EJII Wisconsin | Walnut Way

We Need Everyone: Healthy Homes, Lower Bills, Connected Blocks

Both Walnut Way Conservation Corp. and the Wisconsin Environmental Justice & Infrastructure Initiative (EJII) work together to turn healthy homes, base‑building, and policy advocacy into real power for communities. Walnut Way continues to convene and model neighborhood‑led change, while EJII’s emerging leadership is expanding that work across Wisconsin—supporting new local groups, centering people of color, and advancing environmental justice, social equity, and consumer rights in decisions about energy, infrastructure, and climate.

COMMING IN 2026

“Introducing WEBB, a new initiative that expands our work in environmental justice, broadband, and clean energy across Wisconsin. Learn more and watch the conversation here: https://www.youtube.com/live/duQvshOgaJo?si=SQaWTDcs2ktkR5Bl.”

A historical perspective - Read more...
Turning Energy Burden Into Energy Power: Walnut Way vs. the Old Rules
For a long time, no neighborhood‑based group in Milwaukee was intervening in utility rate and infrastructure cases, even though those cases were quietly shaping people’s bills, homes, and health. Walnut Way stepped in when others were not in the room, taking on multiple complex dockets at once and learning a system that had been built for utilities, big customers, and lawyers—not for residents in drafty houses facing shutoff notices. Against that backdrop, the intervenor support cases 1‑IC‑569 and 1‑IC‑577 became a major victory. They secured funding so that community participation in cases like 6630‑CG‑140 and 6630‑TE‑113 was not just symbolic, but backed by legal and technical muscle, with Walnut Way still leading from lived experience. These wins proved that a neighborhood organization could both carry its community’s stories and unlock the resources needed to fight on equal footing, opening the door for other frontline groups to follow.

Environmental Justice and Infrastructure Initiative

HISTORY

Walnut Way WPSC Utility Intervention Cases for Fair Energy, Healthy Homes, and Community Justice

Over the last two decades, Walnut Way has grown from a Lindsay Heights neighborhood effort into a leader on healthy homes and fair energy, and EJII was created to carry that community power into statewide utility, infrastructure, and climate decisions.

“Use this table to see where Walnut Way is pushing back on unfair energy decisions, why each case matters for our neighborhoods, and how you can plug into the fight for affordable, clean energy.”
“Each row shows a live battleground over our energy future—what the utility is asking for, what it means for your bill and your health, and how Walnut Way is standing up so residents are not left out of the decisions.”

WEBB

PSC Docket	Systemic Problem	Walnut Way’s Position	Issue
5‑UR‑110	2022 WE Energies rate case (electric & gas bills).	Intervenor for Milwaukee EJ communities; stop harmful hikes, protect LIFT, demand income‑based affordability.	2022 WE rate case
5‑UR‑112	Follow‑on rate / affordability implementation tied to 5‑UR‑110 (PIPP pilots, LIFT, low‑income protections).	Push PSC and WE to actually build PIPP‑style programs and strengthen low‑income protections ordered in 5‑UR‑110.	Affordability follow‑on
6630‑CG‑140	WE Energies gas system / infrastructure case including new LNG facility and associated pipelines in Oak Creek.	Bring EJ concerns about new gas investment, safety, pollution, and long‑term cost risks for low‑income customers.	Oak Creek LNG & gas
6630‑TE‑113	Data‑center special power tariff for very large customers and “bespoke resources” serving new data‑center load.	Challenge shifting a multi‑billion‑dollar data‑center deal onto regular customers; insist on fairness, transparency, and climate responsibility.	Data‑center tariff
5‑CE‑157	345‑kV “Grid Forward – Central Wisconsin” transmission line and rebuild (MISO LRTP Project 6).	Raise questions about need, cost, and clean‑energy alternatives, centering statewide equity, land impact, and climate goals.	Grid Forward 345‑kV line
1‑IC‑569, 1‑IC‑577	Intervenor compensation dockets that fund community participation in cases like 6630‑CG‑140 and 6630‑TE‑113.	Secure resources so community can show up with legal and technical experts in these complex PSC cases.	Intervenor support

COMMING SOON IN

2026

Utility Rate Caes

“Introducing The WEBB, a new initiative that expands our work in environmental justice, broadband, and clean energy across Wisconsin. Learn more and watch the conversation here: