OIL & GAS: Public records show a study cited by Wyoming officials projecting thousands of job losses from a suspension of drilling on public land was developed with help from an oil industry trade group. (Wyoming Public Media)

ALSO:
• A California county unanimously approves 40,500 new oil and gas wells, dismissing objections as “ridiculous” and “patronizing.” (Palm Springs Desert Sun)
• A new study by the University of Southern California and UCLA finds that more than a half million Americans living near oil and gas operations face potentially serious health risks from flaring events. (news release)

PIPELINES: A Montana county approves a permit for a Northwestern Energy natural gas pipeline to be located under the Gallatin River. (Bozeman Daily Chronicle)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• A Nevada bill would require the state’s largest utility to spend $100 million over three years building out electric vehicle infrastructure. (Nevada Independent)
• An Oregon bill would allow utilities to pass costs for powering electric vehicle charging stations on to consumers. (Banks Post)
• California gas station owners worry about their livelihoods as the state transitions to electric vehicles. (KCRW)

POLITICS: A dozen states, including Montana, Arizona and Utah, sue President Biden over his executive order on climate change. (USA Today)

COAL:
• A Montana lawmaker introduces two bills to support the town of Colstrip as it faces closure of a nearby coal plant, but an opponent says they would prevent redevelopment of the site. (Daily Montanan)
• Wyoming lawmakers have proposed four bills aimed at making it harder to shut down coal plants. (WyoFile)

HYDROGEN: A Washington public utility begins construction on a $20 million renewable hydrogen production facility. (KLCC)

HYDROPOWER: The City of Seattle’s municipal power utility is accused of propping up “outdated” and “misleading” science about its hydropower operations at three Skagit River dams by tribal, federal, and state scientists. (KNG5)

SOLAR:
• Montana’s utilities regulator petitions the U.S. Supreme Court to hear its appeal of a state supreme court decision finding the regulator’s contract terms unfavorable to renewable energy providers. (Montana Free Press)
• New Mexico’s Land Commissioner approves four leases for solar projects on state trust land that will power water wells serving Las Cruces. (Associated Press)

UTILITIES:
• The Navajo Tribal Utility Authority has connected more than 700 homes to electric service using federal stimulus funds. (Navajo Times)
• Colorado Springs’ city council is set to hold a hearing and vote today on how its municipal utility ratepayers will cover the utility’s costs from buying high-priced gas to meet demand during recent extreme winter weather. (Complete Colorado)

COMMENTARY:
• A utility executive says Montana faces transmission constraints similar to Texas that put the state at risk of high prices and outages during extreme weather. (Independent Record)
• An Idaho city councilman says elected officials at all levels need to take a bipartisan approach to clean energy investments to reduce carbon emissions and boost the economy. (Post Register)

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.).