Company pauses Washington solar plant permitting after pushback

SOLAR: A firm pauses permitting on a proposed utility-scale solar project in eastern Washington after tribal nations push back on concerns the development would harm cultural sites. (High Country News)

GRID:

• A rural Colorado county plans to study the feasibility of a high-voltage transmission line designed to increase grid reliability and facilitate solar energy exports. (Monte Vista Journal)
• California energy officials tell state lawmakers a regionally governed transmission organization and day-ahead power market would bolster grid reliability and reduce electricity costs. (RTO Insider, subscription) 

MINING:

• A western Colorado county approves proposed uranium exploratory drilling in a historic mining area. (Telluride Daily Planet)
• Hedge funds look to invest in potential uranium mining properties in Wyoming to take advantage of rising commodity prices. (Cowboy State Daily)

UTILITIES:

• Hawaiian Electric estimates liability losses related to last year’s deadly Maui wildfires total about $1.7 billion so far. (Bloomberg)
• Bonneville Power Administration asks a federal court to dismiss it from three lawsuits accusing the utility and other entities of negligence in sparking a 2020 wildfire in Oregon. (OPB)
• New Mexico regulators approve a rule aimed at standardizing grid data collection by requiring utilities to file annual reliability reports. (NM Political Report)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• A California transit agency brings its first electric train online in advance of fully electrifying the San Francisco to San Jose route in September. (Mercury News)
• The Biden administration awards a New Mexico school district $6.9 million to help it replace its diesel fleet with 20 electric buses. (news release)

STORAGE: A firm proposes a 250 MW pumped hydropower energy storage facility in the subterranean workings of a western Colorado coal mine. (Big Pivots)

OIL & GAS: 

• A southern California city works to diversify its economy to help it weather the projected loss of oil and gas revenues as demand slows and new regulations kick in. (Politico)
• Wyoming lawmakers advance legislation aimed at boosting petroleum output by supplementing federal incentives for enhanced oil recovery, or injecting carbon dioxide into aging wells to stimulate production. (Casper Star-Tribune)
• Alaska regulators fine an oil and gas company $203,000 for allegedly violating water pollution discharge limits in the Cook Inlet. (Anchorage Daily News, subscription)
• Colorado residents push back against a proposed oil and gas drilling project in the eastern part of the state. (Boulder Daily Camera, subscription)

CARBON CAPTURE: A California nonprofit finds state plans to capture and sequester 50 million tons of carbon dioxide would require about 1,150 miles of new pipelines and other infrastructure. (Capital & Main)

NUCLEAR: California officials seek alternative methods of transporting the shuttered San Onofre nuclear reactor’s radioactive waste after landslides pummel the main rail route. (San Diego Union-Tribune)

CLIMATE: New Mexico advocates call on state lawmakers to establish an occupational heat standard to protect workers from climate change-related rising temperatures. (KOB 4)