Feds fine Permian Basin oil company $5.5 million for air quality violations

OIL & GAS: The U.S. EPA fines an oil and gas company $5.5 million for air quality violations and orders it to spend $4.6 million to bring its 422 Permian Basin facilities into compliance with state and federal regulations. (news release)

ALSO: Conservation groups file a petition urging the U.S. EPA to require an oil and gas company to adequately test emissions from gas flares at its eastern Colorado wells. (news release)

HYDROPOWER:
• A fast-moving wildfire forces the evacuation of Washington state hydroelectric dams, cutting the facilities’ energy production by half. (KUOW)
• An Alaska Native village corporation seeks funding for a proposed hydropower project approved by Congress four decades ago. (KCAW)
• Federal prosecutors charge an Idaho man with two counts of destruction of an energy facility for allegedly shooting a rifle at Northwest hydropower facilities. (Associated Press)

CRITICAL MINERALS: A firm plans to begin initial development work on a proposed rare earths mine in Wyoming later this year. (Mining Weekly)

UTILITIES:
• Xcel Energy faces at least eight mass tort lawsuits over its role in sparking the 2021 Marshall Fire in Colorado that burned about 1,000 homes. (KUNC)
• A California town considers establishing a municipal electric utility that would compete with Pacific Gas & Electric. (KGET)

SOLAR:
• San Diego implements instant self-certification rooftop solar permitting to reduce red tape and expedite installations. (Times of San Diego)
• A Colorado city considers offering $3 million in incentives to a Swiss solar manufacturer planning to establish a production facility there. (Gazette)

GRID: California grants the Washoe Tribe $1.3 million to modernize its grid and invest in clean energy development. (KOLO)

ELECTRIFICATION: Natural gas and homebuilding industry groups drop their legal challenge of Washington state codes requiring heat pumps in new residential and commercial construction. (Utility Dive)

POLITICS: Republican Arizona lawmakers formally oppose a new national monument and uranium mining ban near the Grand Canyon even though polling shows the state’s voters overwhelmingly favor it. (Arizona Republic)

COAL:
• Federal regulators launch an environmental analysis of the proposed Bull Mountains coal mine expansion in Montana after a court vacated the previous plan for failing to adequately consider climate impacts. (E&E News, subscription; news release)
• Montana awards three coal-impacted communities $627,000 to support public safety and economic development. (Laurel Outlook)

CLIMATE:
• Washington state releases guidance for a new law requiring local governments to consider climate change and its impacts when they make 20-year comprehensive plans. (Crosscut)
• An ​“extreme” marine heatwave approaches the Oregon and Washington coasts, impacting fish and causing toxic algae to multiply. (KOIN)

BIOFUELS: SoCalGas proposes a pilot project that would produce biogas from wood chips, nut shells and other organic waste. (news release)

COMMENTARY: A California developer urges regulators to approve a community solar program soon or risk losing access to billions of dollars in federal incentives. (Utility Dive)