Western Energy News

Emissions up in California despite cap-and-trade program

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CLIMATE: An analysis of state data reveals that emissions have been increasing from California’s biggest oil and gas companies since the state’s cap-and-trade program was implemented. (ProPublica)

PIPELINES: Montana lawmakers representing Native American tribal members want the public comment period for the environmental review of the Keystone XL pipeline extended, saying tribes were not properly consulted. (Reuters)

***SPONSORED LINK: Attend Law Seminars International’s annual, Tribal Energy in the SW Conference, November 21-22, in Albuquerque. The conference will focus on the transition to clean power and new opportunities for Tribal Energy Projects. Register today!

Western Energy News

Critics: New Mexico nuclear storage proposal perpetuates ‘nuclear colonialism’

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NUCLEAR: Critics of a New Mexico nuclear storage proposal say it would perpetuate a legacy of “nuclear colonialism” against the state’s Indigenous communities and people of color. (New Mexico Political Report)

EFFICIENCY:
• The California Energy Commission votes to enact tougher energy efficiency standards for light bulbs, bucking the Trump administration rollback of light bulb efficiency standards. (The Hill)
• Two southern California utilities mark completion of a $1 million energy efficiency project at the largest U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development project in the Western U.S. (news release)

***SPONSORED LINK: Attend Law Seminars International’s annual, Tribal Energy in the SW Conference, November 21-22, in Albuquerque. The conference will focus on the transition to clean power and new opportunities for Tribal Energy Projects. Register today!

Western Energy News

Navajo Nation won’t back tribal energy company’s coal mines

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COAL: The Navajo Nation’s president says the tribe will not financially back bonds the Navajo Transitional Energy Company needs for its newly acquired trio of Cloud Peak coal mines in Wyoming and Montana. (Associated Press)

ALSO: The conflict over a coal export terminal in Oakland, California, represents a deeper rift between land-locked Western fossil fuel-producing states and coastal states over climate policies and commerce. (InsideClimate News)

***SPONSORED LINK: Attend Law Seminars International’s annual, Tribal Energy in the SW Conference, November 21-22, in Albuquerque. The conference will focus on the transition to clean power and new opportunities for Tribal Energy Projects. Register today!

Western Energy News

Permian Basin oil boom could worsen Western water stress

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OIL & GAS: A think tank’s report warns that the Permian Basin oil boom could worsen water shortages in drought-prone parts of the West. (Reuters)

ALSO:
• Permian Basin shale companies are preparing to pump less oil and natural gas as financial pressures mount. (Wall Street Journal, subscription)
• Occidental Petroleum is soliciting bids for oil and gas properties in Wyoming and Colorado and plans to sell its office building in the heart of the Permian Basin. (Reuters, Houston Chronicle)

***SPONSORED LINK: Attend Law Seminars International’s annual, Tribal Energy in the SW Conference, November 21-22, in Albuquerque. The conference will focus on the transition to clean power and new opportunities for Tribal Energy Projects.

Western Energy News

Coal company contractor desecrated sacred Native American ground

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COAL: Crow Nation members say a coal company contractor working under federal oversight in Montana desecrated one of the largest known Native American bison killing grounds to make way for a coal mine. (Associated Press)

ALSO:
• The owners of the Navajo Generating Station confirm it will shut down this week after burning through its remaining coal supply. (Cronkite News)
• A plan to pair Montana’s Hardin Generating Station with a Bitcoin mine appears to have stalled, with no construction done on slated data-server warehouses. (Billings Gazette)

***SPONSORED LINK: Attend Law Seminars International’s annual, Tribal Energy in the SW Conference, November 21-22, in Albuquerque. The conference will focus on the transition to clean power and new opportunities for Tribal Energy Projects.