OIL & GAS: The federal Bureau of Land Management defers leasing on hundreds of proposed Wyoming oil and gas parcels largely due to potential impacts to sage grouse habitat. (Casper Star-Tribune)

ALSO:
• The U.S. EPA proposes new rules to ramp up oil and gas leak monitoring and limit methane emissions from existing facilities. (New York Times)
• A study shows BP’s operations in the Permian Basin emit more methane per barrel of oil than other operators even though the company pledged to phase out all greenhouse gas emissions. (Bloomberg, subscription)
• A Hawaii environmental advocacy group plans to sue the U.S. Navy to speed up repairs to a leak-plagued fueling facility. (Honolulu Star-Advertiser)
• A federal appeals court orders federal regulators to consider pausing their approval of a proposed pipeline that would feed a now on-hold liquefied natural gas export terminal in southern Oregon. (E&E News, subscription)

UTILITIES:
• Federal prosecutors are investigating Pacific Gas & Electric’s role in Northern California’s Dixie Fire; the utility faces $1.15 billion in losses relating to the blaze, according to regulatory filings. (Los Angeles Times)
• A hearing examiner recommends New Mexico regulators reject the proposed Avangrid-Public Service Company of New Mexico merger. (Santa Fe New Mexican)
• Xcel Energy’s natural gas utility, which serves Colorado, New Mexico and six other states, pledges net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. (Denver Post)

NUCLEAR: Ute Mountain Ute tribal members oppose a Utah uranium mill’s proposal to import and process Estonia’s radioactive waste. (High Country News)

SOLAR:
• The developer of a utility-scale solar plus storage project proposed for Hawaii backs out due to elevated grid interconnection costs and supply chain issues. (Energy Storage News)
• A proposed suburban Los Angeles community solar project faces opposition from neighbors over aesthetics. (KCRW)
• Idaho regulators begin accepting public comments on an Idaho Power study that examines and could influence rooftop solar net metering rates and policies. (Northern Rockies News Service)
• A California wood product company plans to acquire 95% of its 150,000 square foot manufacturing facility’s power from rooftop solar. (news release)

CLIMATE: California researchers find climate change is the main driver of extreme wildfire behavior in the Western U.S. (Los Angeles Times) 

TRANSPORTATION: Hawaiian Electric proposes installing 300 electric vehicle charging stations during the next decade. (Honolulu Star-Advertiser, subscription)

LITHIUM: A Nevada rancher suing to block Nevada’s proposed Thacker Pass lithium mine says a consultant involved in the project’s environmental assessment has a conflict of interest. (Associated Press)

COAL: Wyoming’s “Energy Capital of the World” looks to tourism, sporting events and non-fuel uses of coal to keep it afloat as the fossil fuel industry declines. (WyoFile)  

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.