Sonnen aims to unify all aspects of the smart home

The company's new smart energy management system will unite home automation, residential solar and energy storage with intelligent load control.

By Robert Walton • Sept. 7, 2018

San Francisco announces 4 key environmental commitments

Mayor London Breed committed the city to zero waste, making its buildings carbon neutral, issuing green bonds and using 100% renewable energy.

By Chris Teale • Sept. 6, 2018

Explore the Trendline➔

Energy Codes and Building Performance Standards

Cities are using these levers to meet climate goals and address everything from data centers to building decarbonization.

By Smart Cities Dive staff

Kentucky regulators reject smart meter plans

The utilities “failed to provide sufficient evidence" that smart meters would benefit their customers, which continues a troubling trend for advanced metering infrastructure.

By Robert Walton • Sept. 4, 2018

Northern Virginia, Phoenix lead global markets with most future data center inventory

Data centers will not only accommodate cities’ growing interest in using blockchain to handle municipal proceedings, but will help with the vast amounts of data necessary for IoT technology.

By Jason Plautz • Sept. 4, 2018

Rooftop solar saves New England power customers $20M during July heatwave

Customer-sited solar in New England can reduce peak demand by up to 1 GW, according to a new analysis by Synapse Energy Economics. 

By Robert Walton • Aug. 31, 2018

California passes landmark 100% clean energy goal

The bill headed to Gov. Jerry Brown's desk would direct state agencies to begin planning to supply 100% of retail electricity sales with carbon-free resources by 2045.

By Iulia Gheorghiu • Aug. 31, 2018

Los Angeles has biggest temperature variance among large US cities

Research from Geotab found the city has a 37-degree swing, while Phoenix is home to the hottest average temperature at 111 degrees Fahrenheit.

By Chris Teale • Aug. 30, 2018

California passes bill to coordinate EV charger planning

The bill would grant authority to the California Energy Commission to assess charging infrastructure build-out in an attempt to meet the state's ambitious EV goals.

By Iulia Gheorghiu • Aug. 29, 2018

Google-backed AI network aids lead pipe cleanup in Flint, MI

The system is helping the city predict which of its 55,000 homes need pipes to be replaced — with a 97% success rate.

By Jason Plautz • Aug. 27, 2018

Pollinator habitats: The bees’ knees of rural solar development

Pollinator-friendly solar is a blossoming trend that saves maintenance costs and makes utility-scale solar more appealing to agricultural communities.

By Catherine Morehouse • Aug. 27, 2018

Philadelphia sets path to reduce GHG emissions 80% by 2050

Among other steps are an initiative to install more rooftop solar on buildings and incentivizing more efficient thermal systems for buildings.

By Jason Plautz • Aug. 24, 2018

19 mayors commit to make all buildings net-zero carbon by 2050

The declaration precedes the Global Climate Action Summit, where leaders from around the world will be encouraged to collaborate on strategies for decreasing GHG emissions.

By Kristin Musulin • Aug. 24, 2018

35 California mayors sign on to support 100% EV state transit proposal

As a national leader in the deployment of electric buses, California regulators are proposing to transition the state's entire transit fleet to EV by 2040.

By Iulia Gheorghiu • Aug. 23, 2018

Smart meter readings are a valid ‘warrantless search,’ court rules

Smart meter opponents challenged the public utility of Naperville, IL, over its data collection, which the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit deemed as warrantless, but not unreasonable.

By Robert Walton • Aug. 22, 2018

EPA moves to replace Clean Power Plan with modest carbon regulations

The proposed Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) rule would require minor efficiency improvements at some coal plants and give states more latitude to set their own emissions standards.

By Gavin Bade • Updated Aug. 21, 2018

Chicago installs 76K LED streetlights in first year of upgrade program

The LEDs are expected to cut streetlight electricity use by 50-75%, part of a four-year modernization plan that entails replacing 270,000 lights by 2021.

By Katie Pyzyk • Aug. 21, 2018

Verizon, Nokia complete successful test of 5G in moving car

The companies successfully and seamlessly transmitted a signal between two radio sectors to a receiver at Verizon's Murray Hill, NJ, headquarters.

By Jason Plautz • Aug. 21, 2018

Exelon Innovation Expo highlights power of ‘employing your brain’

Utilities and cities must not be afraid to fail, speakers said, because the rewards of a new idea working well are high and can benefit the whole community.

By Chris Teale , Sean Gibbons • Aug. 17, 2018

California moves to preserve vehicle standards in face of EPA rollback

State air regulators on Tuesday released a plan that would keep tougher emissions rules in place for California if the Trump administration moves to weaken federal standards. 

By Gavin Bade • Aug. 9, 2018

Report: DOE, DHS planning new grid cybersecurity exercise this fall

The Liberty Eclipse exercise will focus on blackstart capabilities and the intersection of the natural gas and electric power sectors, E&E News reports. 

By Gavin Bade • Aug. 7, 2018

Anchorage fortifies its computer systems as hackers attack neighboring municipalities

A potent cyber attack is spreading through local Alaskan governments, but the state’s biggest municipality is determined not to fall victim to it.

By Jason Axelrod • Aug. 6, 2018

Mayors condemn EPA’s proposed freeze on auto emissions standards

The Climate Mayors coalition said the plan is an "unprecedented attack on both the environment and states' rights" and pledged to do more to combat climate change.

By Chris Teale • Aug. 3, 2018

EPA proposes to freeze auto emission standards, revoke California EV rules

The move could be met with opposition from utilities, which support pro-EV policies, but the EPA administrator said he is open to compromise with California.

By Gavin Bade • Aug. 2, 2018

The students bringing smart city concepts to life with ‘unconstrained creativity’

At NYU's 2018 Science of Smart Cities program, founder Ben Esner lauded students' efforts to build innovations like climate-measuring drones and smart bridge technology.

By Kristin Musulin • Aug. 2, 2018

The shift to renewables can’t wait until 2035

Cities and universities play an important role in reducing carbon emissions through sustainable energy practices. But many are baking unreasonable timelines into their plans for carbon neutrality.

By Bryce Smith • July 27, 2018