INFRASTRUCTURE: The U.S. Senate overwhelmingly approves a $1 trillion infrastructure bill, followed by a party-line vote in favor of Democrats’ sweeping $3.5 trillion budget that includes far more climate and clean energy spending than the bipartisan package. (New York Times, NPR)
ALSO:
• Nearly every House Democrat signed on to a letter pushing party leaders to ensure energy efficiency and clean transportation tax initiatives make it into the final infrastructure package. (The Hill)
• Republicans defeat a reconciliation bill amendment that would have banned fracking and push through others that would benefit carbon capture and traditional baseload power sources. (E&E News)
PIPELINES:
• Indigenous author and activist Winona LaDuke says President Biden has betrayed tribes by not intervening to stop construction on the Line 3 pipeline in Minnesota. (New York Times)
• U.S. pipeline companies are increasingly investing in renewable fuels and carbon offsets in response to pressure from shareholders and policymakers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. (S&P Global)
TRANSPORTATION:
• A group of Democratic Congress members say the Senate’s infrastructure bill “falls far short” of needed investments in electric vehicle charging infrastructure. (Detroit News)
• Amazon-backed startup Rivian is in talks to build a factory near Fort Worth, Texas, that could produce 200,000 electric vehicles a year and create 7,500 jobs by 2027. (Bloomberg)
• The Biden administration is reportedly considering telling airlines to stop flying on fossil fuels by 2050 and shift to jet fuel from renewable sources. (Reuters)
CLIMATE: More than 600 local governments in the U.S. have adopted climate action plans, though experts say a majority of the plans are aspirational at best and swifter action is needed. (USA Today)
EMISSIONS: As U.S. regulators seem poised to require public companies disclose their greenhouse gas emissions, companies are trying to figure out just how to calculate their carbon footprints. (Wall Street Journal)
UTILITIES: A year after a fund was established to compensate Pacific Gas & Electric-sparked wildfire victims, most have not been paid, and the fund’s value is falling along with the utility’s stocks as the Dixie Fire continues to rage. (Wall Street Journal)
OIL & GAS:
• In a court filing, more than a dozen Republican-led states say the Biden administration hasn’t followed a court injunction ending its pause on issuing new drilling leases and ask for offshore drilling permitting to continue. (The Hill)
• A federal judge orders the U.S. EPA to update its rules for chemical dispersants that were used during BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil disaster. (NOLA.com)
EFFICIENCY:
• The Biden administration proposes a rule that would more rapidly phase out traditional incandescent light bulbs in favor of more efficient models. (E&E News)
• Fannie Mae has issued more than $95 billion in green bonds since 2012 to improve efficiency and decarbonize buildings, but an analysis shows fewer than half of properties that got loans saw their energy scores improve. (Grist)
GRID: A Maine judge cancels the public land lease for part of Central Maine Power’s disputed transmission line project on the grounds that state officials failed to meet certain obligations before signing. (Portland Press Herald)