TRANSPORTATION: After 19 hours, a House committee passes a $547 billion transportation bill that would include billions for mass transit and passenger rail while de-emphasizing road expansion, while a bipartisan group of senators say they have reached an agreement on infrastructure spending. (Washington Post, Reuters)
POLLUTION: The EPA announces it will move to tighten regulations on soot from power plants and other industrial sources, which has significant health impacts in urban areas. (New York Times)
EQUITY:
• During a visit to Nevada, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm says the Biden administration wants to mine lithium “in a responsible way” that respects Indigenous rights. (Associated Press)
• As energy companies position themselves as promoting equity and inclusion, lawmakers that are major recipients of their donations are pushing bills that would increase discrimination against transgender people. (Heated)
• A Massachusetts program intends to invest $10 million in up to 3 MW of solar projects on affordable housing buildings and assist interested community development agencies. (Energy News Network)
OIL & GAS:
• A federal judge blocks two Trump-era drilling plans on over 400,000 acres in Wyoming and Montana because federal land managers failed to consider the projects’ effects on the greater sage grouse. (Associated Press)
• Analysts expect Canadian oil sands production to surge in the next two years despite the defeat of the Keystone XL pipeline. (E&E News, subscription)
• The Interior Department proposes to reverse a Trump administration regulation that would cut lease payments for drilling on public lands. (The Hill)
PIPELINES:
• A proposed natural gas pipeline through a Black farming community in Illinois moves forward despite opposition from some landowners. (Chicago Sun-Times)
• The director of the North Dakota Pipeline Authority says Keystone XL’s cancelation “adds a cloud to all new pipeline projects.” (KFYR)
• Native American contractors working on the Line 3 pipeline replacement and expansion say recent protests “intentionally create a false narrative that there is no Native American support for this project.” (Star Tribune)
CLIMATE:
• In a private call last month, former vice president Al Gore urged President Biden to stand firm on climate goals despite pushback during infrastructure talks. (Washington Post)
• Biden leans on Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm and her history as a fellow former governor to get U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin on board with the administration’s energy agenda. (E&E News, subscription)
• House Republicans are launching a members-only climate caucus “to get conservatives more engaged on climate who otherwise wouldn’t.” (E&E News)
COAL:
• Coal-fired power plants generating gigawatts of power in Maryland, Pennsylvania and Ohio will shutter by mid-September, according to the facilities’ owner; at least one of the facilities was slated to be converted to natural gas. (Associated Press)
• An Alabama strike against Warrior Met Coal has stretched to more than two months with no sign of relenting. (The Nation)
• With its carbon-capture plans for a New Mexico coal plant behind schedule, an energy company plans to continue running the plant without the technology for years beyond its scheduled closing date. (Albuquerque Journal)
NUCLEAR: Details of a sweeping clean energy bill in Illinois include nearly $700 million in ratepayer subsidies to keep three nuclear plants operating. (WBEZ)
UTILITIES: Federal prosecutors have reviewed more than 1 million pages of documents as part of its ongoing investigation into the state’s power plant bailout law. (Columbus Dispatch)
COMMENTARY: A climate policy think tank says an 80% by 2030 national renewable energy standard would open up $1.5 trillion in new investments while saving $1.7 trillion in health and environmental costs. (Forbes)