CLEAN ENERGY: Dozens of U.S. corporations, including Apple, Google and General Motors, send a letter to Congress calling for a federal clean energy standard of 80% by 2030. (The Hill)

CLIMATE:
• The recent Northwest heat wave would have been “virtually impossible” without the effects of climate change, according to a new study by a global team of scientists. (Reuters)
• Drought covers 93% of the Western United States for the first time in at least a century. (E&E News, subscription)
• U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin doubles down on his comments claiming climate change is “bullshit” while insisting he is “not a climate change denier.” (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

WIND:
• Maine bans offshore wind farms in its territorial waters, a move made to placate the concerns of the state’s traditional fishing industry. (Portland Press Herald)
• Ørsted wants to build a 760 MW offshore wind farm called Skipjack Wind 2 off the Maryland coast, submitting a bid through the state utility regulator’s request for proposals. (Salisbury Daily Times)
• Iowa officials claim an out-of-state company is illegally storing hundreds of wind turbine blades across three towns. (Iowa Capital Dispatch)

COAL: A new report finds the cost of reclaiming 633,000 acres of Appalachian coal mines closed or idled since 1977 will likely cost more than twice the $3.8 billion in available bonds set aside for reclamation. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)

PIPELINES:
• The cancellation of the Byhalia Connection pipeline in Memphis came after months of community organization and protest that signal a larger battle for environmental justice for the city’s Black communities. (Grist)
• A crude oil pipeline system in Montana and North Dakota remains embroiled in legal disputes after the Biden administration sought to vacate previous decisions involving fines, damages and trespassing on tribal land. (Williston Herald) 

OIL & GAS:
• New Mexico oil and gas regulators issue the first fines for violations in a decade and plug 49 abandoned wells, the most in one year since at least 2016. (Santa Fe New Mexican)
• New Mexico groups call on President Joe Biden to honor campaign promises to end oil and gas subsidies. (Carlsbad Current-Argus)

ELECTRIFICATION: A federal judge rejects a lawsuit by a California restaurant union challenging Berkeley’s first-in-the-nation natural gas ban. (Berkeleyside)

EFFICIENCY:
• A Massachusetts bill would use a tax on real estate transactions to fund hundreds of millions of dollars worth of climate adaptation and energy-efficient affordable housing projects every year. (Energy News Network)
• Kansas City officials delay further action on regulations to strengthen energy efficiency in the city’s building codes, potentially leading to less stringent rules. (Energy News Network)

GRID: California regulators launch “the mother of all proceedings” to create a framework to better integrate solar, storage, electric vehicles and other distributed resources into the grid. (Utility Dive)

COMMENTARY:
• A researcher says transmission siting “needs bipartisan support for enduring and necessary change.” (The Hill)
• Congress should accelerate the growth of solar power in the Southeast by passing a federal commitment to 100% clean energy by 2035, writes a solar advocate. (Orlando Sentinel)

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy and is a founding editor of both Midwest Energy News and Southeast Energy News. 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 worked as a copy editor, online producer, features editor and night city editor. 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. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and Investigative Reporters and Editors.