COAL: A New Mexico coal-fired power plant is to shut down one of the facility’s two generators for seven months each year beginning 2023, a move that could reduce its carbon emissions by up to 25% annually. (Associated Press)

PUBLIC LANDS: The Senate is expected to vote today to confirm Deb Haaland to lead the Interior Department. (CNN)

EQUITY: Indigienous advocates say the appointment of a member of the Nez Perce Tribe to a key Army Corps of Engineers post will be a “game changer” for tribes in energy siting discussions. (E&E News)

SOLAR:
• A California company commits to building a $15 million, 5 MW solar farm to help power its mining operations. (CleanTechnica)
• The Bureau of Indian Affairs opens public comments on a 400 MW solar project proposed by the Moapa Band of Paiute Indians. (Native News Online, E&E News)

OIL & GAS:
• A northern New Mexico oil and gas company agrees to pay a $92,500 civil penalty to the state for failing to report releasing natural gas into water. (Albuquerque Journal)
• Energy investors concerned about climate change are calling on oil and gas companies in the Permian Basin to decrease carbon emissions. (Carlsbad Current-Argus)

CLEAN ENERGY:
• A new analysis finds Nevada’s current climate policy will lead to a net increase in emissions by 2050, and that more aggressive action could boost the state’s economy. (Nevada Current)
• Flagstaff, Arizona, decides to take an “aggressive” approach to achieving carbon neutrality by 2030. (Arizona Daily Sun)
• A new study finds that Wyoming residents are open to renewable energy, but want political leaders to have realistic conversations about the trade-offs that will have to be made to diversify the state’s economy. (Laramie Boomerang)

CLIMATE: A new exploration of the megadrought plaguing 77% of the West indicates bigger wildfires are likely in the region if it continues. (Vox)

POLICY:
• Wyoming U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney co-sponsors a proposed federal bill that would make carbon capture projects eligible for Energy Department loan guarantees. (Wyoming Tribune Eagle)
• A Montana county is keeping an eye on an “ambiguous” state Senate bill that could stop local carbon reductions and efficiency initiatives. (Missoula Current)

UTILITIES: An analysis finds that California’s electricity bills are unusually high in part because the state’s size leads to higher fixed costs, which fall disproportionately on low-income customers. (CalMatters)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Two electric vehicle bills are advancing through the Oregon legislature. (Portland Business Journal)
• The Nevada Electric Highway’s Phase I and Phase II electric vehicle charging stations are set to be completed by June of this year. (Sierra Nevada Daily)

COMMENTARY:
• A history professor writes that the Gwich’in Nation’s struggle for human rights and environmental justice is often overlooked in media discourse about the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. (Washington Post)
• New Mexico Rep. Yvette Herrell says state oil and gas revenues are needed to open schools. (Albuquerque Journal)
• Three California clean energy advocates say Gov. Gavin Newsom’s $1.5 billion investment in clean transportation is vital to job creation in the state. (CalMatters)
• A New Mexico rancher advocates for diversifying the state’s economy to tackle the climate crisis, saying federal and state transitions from oil and gas are long overdue. (Santa Fe New Mexican)

NOTE TO READERS: ENN has removed a commentary on carbon capture that was featured in Friday’s newsletter after learning the author failed to disclose a financial interest in the technology.

Lisa Ellwood

Lisa is a Lenape and Nanticoke Native American freelance journalist, editor and writer currently based in the U.K. She has more than two decades’ experience working in corporate communications and print and digital media. She compiles the Western Energy News daily email digest. She has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Temple University; her specializations include data journalism and visualization. She is a member of the Native American Journalists Association, Investigative Reporters & Editors, Society of Professional Journalists, and the National Union of Journalists (U.K.).