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This Month
Across the Midwest
November 2025 Newsletter
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Two Climate Wins in Illinois: Public Transit & Clean Energy
Illinois took two big steps forward for climate action during this October’s “veto session,”as the General Assembly passed clean energy and transportation legislation. The Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA) Act provides both the operating resources and oversight reform needed to provide seamless, safe, and reliable public transit across the region. The Clean and Reliable Grid Act (CRGA) protects consumers and strengthens the state’s power grid.
Transportation and energy are the leading sources of climate change in Illinois, so we applaud the state taking action to mitigate their effects. More importantly, as cost of living is on the rise, these bills help protect affordable energy and transportation options for everyday Illinoisans. ELPC joined partners from across the state to advance this legislation in Springfield, and we look forward to supporting the agencies and leaders as we move towards effective implementation.
Read More
[[link removed]] Clean Water [[link removed]]
[link removed] [[link removed]] Michigan Implements CAFO Standards to Protect Clean Water [[link removed]]
[link removed] [[link removed]] Michigan’s Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) issued its final decision setting a new general permit for concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs). After years of debate and legal challenges, including ELPC arguing in front of the Michigan Supreme Court, the new permit is a significant step in the right direction toward improving water quality in the state.
[[link removed]] Clean Energy [[link removed]]
[link removed] [[link removed]] ELPC Argues for Fair Utility Rates before Ohio Supreme Court [[link removed]]
[link removed] [[link removed]] In 2023, the Public Utility Commission of Ohio approved a major hike to Columbia Gas’s fixed monthly charges. ELPC challenged the decision, and this month argued the case before the Ohio Supreme Court, noting it fails to serve ratepayers and the public interest. Raising fixed charges disproportionately harms low-income households that typically use less gas, while also undermining energy-saving programs that help customers cut costs.
[link removed] [[link removed]] ELPC Examines Dam Negotiations to Protect Consumers & Natural Resources [[link removed]]
[link removed] [[link removed]] Consumers Energy is planning to sell 13 aging Michigan dams to a private equity firm for $1 apiece, prompting concerns about the long-term future of these highly valuable shoreline properties and ratepayers’ electric bills. We are actively looking into this on behalf of the public interest.
[[link removed]] Wild & Natural Places [[link removed]]
[link removed] [[link removed]] Advancing New Protections for Southern Illinois’ Shawnee National Forest [[link removed]]
[link removed] [[link removed]] The Shawnee National Forest Conservation Act, sponsored by Senators Durbin and Duckworth, passed out of the Senate Agriculture Committee this month on a bipartisan basis, moving it on to the full Senate. The bill would increase protections to three of the largest uninterrupted areas of the forest, establishing a new Wilderness Area and three Special Management Areas.
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ELPC Thinks: Clean Energy and the Data Center Dilemma
The 2025-26 U.S. Supreme Court term has just started. What can we expect from the Court on the environment?
Watch this timely ELPC Thinks webinar exploring the legal questions, potential impacts, and what these decisions could mean for environmental protections nationwide.
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ELPC Thinks: The U.S. Supreme Court & the Environment
Data centers have arrived in the Midwest. Will the AI boom derail – or drive – our clean energy goals?
Watch ELPC experts Brad Klein and Saad Siddique for a conversation about the Midwest data center landscape, its impact on our clean energy goals, and what utilities, communities, and policymakers can do to keep the Midwest on track for a clean energy future.
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Save the Date: ELPC 2026 Gala
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[[link removed]] News Roundup [[link removed]]
* The Detroit News: DTE asks regulators to fast-track data center, skip public hearings [[link removed]]
* Bridge Michigan : After Long Legal Battle, Michigan Toughens Poop Patrol at Factory Farms [[link removed]]
* WYSO : Is Columbia Gas' Rate Increase in the Public's Interest? Ohio Supreme Court Hears Case [[link removed]]
* Bridge Michigan : As Data Center Boom Hits Michigan, Utilities Hedge Against a Bust [[link removed]]
* ELPC Blog : No One Voted for Polluted Water: Don’t Delay Power Plant Effluent Limits [[link removed]]
* The Detroit News : Appetite for Data Centers Fuels Fears of High Electric Demand, Rate Hikes in Michigan [[link removed]]
* The Southern Illinoisan : Illinois Can’t Afford to Lose More Wetlands — Or More Time [[link removed]]
* The Badger Herald : Wisconsin Association of Railroad Passengers Advocates for Passenger Rail Service [[link removed]]
* Indiana Public Media : Two Beaches Drove Increased Closures, Advisories on Lake Michigan Beaches This Year [[link removed]]
* Fox 32 Chicago : Illinois Lawmakers Work on $1.5B Bill to Bail out CTA, Metra and Pace [[link removed]]
* Iowa Capital Dispatch : Environmental Groups Urge EPA to Restore Nitrate Impairment Designation on Iowa River Segments [[link removed]]
* MLive : This Beach was the Most Frequently Closed in Michigan This Year [[link removed]]
* ELPC Blog : Great Lakes Beach Closures in Summer 2024 and 2025: A Regional Comparison [[link removed]]
* Utility Dive : Groups Challenge MISO Cost Allocation Plan for Coal Power Plant [[link removed]]
* ELPC Blog : Without Greenhouse Gas Reporting, There’s No Climate Accountability [[link removed]]
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We're all in to protect the Midwest environment
Founded in 1993, the Environmental Law & Policy Center is the Midwest's leading environmental legal advocacy organization. We advocate, innovate, and litigate to protect the Midwest's environment from the Great Lakes to the Great Plains.
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ELPC
35 E Wacker Dr 1600
Chicago, IL 60601
United States
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