OIL & GAS: California advocates urge Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign a bill requiring oil and gas operators to post larger cleanup bonds, but a state agency warns the rule could backfire by disincentivizing big operations from taking over small ones, leading to well abandonment. (Los Angeles Times)

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PUBLIC LANDS: The federal Bureau of Land Management considers banning industrial-scale clean energy and fossil fuel development on nearly 2.5 million acres in southern Wyoming. (WyoFile)

CLEAN ENERGY: Analysts say Arizona provides a test case for whether split-party controlled states can enact effective clean energy standards. (E&E News)

WIND: A California wind energy project receives a federal golden eagle take permit, clearing the way for it to begin operations later this month. (Noozhawk)

BATTERIES: 

UTILITIES: 

  • A California county files two lawsuits against Southern California Edison alleging the utility’s equipment sparked destructive wildfires in 2020 and 2022. (Los Angeles Times)
  • San Jose, California, votes to form a city-owned electric utility to explore the concept of creating a municipal power provider and breaking free from Pacific Gas & Electric. (San Jose Spotlight)
  • Hawaiian Electric tells regulators it has $165 million in liability insurance to help it cover as much as $4.9 billion in claims related to the deadly Maui blazes. (BNN Bloomberg) 

CLIMATE: A Colorado school district considers spending as much as $268 million for classroom cooling systems as climate change raises average temperatures to intolerable levels. (Fort Collins Coloradoan)

TRANSPORTATION: Colorado safety advocates urge state lawmakers to make vehicle registration fees proportional to the automobile’s weight, saying bigger cars are more deadly to pedestrians and cyclists. (Durango Herald)

BIOFUELS: A West Coast Amtrak passenger rail line replaces petroleum-based fuel with biodiesel made from materials such as cooking oil. (news release)

NUCLEAR: Idaho National Laboratory researchers look into ways to power remote mining operations with nuclear microreactors.  (news release)

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Jonathan hails from southwestern Colorado and has been writing about the land, cultures, and communities of the Western United States for more than two decades. He compiles the Western Energy News digest. He is the author of three books, a contributing editor at High Country News, and the editor of the Land Desk, an e-newsletter that provides coverage and context on issues critical to the West.