ty Center is run by Community Action Network in partnership with the city of Ann Arbor, Michigan. The center’s solar power system is part of the agency’s growing renewable energy projects in the city’s underserved communities. Image: Elinor Epperson
Energy

Ann Arbor ballot proposal promises affordable access to renewable energy

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By Elinor Epperson

Ann Arbor proposed sustainable energy utility could save residents and commercial customers money on their electricity bills, according to a new report commissioned by the city. Residents of the Southeast Michigan city will vote in November on whether to establish an optional public utility that would use exclusively renewable energy generated by local systems. The project is part of its A2Zero program, which aims for carbon neutrality by 2030. If the proposal passes, it will be the first sustainable energy utility in Michigan. Similar utilities have operated in Delaware since 2007 and Washington D.C. since 2011. The report calculated cost savings based on how much it will cost the city to set up the utility and how many customers participate in the utility.

Electronics contain critical minerals such as copper, nickel, gold, lithium and cobalt needed to make batteries for electric vehicles and to electrify Michigan’s energy grid. Image: Gabrielle Nelson
Energy

The electric energy future could be wasting away in a junk drawer

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By Gabrielle Nelson

Lily Wilkin has four old phones tucked away in her closet — and no plans to recycle them. “I keep them for nostalgia,” she said. Wilkin works at Best Buy, the nation’s largest retail collector of electronic waste — from CRT TVs to hard drives to fans. Wilkin said at least two customers drop off electronics for recycling every day at the East Lansing Best Buy. Even though she knows about the e-waste collection program, she’s choosing to keep her old electronics.