UTILITIES: In a split vote, Arizona’s Salt River Project board approves a major expansion of a natural gas plant after hearing hours of testimony opposing the project. (Associated Press)

CLIMATE:
• California Gov. Gavin Newsom survives a recall vote, keeping the state’s progressive climate and energy policies intact. (Los Angeles Times)
• President Joe Biden uses a Colorado visit to make the economic case for federal investments in clean energy and other climate-related efforts. (Washington Post)
• Heavy rainfall in much of Utah has improved the state’s water outlook, but most of the West remains gripped by severe drought. (Salt Lake Tribune)
• A U.S. EPA analysis predicts the Southwest will see hundreds of additional heat-related deaths each year if temperatures continue to rise at current rates. (Nevada Current)

GRID:
• A proposed transmission line in Colorado ignites concerns regarding utility lines’ penchant for sparking wildfires. (Vail Daily)
• The federal Bureau of Land Management hears from a rural Nevada county’s residents regarding several proposed solar installations and a 525-kilovolt transmission line that would carry the power they generate. (Pahrump Valley Times)

MICROGRIDS: Los Angeles County leaders propose the creation of a regional agency to expedite microgrid deployment in Southern California. (Microgrid Knowledge)

SOLAR:
• A Colorado city considers an ordinance limiting the size of residential solar arrays for aesthetic reasons, despite a new state law meant to encourage more rooftop solar. (Denver Post)
• The U.S. Department of Agriculture grants nearly $370,000 to several New Mexico solar-plus-storage projects. (Deming Headlight) 

TRANSPORTATION:
• California allocates $5 million toward construction of a 12 electric truck charging station in Bakersfield to be powered by a solar-plus-storage system. (PV Magazine)
• Tempe, Arizona, leaders urge Congress to make bold investments in clean transportation and electric vehicle charging infrastructure. (Daily Independent) 

OIL & GAS:
• Colorado’s complex and untested “intensity target” proposal to cut methane emissions from oil and gas facilities receives praise from the industry and criticism from environmentalists. (Colorado Sun)
• Twelve proposed climate-related bills have failed to make it through the California legislature so far this year amid intense opposition from the oil and gas industry. (Capital & Main)
• New Mexico regulators are still tweaking a proposed ozone precursor rule for oil and gas facilities that will face public hearings next week. (NM Political Report)
• Environmental and tribal organizations call on the Biden administration to delay resumption of oil and gas leasing on federal land. (E&E News, subscription)
• The budget reconciliation bill making its way through Congress would prohibit oil and gas development within New Mexico’s Chaco Canyon Heritage Area and on the Thompson Divide in Colorado. (Colorado Newsline) 

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Jonathan P. Thompson

Jonathan hails from southwestern Colorado and has been writing about the land, cultures, and communities of the Western United States for more than two decades. He compiles the Western Energy News digest. He is the author of three books, a contributing editor at High Country News, and the editor of the Land Desk, an e-newsletter that provides coverage and context on issues critical to the West.