EMISSIONS: Nearly two dozen states join California in a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s effort to weaken fuel efficiency standards for cars. (Los Angeles Times)
CALIFORNIA:
• The trial on PG&E’s bankruptcy plan opens with critics questioning the utility’s voting process. (Associated Press)
• Proposed legislation that would replace PG&E with a non-profit company if its safety and maintenance failures continue is set to be debated today. (Bay Area News Group)
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SOLAR:
• A New Mexico electric cooperative is building a 15 MW solar array that will fulfill its goal of 100 percent daytime solar. (Taos News)
• A new study of the solar energy capacity of 57 major U.S. cities ranks eight Western cities in its top 10. (Environment California)
OIL & GAS:
• The company behind the controversial Jordan Cove liquified gas export terminal in Oregon tells Gov. Kate Brown the project will help the state’s economic recovery from the coronavirus crisis. (Courthouse News)
• Suncor officials say tests of contaminated water seeping from its suburban Denver refinery show contaminants did not exceed state standards for surface water.
• The oil and gas industry continues to be a major player in shaping New Mexico’s legislature, having poured $1.1 million into the state’s 2020 primary election since last October. (New Mexico In Depth)
POLLUTION: PG&E wants a federal judge to reject an environmental cleanup lawsuit over pollution left behind by coal gasification plants in San Francisco a century ago. (Courthouse News Service)
PUBLIC LANDS: Three proposed BLM oil and gas auctions in Utah and Nevada are now in doubt as the agency has yet to announce the public comment period dates. (Washington Post)
FOSSIL FUELS: Experts say Wyoming should consider tax reform given the current economic crises for the state’s biggest industries. (Casper Star Tribune)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: A new study by charging-as-a-service provider Amply Power finds that running electric vehicles is cheaper than diesel and gas in most cities. (Utility Dive)
WIND: A Wyoming county’s planning and zoning commission is set to review the county’s wind energy regulations because of opposition to a facility south of Laramie. (Laramie Boomerang)
TECHNOLOGY: The Energy Department awards $1.25 million to a New Mexico startup to test how well its newly developed “MetZilla” paste can protect solar systems against cracking and degradation. (Albuquerque Journal)
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COMMENTARY: An editorial writer says the Trump administration has been “ignoring the experts and conducting its own shoddy analysis” to justify rolling back vehicle emissions standards. (Los Angeles Times)
CLARIFICATION: A commentary in Tuesday’s digest about nuclear power does not reflect the views of the Nature Conservancy. The authors are trustees of the group but were writing on their own behalf.