To fix utilities, lawmakers must stop the bleeding, treat the disease and follow up with preventative care.
Posted inSolutions
Coalition proposes $1.5 billion plan to fix Michigan’s aging housing stock, boost health and combat climate
A state funding proposal aims to help fill the gap between home repair needs and available resources.
Posted inGuides
Why an Alaskan oil project sparked national outrage
Juan Jhong Chung, climate justice director for the Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition, told Planet Detroit that his organization was keeping an eye on the issue because it could signal the administration’s priorities on climate action and environmental justice.
Posted inAccountability
Michigan legislators introduce bipartisan bill package to enable community solar
The proposal would allow Michigan residents and businesses to subscribe to a portion of production capacity from off-site solar facilities, with the production being credited towards their utility bills.
Posted inVoices
OPINION: Hey MDOT, we need public transit to Ann Arbor, not an ‘autonomous vehicle corridor’
Most experts agree that autonomous tech is still years away from widespread public use, so why are we spending millions to turn a highway into a testing facility, especially when we are already so far behind in road funding?
Posted inCommunity
What to watch: Weird winter waterfowl on Belle Isle
Belle Isle is a birding hotspot year-round, but in the cold months, it offers up the chance to see some out-of-towners from up north. Notes and tips from a local birder.
Posted inSolutions
Local advocates aim to make ‘cumulative impact’ a factor in air quality regulation
Advocates are pushing for regulators to consider cumulative impact – the idea the totality of environmental threats affecting a community should be considered in permitting decisions – which is not typically how environmental permitting decisions are handled today.
Posted inAccountability
Where was the environment in Duggan’s State of the City?
While the mayor touched on serious problems like gun violence, he failed to mention air pollution, basement flooding, water shutoffs, or the power outages that left thousands of Detroiters in the dark recently.
Posted inAccountability
DTE is asking to hike electric rates again. What Michigan customers need to know.
The company is asking for $622 million a year from ratepayers, and residential customers would see the sharpest increase.
Posted inAccountability
State regulators ask EPA to ignore Detroit air quality data, paving way to avoid ozone regulation
Ozone is a known cause and trigger of asthma. The asthma mortality rate in Detroit in 2017-2019 was about three times the rate for Michigan.