Clean Tech

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End of Session In Sight

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Life continues to be looking up for residents of Massachusetts this week with the three-day average of coronavirus daily deaths dropping from 161 at the start of May to just 13 this past week. And although Mass. still has the highest unemployment roll in the U.S. standing at just over 17 percent, nearly 30,000 more jobs were added in June than in May. 

Check out last week’s news for more details.

Lawmakers Face Pressure to Pass 100% Renewable Bill this Session

With the end of the current legislative session near, “activists, municipal officials, businesses, and civic organizations are urging lawmakers to take action on a bill that would require a 100% renewable electricity transition by 2045,” according to Energy News.

Gov. Charlie Baker has set a goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. However, a growing list of stakeholders are saying that at the currently planned pace, the transition to clean energy would take until the turn of the century. 

In response, state Rep. Marjorie Decker and state Rep. Sean Garballey have cosponsored bill H.2836 calling for 100 percent renewable energy sources to meet the state’s electricity demands by 2035 and transportation and heating by 2045. 

Originally, lawmakers were given a deadline of early June 2020 to make a decision on the legislation. However, that date was moved to July 22 due to all the attention required for the state’s coronavirus response. 

A letter signed by 150 municipal officials from across the state, plus Environment Massachusetts and the Sierra Club has implored lawmakers to advance the bill forward before this legislative session ends. Furthermore, another letter signed by more than 80 medical professionals from some of the state’s most prestigious hospitals decries the damages to public health from burning fossil fuels and urges more substantive action. 

A recent report by Environment Massachusetts outlining the steps to achieve 100% renewable energy includes:

  • Expanding energy efficiency efforts and standards

  • Improving public transportation 

  • Making communities more walkable

  • Expanding offshore wind projects

  • Increasing solar power generation 

According to advocates of the 100 percent renewables goal, Mass. needs to catch up with other states, municipalities, and even businesses that have already committed to clean energy. They point to five U.S. states plus Washington, D.C., that have set 100 percent renewable targets plus another 10 states that are aiming for a complete transition to clean energy.

Several large Massachusetts businesses, including Biogen, Iron Mountain, and New Balance have signed onto a global corporate sustainability initiative known as RE100 pledging to transition to 100% renewables by 2050. Many municipalities in the state have also committed to 100% renewables by that date including Cambridge, Lowell, and Northampton. 

Energy News has more on this story.

Eastern Mass Residents See 21% Lower Energy Costs

As of July 1, Eversource Energy customers in Eastern Mass. are enjoying lower energy bills after the Department of Public Utilities approved a 21% lower electricity rate. The new pricing saves customers around 8 percent on average or more than $150 per year. 

Eversource Senior Vice President and Chief Customer Officer Penni Conner had this to say:

“We're pleased to be passing along a summertime price cut to our customers who get their electricity supply through our Basic Service option. This reduction will come just in time to help customers who use air conditioning to cool their homes and businesses during the hottest days of the year. It will also help those customers experiencing financial hardship due to COVID-19.”

Eversource attributes the rate reduction to an overall reduction in wholesale energy prices. The current wholesale rate is 9.877 cents per kilowatt-hour. That figure is down from the previous six-month rate of 12.517 cents. 

All of Eversource’s customers have the option of purchasing electricity from its competitors whose prices have recently ranged from 6 cents per kilowatt-hour to 12 cents per kilowatt-hour. 

Read more at MarketScreener.com.

Transportation Bond Bill Passes

Massachusetts legislators passed a $17 billion transportation bond bill aimed at funding improvement to the state's roads, bridges, and railways. 

A large portion of the funds will go to improvements to public transportation and roads. The bill also attempts to benefit communities that have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. 

Included in the measure is $50-million to develop the East-West Rail that will run between Springfield and Boston. 

WWLP has more on this story.

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Moving Forward with Caution

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Amidst an unpredictable recovery, record setting COVID19 infections throughout the country, and residual worry about reopening the Commonwealth’s economy, there was room for some of the biggest transportation news in a generation. Let’s get right to it.

Bourne & Sagamore Bridges To Be Replaced

Plans are underway to replace both the Bourne and Sagamore bridges which connect Cape Cod to the Massachusetts mainland. The project will be funded by the federal government with costs estimated to reach about $1.5 billion.

A memorandum of understanding between the Mass. Dept. of Transportation and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers after the Corps approved a final report on the project earlier this year.

The new bridges will be built next to the existing bridges. Drivers will enjoy four wider lanes under the new plans plus lanes for pedestrians and bicyclists.

As part of the agreement, the Army Corps “will maintain control of the existing bridges until the new bridges are completed at which point control of the new structures will be transferred to the state,” according to the report in the Boston Globe.

Gov. Baker said Tuesday that the current bridges “will be maintained as we look toward their successors.”

According to state Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack, the next step in the process is to finalize the design and construction plans. 

“The sooner the better,” says Sen. Elizabeth Warren, in order to avoid sinking hundreds of millions of dollars in repairs into the existing bridges.

Congressman Bill Keating had this to say:

”These are more than bridges. These are lifelines. We need modern bridges that will deal with modern vehicles, modern commercial transport and open up passageways for bicycles and pedestrian traffic. This is indeed a milestone of significance. It’s a new chapter in Cape Cod’s history.”

Once construction is complete and the new bridges enter service, MassDOT will take over their ownership and operation. State and federal officials described the switch as a more natural fit that allows the department to align its work on surrounding roadways with the highly traveled canal crossings themselves.

The bridges are more than 80 years old.

Boston.com has more on this story. 

Mass. Unemployment Claims Drop For Second Straight Week

For the second week in a row, unemployment claims have fallen in Mass. 

Here are some quick unemployment statistics for the state according to the Boston Herald:

  • From June 14 to June 20, 9,541 people filed an initial claim for regular unemployment insurance.

  • Over the same period, 558,269 people in Massachusetts filed continued unemployment insurance claims.

  • From March 15 to June 20, a total of 1,028,424 Massachusetts people filed initial claims, or about one-quarter of the state’s workforce.

  • In March, the number of people filing an initial unemployment claim was around 180,000.

  • The number has dropped to less than 30,000. 

  • More than 1.3 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week.

Read more at the Boston Herald.

Coronavirus Data Shows Positive Trend

Although the U.S. is experiencing a surge in coronavirus cases with ICUs at capacity in many cities, positive test rates remained low this week in Mass. According to health, 15 more people died pushing the total up over 8,200 and 140 new cases were reported on the second day of Phase 3 reopening. 

So far more than 110,000 cases have been reported in Mass., however, more than 93,000 people have fully recovered.

Here are some current Mass. COVID-19 statistics from the Boston Herald:

  • The state’s current total COVID-19 hospitalizations is above 600. 

  • 104 patients are in ICU, 50 are currently intubated.

  • Hospitalizations declined by 2,941 since May 5.

  • The peak of hospitalizations was 3,965 on April 21.

  • The three-day average of hospitalizations has dropped from 3,707 on May 1 to 620 now.

  • The seven-day weighted average of positive tests declined from 16.6% on May 1 to 1.9% now.

  • So far the state has tested more than 1,144,000 residents.

  • Middlesex County has the most confirmed cases at 24,243 cases

  • Suffolk County is second with 20,048 reported cases.

  • 23,595 residents and health care workers at long-term care facilities have contracted

  • Of 8,213 total deaths, more than 5,000 are connected to long-term care facilities.

During Phase 3 of the state’s reopening, many gyms, fitness studios, movie theaters, museums, and outdoor venues reopened Monday with limited capacity and added restrictions. The maximum number of people allowed to gather increased to 25 people indoors, and 100 people outside. 

More details are available at the Boston Herald’s website. 

Hospitals Saw More Than $2 Billion In Losses Due To Pandemic

Massachusetts hospital lost more than $2 billion for the period ending March 31, 2020 as a result of the initial spread of coronavirus. That is according to data compiled by the state Center for Health Information and Analysis.

According to the data, the median margin for acute hospitals was at -2.7% during that period, a 6.9% decrease from the same period in 2019. 

Seventeen of the 21 hospital health systems that reported data to CHIA had negative total margins while all 21 reported negative operating margins.

Here are some statistics on Mass. hospital losses for Q1:

  • Baystate Health lost $87.9 million.

  • Boston Children’s Hospital and its subsidiaries lost $383.5 million. 

  • Mass General Brigham, the state’s largest private employer lost more than $1 billion. 

  • UMass Memorial Health Care reported $81 million in net losses. 

  • UMass Memorial Medical Group reported a $36.4 million loss. 

  • The HealthAlliance-Clinton Hospital lost $6.4 million.

  • Marlborough Hospital lost $3.1 million

  • UMass Memorial Medical Center reported a $1.5 million loss.

Read more on this story at Mass Live. 

Mass. Expands Electric Vehicle Initiatives

Under an expansion of electric vehicle incentives, nonprofits and businesses with fleets will have new incentives to purchase electric vehicles. The move “is intended to maximize the environmental impact of the program at a time when a slumping economy has slowed vehicle sales across the state — and progress toward the state’s carbon emissions goals,” according to a report in Energy News. 

Gov. Charlie Baker has said that the state plans to be completely carbon-neutral by 2050. The Massachusetts Offers Rebates for Electric Vehicles program (MOR-EV), launched back in 2014, is part of the strategy to achieve that goal. 

The program currently provides rebates to consumers who purchase electric vehicles of up to $2,500. More than 1,500 rebates were handed out in December of 2018. That number was more than four times the count the previous year. However, rebates were lowered to $1,500 in 2019 due to budget constraints and by mid-year had been suspended entirely. 

This past December, the state revived MOR-EV for the next two years with $27 million in funding annually, or enough to provide more than 20,000 rebates. 

However, so far in 2020 only 727 rebates have been requested totaling $1.5 million. The drop is being pinned on the massive reduction in traffic as a result of coronavirus restrictions. 

Energy News has more on this story. 

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Mass Leads in Unemployment but Potential for Recovery Strong

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Over the past few months, Boston, Massachusetts, and the rest of the nation have endured bad news of historical proportions. However, some good news is starting to emerge. Let’s get right into it. 

Mass. Unemployment Rate Tied for 4th-Highest in US 

Bad news first. We realize that we’ve discussed the unemployment issue quite a bit in recent weeks, however, it continues to plague - if you’ll excuse the expression - the state of Massachusetts, in particular. 

According to federal data, Massachusetts has the 4th highest unemployment rate in the country. Employers added 58,000 jobs in May, doubling any previous month-over-month record dating back to 1990, and setting new records the second month in a row at 16.3 percent unemployment. However, the state is still just one-tenth of the way from gaining back the staggering 646,700 positions lost in April.

According to a report by NBC Boston, April's original estimate of 15.1 percent was the highest in the state since 1976. However, that number was revised up to 16.2 percent. 

According to the report, thirty-eight states saw lower unemployment rates in May than in April. Only three states reported higher unemployment rates than Massachusetts in May. Rhode Island and California are tied with Mass. with 16.3 percent unemployment. 

As we reported last week, the national unemployment rate dropped from 14.7 percent in April to 13.3 percent in May. According to federal data, Job gains last month were led by the construction industry as well as, hospitality and leisure, and health and education.

Boston & Worcester Near Top of List of U.S. Cities with Fastest Rebounds 

And now for some good news. According to analysis from Bloomberg, Worcester and Boston are on course for strong economic rebounds along with Washington D.C., Seattle, and San Francisco. 

Massachusetts’ two largest cities made the top 10 list with San Jose and San Francisco in the number one and number two spots. Boston ranked third and Worcester eighth — higher than New York City, Miami, and Denver.

Bloomberg attributed the good news to the state’s “foundation of education and a strong health care center,” with about 40 colleges and universities and more than 20 hospitals, “along with many of the world’s leading biotech companies.”

Norfolk County Reports Real Estate Market Remains Viable

Norfolk County Register of Deeds William P. O’Donnell says the county’s real estate market remains viable during the crisis. Other counties in Eastern Mass. are likely in similar condition.

From March 10 through June 12, the Norfolk County Registry of Deeds recorded a 13 percent increase in land documents year-over-year. Residential and commercial sales increased 12 percent to $819,725. 

Although real estate sales dropped by 15 percent, mortgages increased 69 percent. 

“The decrease in the number of real estate sales is not surprising considering the ongoing pandemic and its economic impact. Also, real estate brokers and agents have been unable to hold open houses. The spike in mortgage activity is explained by consumers taking advantage of low interest rates to refinance existing mortgages. Based on the words of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, interest rates will not be rising anytime soon.”

Only 29 foreclosure deeds were recorded from March 10 through June 12. 

Read more at Wicked Local

STAG Announces Groundbreaking on Four New Solar Rooftop Systems

STAG Industrial, Inc. has broken ground on four new solar rooftop projects in Massachusetts. Black Bear Energy is facilitating the project and Nautilus Solar Energy, LLC is developing the systems as part of the Solar Massachusetts Renewable Program (SMART).

The four systems in Mass. and one in New Jersey are expected to produce over 10 million kWh of electricity annually — enough to power nearly 1,000 homes.

Nationwide solar projects by STAG now produce over 10 MW of solar. As of March 31, 2020, STAG’s portfolio consisted of 456 buildings in 38 states.

Read all about it in the Boston Real Estate Times.

More of the Latest Massachusetts News

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Unemployment Still on the Rise

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Although the job market is doing better than expected at the national level, unemployment in Massachusetts is rising with 44,732 residents filed for unemployment last week.

According to projections from the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, the Commonwealth will lose more than half a million jobs from April through June. Including the March layoffs during the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, that pushes the state unemployment rate close to 18%.

The foundation also estimates that the total number of unemployed will reach 677,000. Earlier this month, the Pioneer Institute projected that the unemployment rate could rise to 25.4% by June.

Energy jobs have been especially hard hit dropping more than 20,000 jobs by the end of May and things might get worse for the industry. 

The International Energy Agency has projected that energy demand could fall by 6 percent in 2020. That’s seven times the decline after the global financial crisis in 2008. 

According to a report in the Boston Globe: “The unprecedented decline is equivalent to all the energy demand of India, the world’s third-largest energy consumer.”

And to make matters worse, according to a report in Solar Industry Magazine, experts at the Coalition for Community Solar Access (CCSA) believe proposed new clean energy regulations in Mass. could have the unintended consequence and result in the cancellation of nearly 80 solar energy projects.

Although the size of the program is doubling under the new regulations as much as 90% of land in Massachusetts will become unavailable for solar panel arrays. The rules are expected to be finalized by July 15.

Some of those jobs are expected to return, but many Mass. businesses are closing their doors indefinitely. 

In an effort to expedite the reopening of the state’s economy, the City of Boston has established a Reopen Boston Fund. The fund is intended to assists businesses in purchasing personal protective equipment and so far, the City has received over 1,000 applications from small business owners.

Boston Real Estate COVID Consortium Launches

A group of Boston-based real estate professionals has formed the Boston Real Estate COVID Consortiumro to promote the sharing of current best practices for adapting to regulatory amendments established to slow the spread of COVID-19.

The Consortium was co-founded by STV|DPM Vice President and Project Executive Denise Pied and Director of Business Development Sandra Gucciardi. 

According to a report in Nerej.com, the multidisciplinary industry team includes “experts from the project management, construction, commercial real estate brokerage, commissioning, code review, design, environmental engineering, technology, and furniture sectors.”

The group has issued the following statement:

“We believe innovative project strategies and checklists around these disciplines will assist our active clients and other real estate leaders in assessing new in-office and remote work requirements as they bring their employees back to work and going forward. The ultimate goal is to develop a ‘toolkit’ of best practice resources that could be rolled out as part of ongoing and new project work. Boston’s Real Estate and A/E/C COVID Consortium is committed to providing relevant, reliable and user-friendly insights on a weekly basis.”

Cannabis Regulators Compiling Legal Cannabis Products Catalog

Mass. cannabis regulators have begun compiling a catalog of the marijuana products being sold at dispensaries in the state. 

Manufacturers and retailers will be asked to provide detailed information on all cannabis products such as THC or CBD levels, serving size, ingredients, and description, plus a photo. The CCC sent out an e-mail to inform all license holders of new fields in the state’s cannabis tracking system. 

The purpose of the project is to give regulators, consumers, parents, and law enforcement a resource they can use to discern between legal and illegal products.

According to Shawn Collins, Executive Director of the Mass. Cannabis Control Commission: “This information is optional, currently, for the licensee for them to assist us in developing this product catalog ... We do anticipate that some of these fields could at some point become a requirement.”

Read more here: Mass. marijuana regulators developing product catalog

Officials say Boston-Springfield Rail Service would Require Federal Assistance 

State officials said Wednesday that a proposed high-speed “east-west” rail service between Boston and Springfield could draw far more riders than previously estimated. 

Prior projections estimated ridership to be anywhere from 36 to 800-plus per day. On Wednesday, Mass. Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack said, based on new estimates, ridership could be four to five times higher than originally projected. 

However, Pollack added that “even those ridership levels may not be enough for the multi-billion dollar project to qualify for federal funding, said state,” and that the project might never see the light of day without federal assistance.

Advocates for the future rail service argue that it would “allow workers to live further out in more affordable regions and still commute into Boston, while also boosting the economies of Western Massachusetts,” according to the report.

MassDOT estimates that improving rail service along existing tracks will cost $2 billion, while an electric high-speed line will cost upwards of $25 billion.

The Baker administration is now studying the feasibility of the project.

More of the Latest Massachusetts News

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Getting Back to Business

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Boston Mayor Marty Walsh is watching coronavirus metrics closely as offices in Boston are being permitted to reopen this third week of Phase 1 reopening plan. 

Mayor Walsh said this week at a press conference, “The data tells us that we continue to move in the right direction, and we have met the initial benchmarks that we set moving forward in the gradual reopening.” 

At the peak of the outbreak, according to the press release, local intensive care units were operating at 120% capacity but that the number of live cases has dropped to 81 percent — four points lower than target.

Most offices in the state were permitted to open at 25 percent capacity last week. However, according to the Boston Globe, “the city’s central business district still looked more like a ghost town than a boomtown.”

Part of the reason for the slow return is that reopening offices safely “requires fairly extensive measures, from deep cleaning and reconfiguring office traffic patterns to ordering personal protective equipment for employees.”

Business Insider has more on this story as does WCVB News.

Phase 2 of reopening plans could begin next week. Meanwhile, Gov. Charlie Baker’s administration has said the decision will be made over the weekend, and that Phase 2 could conceivably begin on Monday, June 8. 

Massachusetts Post-COVID-19 Transportation Outlook

Data in a new survey published this week by MassINC Polling suggests that residents are planning to travel less than they did before the coronavirus crisis began. 

Nearly 1,500 Mass. residents participated in the poll between May 5 and May 13. Overall, the poll suggests that commuters are shifting away from group modes of transportation such as shuttles and carpooling, and toward driving, biking, or walking. 

According to the report, more than one-third of Mass. residents said they will ride the MBTA subway, commuter rail, and buses less than before the outbreak — even after the pandemic has subsided. 

Here are some quick stats from the poll’s findings:

  • 38% of participants said they will walk more.

  • 28% said they will drive alone in their car.

  • 19% said they will ride a bike more.

  • 8% said they will use Uber or Lyft.

  • 36% said they would ride buses less.

  • 35% said they would ride the MBTA subway less often.

  • 33% said they would ride the MBTA Commuter Rail less often.

  • 44% said they would take fewer trips than before.

  • 41% said they would take roughly the same number of trips.

  • 43% of 18-to-29-year-olds said they planned to drive alone more often and take the MBTA subway less often.

  • 60% said they have been able to work from home during the outbreak.

  • 41% percent said they would prefer to keep working from home.

  • 77% said they were either “not too comfortable” or “not comfortable at all” taking public transportation during rush hour.

Nearly 60% of participants said that the state needs to make “big changes to the transportation system coming out of the crisis,” such as more social distancing and less overcrowding. And half of subway and bus riders said they will walk more often. The poll also suggests that people will be making fewer trips in general. 

The MBTA has already reduced the number of passengers allowed on buses and trains. Buses that previously allowed up to 58 people are now considered “crowded” with only 20 passengers. However, at these levels, as more people get back to business, in the state more services would be required. 

The project was sponsored by The Barr Foundation.

The Boston Globe has more on this story.

Tech CU Expands $2 Billion Solar Power Deal with Fintech

San Jose, Calif.-based Tech Credit Union, and New York City-based Sunlight Financial have announced they will loan more than $2 billion to install solar power systems in more than 80,000 homes.

The two companies have so far financed more than 50,000 home solar projects since the partnership began in September 2015 and had funded more than $1 billion in residential solar loans. Furthermore, nationwide, one in five residential solar loans written in 2019 is with Sunlight Financial.

President and CEO of Tech CU, Todd Harris, had this to say in a prepared statement Tuesday:

“We’re excited to expand our partnership with Sunlight Financial, our first and longest-standing strategic relationship. Over the years, Tech CU and Sunlight Financial have built a strong partnership and we look forward to continuing that tradition while accelerating America’s transition to renewable energy.”

Tech CU also recently announced plans to invest $1 billion in financing for residential solar loans in a completely separate partnership with solar solutions company SunPower.

Attorney General Calls for Plan to Transition Away from Natural Gas

Attorney General Maura Healey has petitioned the Department of Public Utilities to investigate ways that the state’s power utilities might transition away from natural gas to net-zero carbon technologies in order to meet the state’s goal of zero carbon emissions by 2050.

According to the petition:

“As electrification and decarbonization of heating increases, the Commonwealth’s natural gas demand and usage from thermal heating requirements will decline substantially and could be near zero by 2050. As the Commonwealth reduces its fossil fuel consumption, the Department should establish a consistent regulatory framework that protects customers and maintains reliability and safety during the transition.”

According to a post by Commonwealth Magazine, president and CEO of the Northeast Gas Association, Tom Kiley downplayed concerns saying he was aware of the petition but hadn’t seen it while claiming that the industry is “on the upswing.”

According to Kiley, whose association represents the industry in nine states in the region, the Northeast added 1,200 megawatts of natural gas-fired power plants last year. Furthermore, 52 percent of homes in the region heat their homes with natural gas and that which currently costs $1.61 per million BTUs, compared to $13.65 in mid-June 2008.

According to the petition, California and New York have already launched similar investigations.

Read more at Reuters.

Boston’s Marijuana Shop Loses $100,000 Worth of Inventory During Protests

About $100,000 worth of marijuana was stolen from Pure Oasis, a recreational cannabis shop in Dorchester, on Sunday night, according to WBZ and MassLive.com. Although the crime has been deemed to be the result of “looting,” protests in response to the death of George Floyd, were largely peaceful (although there were 53 arrests) suggesting the thieves were using demonstrations as cover.

Security footage obtained by the Globe shows a steady stream of the thieves running through the dispensary with armfuls of product. The video can be viewed here.

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Silver Lining Begins to Appear for Mass Residents

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Yes, coronavirus still dominates the news in Massachusetts and across the globe. You’re probably already aware that there are now more than 80,000 cases of COVID-19 in the Bay State and more than 5,000 deaths according to health officials. And the most recent models predict total deaths in Mass. due to COVID-19 to increase by 50 percent over the next four weeks approaching 8,000 by mid June.

Meanwhile, closures in the state have resulted in more than 1 million unemployment claims in Mass. since March 15. That’s more than one quarter of the state’s entire labor force.

Some good news is starting to percolate up, however. 

First, Governor Charlie Baker has announced plans to significantly increase testing for coronavirus in Mass. We’re not talking about incremental increases. The governor claims that the proposed plans will increase testing in Mass. to the highest per capita testing rate in the world with upwards of 45,000 tests per day by the end of July and 75,000 per day by the end of December.

Currently, the state has the capacity to test around 35,000 residents per day. And as of the middle of this past week, more than 400,000 people have been tested for the virus.

Moreover, Gov. Baker outlined a four-phase reopening plan for the state. The plan calls for a gradual reopening of the economy beginning as early as May 18.

And there’s more good news. 

According to a report in the Boston Globe, deaths and hospitalizations due to COVID-19 may be trending downward in Massachusetts.

Businesses Express “Guarded Optimism”

The Globe also reports that polls conducted by two business groups in the state are showing “guarded optimism.”  

“No one expects the boom times we enjoyed as recently as a few months ago to return anytime soon,” writes the report’s author. “And few business leaders seem eager to rush their employees back to the office, either, even if Governor Charlie Baker gives the green light on Monday. But most are planning for stable or growing employment, not more job cuts, if these poll results are to be believed.”

The reporter made a point of mentioning that only a small number of respondents come from the retail and hospitality sectors, “two of the hardest hit by the pandemic.”

More than half of the respondents said they are currently operating. And 51 percent of companies that laid off or furloughed employees say they plan to bring all of those employees back.

Source: U.S. Labor Department, Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance (Callum Borchers/WBUR)

Residents Experiencing “Quarantine Fatigue”

Travel is also on the rise and Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack attributes the rise in miles traveled by car to a new form of cabin fever.  

"There is a phenomenon that has been dubbed 'quarantine fatigue' in which people are sort of getting tired of being home. This may indicate that we are seeing some quarantine fatigue because we are seeing an uptick in travel even though we have not begun to open the Massachusetts economy."

Travel is still down 50 to 70 percent in Massachusetts according to MassDOT data, says Pollack. 

Maine Regulators Approve Energy Pipeline

Maine regulators have approved a $1 billion utility transmission project that will facilitate the flow of 1,200 megawatts of Canadian hydropower into the New England power grid. We’ve written about this project in previous reports.

Although most of the 145-mile (233-kilometer) power line will follow existing utility corridors, the state will need to clear a 50-mile swath of wilderness owned by Central Maine Power in western Maine.

According to the report, under the proposed plan, “the Department of Environmental Protection’s permit requires Central Maine Power to take measures to mitigate the visual and wildlife impact, and to permanently conserve 40,000 acres to offset the environmental impacts,” adding that the permit also requires “nearly $1.9 million for culvert replacement projects, the conservation of 700 acres of deer wintering habitat, and a prohibition on herbicides.”

Supporters of the project say it will “reduce reliance on fossil fuels, lower carbon emissions and stabilize electricity costs across the region — at no cost to Mainers.”

Critics, however, say “the environmental benefits are overstated and the project would do irrevocable harm to a large swath of Maine wilderness.”

Mass. Inches Closer to Recreational Cannabis Delivery

As we’ve also been reporting for several weeks now, recreational marijuana dispensaries in Massachusetts have been shuttered during coronavirus outbreak. However, state officials have announced that they will soon be permitting home delivery of recreational cannabis products in Mass.

According to a report in the Globe, the Cannabis Control Commission will make delivery license applications available starting May 28. 

Applications will be available to third-party delivery operations as well as “marijuana micro-businesses hoping to deliver their own product.” 

More of the Latest Massachusetts News

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High Unemployment and Infection Rates Showing Signs of Leveling Off

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Unemployment claims continue to rise in Massachusetts, but that trend is slowing. More than 55,000 new claims were filed for the week ending May 2, down from more than 70,000 the week prior. That is according to a report published Thursday by the U.S. Department of Labor.

State health officials recently announced 132 new coronavirus-related deaths in Mass., bringing the death toll to 4,552. So far there have been more than 73,000 confirmed coronavirus cases in the state. 

Meanwhile, stay-at-home orders in Mass. have been extended to May 18, with all nonessential businesses to remain closed until then. Although hospitalizations have begun to plateau, the state “still hasn’t seen the declines needed to ease up on social distancing and other steps the state has taken,” Baker said at a press conference. “You need to see downward trends,” he said.

Nationwide, more than three million Americans filed for unemployment benefits in the past week pushing the total up over 33.5 million. That’s one in five Americans newly unemployed. 

The explosion in unemployment comes less than 60 days since nationwide unemployment had reached a 50-year low of just 3.5%.

WCVB news has more on this story.

Cannabis Operations on the Verge of Reopening

Mass. seems to be on the verge of permitting the reopening of recreational cannabis shops in the state — as soon as Gov. Charlie Baker gets on board. 

Regulators in the state are confident this can be done safely by “employing curbside pickup, appointment-only shopping, and other similar measures adopted by retailers that have remained open,” according to a report in the Boston Globe.  

The Mass. Cannabis Commission says it will monitor dispensaries to enforce social distancing rules.

Massachusetts is the only state with a recreational marijuana market to have shuttered its dispensaries. This has led to an existential crisis for many license holders as cannabis concerns are ineligible for federal bailouts. However, the state is working on a potential coronavirus-relief program specifically for Mass. cannabis businesses.

According to ELEVATE Northeast executive director, Beth Waterfall, the creation of a Massachusetts PPP loan for cannabis businesses such as hers “would be a momentous step in the right direction to remedy the inequity that legal, tax-paying cannabis-related businesses like mine are facing during the COVID-19 crisis,” 

Mass Could Lead Clean Energy Revolution with Investment in Fusion R&D

A report by Commonwealth Magazine guest contributor Edward M Murphy, says it’s time for Massachusetts to step up its support of clean energy R&D — in particular, fusion energy — in the same manner as it has with the Mass. Life Sciences Initiative which infused $1.6 billion into biotech research in the state. 

Murphy writes: 

“In 2008, Massachusetts enacted a Life Sciences Initiative which offered to spend $1 billion in support of evolving biotechnology. That initiative helped the extraordinary growth of companies that have made Massachusetts a global leader in biotech and have enhanced the state’s economy. In 2018, the state renewed that commitment with an additional $623 million to help further accelerate life sciences. Many of those companies are now working to help solve the COVID-19 crisis.

“It is timely for Massachusetts government and business leadership to consider a similar initiative for the development of the clean, limitless, and inexpensive energy that fusion may produce. Success is not yet certain, but it is now probable and it can change the world”

Murphy, who recently retired as CEO and chairman of one of the country’s largest providers of services to people with disabilities, had worked in state government from 1979-1995 as the commissioner of the Department of Youth Services, commissioner of the Department of Mental Health, and executive director of the Health and Educational Facilities Authority. 

According to Murphy, “Massachusetts has the educational institutions, research facilities, entrepreneurs, and talent pool to become the leader of fusion development and to concentrate significant aspects of the industry here.” 

“Success would reinforce the state’s historical role of innovative breakthroughs, create more jobs,” says Murphy, “and would help preserve US technological leadership in what will likely be the most impactful innovation of the 21st Century.”

Read, “Can Mass. launch the fusion revolution?,” at Commonwealth Magazine. 

More of the Latest Massachusetts News

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COVID-19 Devastating Massachusetts Economy

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This week’s Massachusetts news is again dominated by the great 2020 pandemic. While hospitalization rates remain high in Massachusetts, unemployment in the state has passed the 25 percent mark. In other news, the Clean Energy Center agrees to pay more than $20 M in a lawsuit, a UMASS professor is awarded a $1.4 M grant for wind turbine tech, and shuttered Mass. adult-use cannabis dispensaries are facing an existential threat. 

Unemployment Over 700,000

It’s been more than a month and a half since the state instituted social distancing measures in response to the coronavirus crisis. However, the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations in Mass. continues to hover around the 4,800 mark, dropping only one percent in the past week. The official death toll in the state is now 3,562.

Meanwhile, another 70,700 unemployment claims were filed in the state in the past week — down from almost 81,000 the week prior. The total of unemployment claims in Mass. over the past six weeks was 722,171 as of Thursday, continuing an unprecedented trend not seen since the Great Depression.

According to WCVB News, that number includes claims filed through the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program which provides benefits for self-employed workers and independent contractors.

Roughly 30.3 million US citizens have now filed for unemployment compensation in the six weeks.

Shutdown of Recreational Cannabis Shops Could Be ‘Catastrophic’ for Industry

With Gov. Charlie Baker’s executive order to shutter nonessential businesses soon to expire, recreational cannabis dispensaries in the state fear the possibility of an extension on the ban or severe limitations in how adult-use shops may operate.

According to Adam Fine, at cannabis law firm Vicente Sederberg:

“[Massachusetts] is really an outlier in terms of how the governor has responded to COVID with respect to the cannabis industry. Unlike liquor stores and unlike a lot of other sectors, [adult-use cannabis companies] really were treated differently. …It’s about as catastrophic as you can get for their businesses. They were forced to shut down with very little notice in a highly regulated industry after they had already implemented social distancing.”

Fine, who spoke with Cannabis Business Times, also pointed out that an ongoing shutdown could adversely affect employee retention in an industry in which hiring and training costs can be high. 

Furthermore, federal lifelines being offered to small businesses do not apply to the cannabis industry which is still considered to be in violation of federal laws — especially the adult-use sector which is not covered under Cole Memo guidelines. 

UMASS Lowell Researcher Receives $1.4 M for Cutting-Edge Wind Turbine Monitoring System

A clean energy researcher at UMass Lowell has received a $1.4 million grant from the US Department of Energy to further develop his scheme to identify damage in wind turbines before they fail. 

Assistant professor of mechanical engineering Murat Inalpolat’s novel system “uses wireless microphones mounted inside blades, wireless speakers inside the turbine's cavity and a microphone placed near the structure to monitor the sounds emanating from inside of it,” Inalpolat told Eurekalert!, adding “Any changes in audio frequencies would signal blade damage.”

According to a study by Global Market Insights Inc., wind power is projected to surpass $170 billion over the next four years. And according to figures from the U.S. Geological Survey and the Global Wind Energy Council, there are 60,000 wind turbines in the US and more than 341,000 in operation globally. 

Clean Energy Center to Pay $2 Million in Lawsuit 

After shelling out $2.3 million to law firms to defend the organization, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center has lost a high-profile suit and now must pay a $20.8 million settlement. 

Already on shaky financial ground, the Center, which has been charged with growing the state’s clean energy economy, has been overspending its allotment of Revenue Trust Fund funds by millions of dollars each year. The fund was established in 1998 as part of the deregulation of the electric utility industry. 

According to a report in Commonwealth Magazine, the lawsuit “stemmed from work related to the 28-acre, $113 million New Bedford Marine Commerce Terminal, a staging site for offshore wind development that has yet to take off.” 

The Clean Energy Center was sued by two contractors on the project who alleged the agency “misrepresented the amount of work necessary to dredge the harbor to make way for the terminal.” According to the report, the Clean Energy Center claims the underestimate was the fault of the contractors.

After a trial that lasted several weeks, a verdict was entered in one day awarding the plaintiffs $21.3 million which includes a $20.8 million settlement reached in February plus the plaintiffs’ legal fees.

More of the Latest Massachusetts News