Hawaii utilities, agencies settle Maui wildfire claims for $4 billion

UTILITIES: Hawaiian Electric and six other entities agree to pay $4 billion in damages to settle lawsuits stemming from last year’s deadly Maui wildfires. (CNN)

ALSO:

• An Arizona utility plans to retire its remaining coal generation by 2028 while adding energy storage, wind, solar and quick-ramping gas plants to meet a predicted 1.2% annual demand increase. (Arizona Daily Star)
• Oregon timber companies file a lawsuit accusing three utilities of sparking the 2020 Holiday Farm wildfire after failing to de-energize power lines during hot and windy conditions. (OPB)

POLLUTION:

• Southern California regulators adopt a rule requiring rail yard owners and operators to significantly reduce smog-forming nitrogen oxide emissions from freight trains and cargo trucks. (Los Angeles Times)
• Unusually high temperatures and wildfire smoke drive up ozone pollution levels on Colorado’s Front Range, imperiling efforts to meet federal air quality standards by 2027. (Denver Post)

OIL & GAS: 

• Colorado regulators postpone a vote on a controversial proposal to drill 166 oil and gas wells in the Denver area following a heated public hearing. (Denver Post)
• California regulators suggest expanding fuel storage capacity and more tightly regulating or taking over petroleum refineries as options for managing predicted gasoline price increases as the state electrifies transportation. (E&E News, subscription)

NUCLEAR:

• A Wyoming lawmaker proposes establishing a spent nuclear reactor fuel repository in the state, saying it could help offset declining fossil fuel severance tax revenues. (WyoFile)
• A company agrees to pause uranium ore shipments from its Arizona mine and negotiate with Navajo Nation leaders following protests over trucking the material across tribal land. (NM Political Report)
• The Idaho National Laboratory begins construction on a nuclear microreactor testing and training facility. (news release)

SOLAR: A southern Oregon community looks to develop more solar and keep land in agriculture by encouraging distributed generation on rooftops and over parking lots. (Rogue Valley Times)

WIND: Some eastern Colorado residents push back on a proposed utility-scale wind facility on private land, raising concerns about impacts on views, along with health claims that are not supported by evidence. (Gazette)

COMMENTARY:

• A utility-funded California program relies on innovative approaches to help low-income homeowners take advantage of electric heat pump rebate programs. (CalNEXT, sponsored)
• A Colorado journalist urges nuclear power proponents to acknowledge reactors’ high costs and the experimental nature of the technology. (Aspen Times)
• A Washington state editorial board urges readers to support a proposed 1,000 MW solar project on the Hanford nuclear site, calling it a rare example of a ​“conscientious” utility-scale clean energy development. (Tri-City Herald)