CLEAN ENERGY: Arizona regulators approve new rules requiring 100% carbon-free electricity by 2050, but will not require utilities to rely on wind and solar to reach the target. (Arizona Republic)

ALSO:
• Portland, Oregon officials are considering a carbon tax for major polluters to help fund local climate initiatives. (Oregonian)
• A California utility is studying cleaner alternatives to aging diesel-fired generators powering Catalina Island. (Catalina Islander)

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TRANSPORTATION:
• California’s Air Resources Board Chair Mary Nichols says the state’s new emissions requirements for cars could provide a “good template” for new federal standards. (Reuters)
• California’s transportation department is seeking volunteers to test a mileage fee that could potentially replace the gasoline tax. (Times of San Diego)

OIL & GAS: The Trump administration is rushing to finalize drilling leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge before President-elect Biden’s inauguration. (Reuters)

UTILITIES:
• Utilities in Washington consider emergency shutoff plans after power lines sparked dozens of fires over Labor Day weekend. (Seattle Times)
• A New Mexico advocate is concerned that a buyout of the state’s utility could give the company too much political power. (Santa Fe New Mexican)

SOLAR:
• Wyoming lawmakers advance a bill pushing state regulators to examine the state’s net metering system. (Casper Star-Tribune)
• Developers of nearly 1,300 MW of solar and storage projects in the Four Corners area are confident they’ll receive necessary approvals to move forward. (Farmington Daily Times)

WIND: A Colorado plant that produces materials for wind turbine blades is shutting down amid a downturn in demand. (Greeley Tribune)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• The world’s largest Tesla supercharging station, with 56 stalls, is now open in California’s Central Valley. (Inside EVs)
• A Colorado resort town installs the first fast-charging station in the county. (Sky-Hi News)
• Utility grants are helping to fund charging stations in rural Oregon. (Wallowa County Chieftain)

HYDROPOWER: A series of outages at a Colorado hydropower plant is shaking up water rights allocations and disrupting downstream rafting businesses. (Aspen Journalism)

BIOENERGY: Officials in Salem, Oregon anticipate a new biogas facility at a wastewater treatment plant will save the city $300,000 per year while cutting emissions. (Statesman Journal)

EFFICIENCY: Proposals to limit the size of new houses in a wealthy Colorado county are facing stiff opposition from homebuilders. (Aspen Journalism)

COMMENTARY: A California man outlines health impacts he attributes to growing up near oil fields, and says the state still isn’t doing enough to protect communities of color from pollution. (New York Times)

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy, and has led the project from its inception as Midwest Energy News in 2009. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he held a variety of editing, production, and leadership roles, and played a key role in the newspaper's transition to digital-first publishing. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon.