capitol on March 7th from 1:00–3:00 PM to demand an immediate halt to what organizers call a "subsidy-driven wind turbine onslaught" across eastern Oklahoma. CFACT Logo (Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow)   Expected keynote speakers include Rep. Jim Shaw, Iowa Tribe Chairman Jake Keyes, Sen. Shane Jett, Rep. Molly Jenkins, and Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow President (CFACT) Craig Rucker.   Concerned counties, including Lincoln, Craig, Nowata, McIntosh, Okfuskee, and Seminole, are now facing large-scale industrial wind projects that threaten property rights, rural landscapes, and household electric bills.   Wind developers face a critical federal benchmark: projects that fail to meet construction thresholds before July 4 risk losing major pro...

Schuyler County in New York is home to a bucolic state park, an automobile race track and one day—if Judy McKinney Cherry has her way—a nuclear power plant.  In summer 2025, Gov. Kathy Hochul  ordered  the construction of an “advanced nuclear power plant,” and  eight upstate communities , including Schuyler County, have  expressed interest  in hosting it. The New York Power Authority, a state-owned utility, would lead the project in partnership with developers.  McKinney Cherry, who heads the county’s economic development corporation, hopes nuclear technology could provide enough power to bring manufacturing back to the region. But as the state pushes ahead with plans to build its first nuclear power plant in decades, communities, nuclear power developers and local scientists are questioning Hochul’s plans—which could impact the state’s economy, environment and utility bills for years to come.  Renewed interest in nuclear energy is linked to a rec...

By   MARIE J. FRENCH  and  MONA ZHANG     03/02/2026   Good morning and welcome to the weekly Monday edition of the New York & New Jersey Energy newsletter. We'll take a look at the week ahead and look back on what you may have missed last week. THE CLIMATE VS. AFFORDABILITY DEBATE:  Democrats who support New York’s 2019 climate law are up in arms over the renewed posturing from Gov. Kathy Hochul on the costs of the law. Advocates of implementing the law pushed back on the idea that meeting the law’s emissions targets would worsen the affordability crisis. “The idea that CLCPA is driving up energy prices is fossil fuel industry nonsense from the Trump playbook, and no Democrat should engage in it,” state Sen. Liz Krueger, chair of the Senate Finance Committee, said in a statement. Assemblymember Emily Gallagher criticized the governor and her officials for using “affordability” as an “excuse” to pursue climate law rollbacks, citing delivery charges...

February 27, 2026   Heatmap Illustration/Getty Images Osage County, Kansas  – A wind project years in the making is dead — finally. Steelhead Americas, the developer behind the Auburn Harvest Wind Project, announced this month that it would withdraw from its property leases due to an ordinance that outright bans wind and solar projects. The Heatmap Pro dashboard lists 34 counties in Kansas that currently have restrictive ordinances or moratoria on renewables, most of which affect wind. Osage County had already  denied  the Auburn Harvest project back in 2022, around when it passed the ban on new wind and solar projects. The developer’s withdrawal from its leases, then, is neither surprising nor sudden, but it is an example of how it can take to fully kill a project, even after it’s effectively dead

  ALBANY — Democrats in the state Legislature expect Gov. Kathy Hochul to make a strong push in the coming weeks to overhaul and potentially delay the state’s energy and emissions mandates as part of the state budget.   They’re not surprised that she plans to seek those changes but that doesn’t mean they’re amenable to the idea.    It’s become increasingly clear during this year’s legislative session that Hochul plans to make a strong push to amend those mandates, including their deadlines, that were established by the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act of 2019.   “I’m looking at this from an all-the-above approach, and we’ll be closely engaging the legislators,” Hochul said Thursday.   The law’s current requirements,  Hochul and others have said , would raise costs for ratepayers. State Budget Director Blake Washington confirmed that concern Wednesday . Add Preferred Source “It’s not something we can just ignore and stick our he...