UTILITIES: Tri-State Generation and Transmission CEO Duane Highley says the company’s rapid transformation in recent years shows that Colorado is at the “tip of the spear” in the transition to clean energy. (Denver Post)

ALSO:
• California’s utility regulator orders the state’s three largest electric companies to secure additional sources of energy in a bid to prevent power outages this summer, but critics are concerned this may include fossil fuels. (San Diego Union Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle)
• New Mexico consumer and environmental advocacy groups say utility ratepayers shouldn’t be responsible for the state’s largest power company’s investments into a coal-fired power plant. (Farmington Daily Times) 

OIL & GAS:
• A lobbyist’s report reveals Exxon Mobil donated at least $10,000 to the dark money group behind a successful campaign that resulted in oil and gas regulatory reform in New Mexico. (New Mexico In Depth)
• A Hawaii oil refinery is fined nearly $220,000 by the EPA for chemical safety failures and improperly managing hazardous waste. (Honolulu Star-Advertiser)
• Kern County, California planning officials fail to make a decision on a proposed revision to an oil and gas zoning ordinance. (Bakersfield Californian)

NUCLEAR: An Arizona nuclear power plant faces a possible penalty for not reporting that a job applicant failed to disclose a debilitating medical condition on their application. (Cronkite News)

COAL ASH: An Arizona coal ash pond is one of eight across the U.S. environmental groups want closed, challenging a federal loophole that allows such sites to apply for exemption waiver. (Courthouse News Service)

WIND:
• Labor, industry, and environmental groups in California join forces to support a proposed bill that would require the state to set offshore wind goals to construct 3,000 MW by 2030 and 10,000 MW by 2040. (Mercury News)
• Residents near a proposed 500 MW wind farm in Wyoming are organizing to oppose the project. (Laramie Boomerang)

TRANSPORTATION:
• Los Angeles County’s transportation authority continues to delay its bus electrification pilots. (Streetsblog Los Angeles)
• Nevada lawmakers consider closing a “classic car” loophole that allows vehicles more than 20 years old to avoid smog inspections. (Las Vegas Sun)
• A California congressman introduces a bill to create a tax credit of up to $1,500 for e-bike purchases. (Cycling Weekly)

COMMENTARY:
• An Arizona conservationist says the state should invest in clean and renewable energy resources including solar for economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. (Arizona Daily Star)
• A Colorado environmental advocate says Gov. Jared Polis is falling short on the leadership and action needed at the state level to combat climate change. (Pueblo Chieftain)
• A Wyoming advocate says “coal communities have been on the front lines in building and powering America, and there’s no reason they can’t continue to be.” (WyoFile)

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.).