COAL: The coal mine that supplies the San Juan power plant in northwest New Mexico shuts down and lays off most of its workforce in preparation for the plant’s closure at the end of this month, a sign that a plan to keep the plant running is defunct. (World Coal) 

ALSO: The Boardman coal power plant in Oregon that has been shuttered since 2020 is demolished by implosion. (OPB) 

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NATURAL GAS:
• California regulators prohibit utilities from billing customers to pay for natural gas line extensions to residences or businesses. (Bloomberg)
• A southern California natural gas plant may remain in operation beyond its planned 2023 decommissioning to provide backup in the case of a grid emergency. (Easy Reader & Peninsula)

OIL & GAS:
• An environmental nonprofit finds more than 14 million Americans living near oil and gas facilities faced increased cancer risk. (E&E News, subscription)
• More than 50 environmental and Indigenous groups call on the Biden administration to halt new oil and gas leasing and drilling in the Greater Chaco Region in northwest New Mexico. (news release)   

UTILITIES: San Diego, California’s city council explores buying out San Diego Gas & Electric’s distribution grid and establishing a municipal utility. (Voice of San Diego)

GRID:
• California clean energy advocates call for an expanded consumer demand response program that compensates customers for reduced power use during grid emergencies. (Canary Media)  
• California energy officials outline what they learned from the recent heat wave and grid emergency and how their agencies will prepare for similar incidents in the future. (Los Angeles Times)   

SOLAR: A Utah utility begins construction on a 15 MW solar facility next to a 500 MW coal power plant. (Utah Business)

CLIMATE:
• A Denver, Colorado, climate sales tax has generated $67 million since its 2021 implementation and funds a green workforce development program and a microtransit service, among other initiatives. (E&E News)
• A Wyoming and Colorado natural gas utility plans to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2035 by replacing leak-prone pipes and using biofuels and hydrogen. (S&P Global)

TRANSPORTATION:
• California regulators propose banning sales of new diesel or gasoline powered medium-duty and heavy-duty trucks by 2040. (CalMatters)
• The Biden administration approves Nevada’s, Montana’s and Arizona’s electric vehicle infrastructure plans, making tens of millions of dollars in federal funding available to build out EV charging networks. (Nevada Appeal, NBC Montana, KOLD)

WIND: The Biden administration announces plans to develop floating wind turbine platforms off the Oregon and California coasts. (Associated Press)

HYDROPOWER: An underground circuit breaker explodes at a hydropower plant in California, injuring eight utility workers. (ABC30)

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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.