California clears EPA hurdle, regulates railroad pollution

TRANSPORTATION: California adopts regulations requiring railroads to reduce and ultimately eliminate harmful locomotive emissions after the U.S. EPA clears the way for the new rule. (San Francisco Chronicle)

ALSO: West Coast Indigenous nations call on federal regulators to ban a rubber-preserving chemical used in vehicle tires, saying it kills salmon when it washes from roads into streams. (Associated Press)

CLEAN ENERGY: A developer scales back a proposed wind and solar power facility in eastern Washington after it runs into local opposition. (Seattle Times)

SOLAR: A company plans to build a $50 million solar equipment manufacturing facility in Albuquerque, New Mexico, expected to employ about 100 people. (KRQE)

WIND:

• Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek and six state agencies support proposed offshore wind development along the state’s southern coast, but urge federal regulators to further research environmental and cultural impacts. (OPB)
• An Arizona county approves an additional 28 turbines for a wind power facility under development on private land in the northern part of the state. (White Mountain Independent)

UTILITIES:

• Hawaiian Electric plans to begin de-energizing power lines to mitigate wildfire risks after facing scrutiny for its role in sparking the deadly Maui blazes. (Reuters)
• Advocacy groups slam Arizona Public Service’s plans to continue relying on fossil fuels for nearly half of its generation until 2038. (news release)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: New Mexico auto dealers push back on a proposed state rule that would phase out sales of gasoline powered vehicles, saying it would limit consumer choice. (Carlsbad Current-Argus)

WILDLIFE: Wyoming researchers find clean energy and oil and gas development threaten the ​“Path of the Pronghorn” wildlife migratory corridor. (WyoFile)

OIL & GAS: An environmental group sues the federal Bureau of Land Management over its Trump-era approval of 145 oil and gas leases in eastern Utah, saying the agency didn’t adequately review landscape impacts. (news release)

TRANSMISSION: Tucson officials and residents push back on a proposed high-voltage transmission project through the middle of town, saying the utility should put the line underground. (Arizona Daily Star)

GRID: A clean energy management company operating in Montana joins the California grid operator’s Western Energy Imbalance Market. (news release)

POLITICS:

• Right wing Wyoming lawmakers give Republican Gov. Mark Gordon a vote of ​“no confidence” for acknowledging the reality of climate change and saying the state is committed to becoming ​“carbon negative.” (Cowboy State Daily)
• Wyoming lawmakers propose allocating $50 million to sue the federal government over environmental and natural resource laws and regulations. (WyoFile)

NUCLEAR: California officials and advocates continue to debate what to do with the San Onofre nuclear plant’s spent reactor fuel a decade after its closure. (KTLA)