A rulemaking process is underway by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency for a law passed this year aimed at addressing health inequities in disenfranchised communities. 
The legislation carves out specific environmental justice areas and it could mean more Minnesota businesses will have to undergo a pollution analysis before getting permits within these regions. Maps sketching out these newly designated areas were released last month. The regions cover all of the Twin Cities as well as large swaths of Rochester and Duluth. 
The MPCA has opened a public comments period between July 24 and Oct. 6 as it works to figure out the criteria for determining which businesses will need to carry out a ‘Cumulative Impacts Analysis’. 
MinnPost reporter Walker Orenstein spoke with MPR News Chief Meteorologist Paul Huttner about the latest developments. 

Rulemaking process underway for new environmental justice areas

MPR News meteorologist Paul Huttner with the latest research on our changing climate.

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Renewable energy sources provided 33 percent of Minnesota’s electricity last year, which is 10 percent higher than the national average according to a new report. 
So, what’s next for Minnesota’s clean energy transition?
Amelia Cerling Hennes, managing director of public affairs for Clean Energy Economy MN, shared more about the state’s clean energy progress. 

Report shows Minnesota is leading the way in clean energy transition

“I’m sorry we broke the sea and sky and shortened the wings of the nightingale. I’m sorry that the Great Barrier Reef is no longer great, that we value Amazon much more than the Amazon.”
Those are the words of CNN’s chief climate correspondent Bill Weir from his new book called “Life as We Know It (Can Be).” He wrote it as a letter to his 4-year-old son River to read in the future.
It’s a future where he hopes we’ve fixed our broken climate. 
Bill Weir, who began his career in Austin, shared more about the book on this week’s Climate Cast.

CNN chief climate correspondent on finding hope in a world of climate change

Hurricanes are getting so strong that some scientists say we should add a Category 6 to the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale.
That’s out of a recent study in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences looking at the link between stronger hurricanes and climate change.
Senior Climate Reporter Andrew Freedman wrote about it for Axios.

As hurricanes get more powerful, some scientists suggest a new category six

A recent study shows nearly 15 percent of Americans “do not believe in climate change.”
So, what drives climate denialism in the U.S.?
Joshua Newell is a professor and co-director of the Center for Sustainable Systems. He was one of the authors of this research and broke down his findings.

Climate denialism mapped to geography and political affiliation

Electric vehicle dealers right here in Minnesota are using different strategies to convince prospective buyers from different political affiliations. 

Rulemaking process underway for new environmental justice areas

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