Interior Department fast-tracks federal oil and gas leasing

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FOSSIL FUELS

• The U.S. Interior Department implements an expedited oil and gas leasing policy aimed at encouraging federal land drilling and putting the country on ​“a fast track to Energy Dominance.” (news release)

• Santa Barbara County, California’s supervisors vote to ban new oil and gas wells and phase out production from over 1,000 existing wells on a yet to be determined timeline. (Santa Barbara Independent)

• Alaska regulators fine Hilcorp $49,000 for missing an annual deadline to discuss well-plugging and abandonment activities. (Alaska Beacon)

• Alaska’s Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy freezes state hiring and some official travel as low oil prices lead to decreased revenue. (Alaska Public Media)

• A Wyoming economist says the Trump administration’s trade war has led to lower oil prices and a decline in the number of petroleum industry jobs in the state. (Cowboy State Daily)

• Declining natural gas-related property tax revenues force a Wyoming public high school to slash its ski team’s budget. (Wyoming Public Media)

• A major natural gas main leak forces evacuations in Silverthorne, Colorado. (CPR)

HYDROPOWER

• U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright says he is ​“passionately in support” of retaining four eastern Washington hydropower dams that advocates and tribal nations have targeted for removal to benefit fish. (Tri-City Herald)

GRID

• Developers begin construction on the Utah portion of the TransWest Express transmission project, which is designed to carry Wyoming wind power to the Southwest. (RTO Insider)

CLEAN ENERGY

• Montana lawmakers, residents, and advocates clash over proposed wind development in the state, citing private property rights, economic benefits, and potential effects on the fossil fuel industry. (Inside Climate News)

• Portland General Electric seeks applicants for grants to fund small-scale solar, micro-hydropower, and battery storage projects. (news release)

• Colorado State University and Pivot Energy plan to develop a 5.75 MW virtual net metering solar project in the northeastern part of the state. (news release)

• Community solar provider Solstice says it has enrolled 1,000 New Mexico residents so far and plans to expand the program to additional utility customers. (news release)

TRANSPORTATION

• Southern California startup Arc Boat plans to establish a research and development center at the Port of Los Angeles as part of its effort to electrify the facility’s workboat fleet. (Los Angeles Times)

• Washington state’s Sound Transit joins King County in a lawsuit seeking to block the Trump administration’s plan to revoke federal transportation funding from agencies with diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. (Seattle Times)

CRITICAL MATERIALS

• Researchers develop a method to extract rare earth metals from mining wastewater at Montana’s Berkeley Pit. (New York Times)

BIOFUELS

• The Hidden Hollow renewable natural gas plant that converts landfill waste into methane fuel comes online in Idaho. (Idaho 6 News)