1970s gas stove push echoed tobacco industry tactics

NATURAL GAS: A new report shows how the natural gas industry downplayed health risks as it pushed for adoption of gas stoves in the 1970s, echoing tactics used by tobacco companies. (NPR)

ALSO:

• A new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine urges states and municipalities to consider bans on new gas lines in areas not currently served. (Washington Post)
• The Biden administration has started imposing new rules on roughly 400,000 miles of ​“gathering lines” that carry gas directly from drilling sites, a move that pipeline safety advocates say is long overdue. (Inside Climate News)

POLITICS: Climate groups pledge $80 million toward ads touting the Biden administration’s environmental accomplishments, and campaign finance data shows some major oil industry backers are shifting support to Donald Trump’s GOP rivals. (New York Times, Bloomberg) 

EFFICIENCY: Florida Sen. Marco Rubio is leading an effort to prevent the federal government from updating building codes for housing built with public funds. (HuffPost)

OFFSHORE WIND: New Jersey’s Cape May County sues the federal government for what it describes as rushing to provide permits for an Ørsted wind farm and ignoring local business and wildlife impacts. (NJ Advance Media, Reuters)

SOLAR: Environmentalists push back on two proposed utility-scale solar installations on federal land in Nevada, saying they are too close to Death Valley National Park and a wildlife refuge. (Pahrump Valley Times)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• Allowing the UAW to organize workers at forthcoming electric vehicle battery plants could alter the living standards for much of the U.S. automotive workforce as well as the cost of electric vehicles, experts say. (E&E News)
• Tesla says its Gigafactory in Texas has paid more than $15 million in local taxes since 2020 and supports more than 15,000 jobs. (KVUE)

GRID:

• ERCOT’s CEO says extreme heat and increased solar capacity are fundamentally changing electricity use patterns in Texas, and that ​“flexibility is critical” to managing evolving needs. (KVUE)
• California regulators push back on Pacific Gas & Electric’s plan to spend $5.9 billion to bury power lines to lessen fire risk, saying it will take too long and cost too much. (Associated Press)

ADVOCACY: The new leader of Ohio’s state-funded ratepayer advocacy agency says refunds for unlawful utility charges are among her top priorities in the new role. (Energy News Network)

COMMENTARY: A former Natural Resources Defense Council program director says federal reforms are needed to designate safe storage spaces for spent nuclear waste. (Scientific American)