CLEAN ENERGY: Indigenous tribal nations say a lack of upfront capital and technical expertise is hindering their efforts to tap billions of dollars of federal clean energy incentives. (Reuters)
TRANSPORTATION:
• Colorado lawmakers propose a regional passenger rail network in the northwest part of the state to help meet affordable housing and transportation needs. (Sky-Hi News)
• A Colorado town sees transit ridership jump 22% after implementing a zero fare summer program for residents and visitors. (Durango Herald)
OIL & GAS:
• The U.S. EPA fines a Colorado oil refinery $161,000 for producing high-pollution gasoline and requires it to buy $600,000 in clean lawn equipment for high-ozone Denver-area counties. (Colorado Sun)
• The All Pueblo Council of Governors opposes a Republican U.S. House bill that would block the oil and gas drilling ban around Chaco Culture National Historical Park in New Mexico. (Native News Online)
STORAGE: A national laboratory in Colorado finds closed-loop pumped storage hydropower has the lowest lifecycle carbon footprint of all energy storage technologies. (OPB)
GRID: Two men plead guilty to vandalizing power substations in Washington state last year in an attempt to facilitate robberies, leaving thousands without power on Christmas. (Associated Press)
UTILITIES:
• A California probe of soaring utility bills finds San Diego Gas & Electric often exceeded its authorized rate of return and concludes that regulators must better ensure that power companies don’t overstate their costs. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Lawyers for victims of the Gray Fire in Washington state allege electrical lines may have sparked the blaze that destroyed 240 homes. (Spokesman-Review)
• A Colorado power wholesaler looks to sell its coal and natural gas-generated power as its member utilities leave to seek cheaper and cleaner energy elsewhere. (Denver Business Journal)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Alaska electric vehicle owners push back on petroleum industry claims that the cars don’t work well in cold weather. (Alaska Beacon)
SOLAR:
• The Northern Cheyenne urges Montana regulators to require NorthWestern Energy to include the tribal nation’s proposed solar project in its integrated resource plan. (Montana Standard)
• Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren says a new 72 MW solar installation in southern Utah will “kickstart” tribal clean energy development. (San Juan Record)
• Some residents of a Colorado town push back on the municipality’s plan to install a small solar array to power a water treatment plant, claiming it could cause eye injuries and harm property values. (Durango Herald)
CRITICAL MINERALS: Researchers look to extract rare earth elements from acidic metal-laden water in the Berkeley Pit, a shuttered copper mine in Montana. (Elko Daily Free Press)
NUCLEAR:
• California startup Oklo looks to recover from a regulatory setback with a new round of financing and deals to sell power from nuclear microreactors it is developing. (Canary Media)
• Arizona’s Republican-dominated senate plans to sue the Biden administration over its national monument designation and uranium mining ban near the Grand Canyon. (AZ Mirror)
CLIMATE:
• A report finds less than one-third of a Colorado county’s cannabis growers have completed a voluntary carbon conscious certification program aimed at reducing energy use. (Newsbreak)
• Phoenix, Arizona’s maximum temperature reaches 110 degrees Fahrenheit for the 54th day this year, breaking the 2020 record. (Associated Press)
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