The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR) is one of the oldest departments of agriculture in the U.S. Its interests lie in two broad areas: regulatory and promotional. On the one hand it deals with animal health (rabies) and crop and pest services (Asian Longhorn beetle). On the other it deals with agricultural conservation and technical assistance […]

I’m notoriously bad at planning ahead for meals, so long car trips are always a challenge. More often than not I end up resorting to the sorts of fast food you find at gas stations and rest areas. So I was really excited when, on the way back from Connecticut this weekend, I saw a […]

I got a notice this week that NStar has applied for a rate hike for NStar Green, the optional program where people pay extra to support energy generation by renewable sources…. NStar markets the program as if 100% of your electricity will be from renewable sources, and I think it’s this approach that turns people off. It all goes into the same grid, so no electricity is “my” electricity. The premium that I pay only makes a difference if NStar is actually buying more renewable energy because of it. Is that the case?