Observers: Texas oil man behind Utah’s petroleum boom

OIL & GAS: Industry observers say a politically connected Texas petroleum magnate helped mastermind the Uinta Basin oil and gas boom in Utah. (HuffPost)

ALSO:

• Colorado regulators rejected two proposed oil and gas drilling projects last month, one to protect wildlife and the other for public health in a suburban area. (Colorado Sun)
• New Mexico lawmakers advance a bill reforming the state’s 90-year-old oil and gas rules after stripping it of its most stringent provisions. (NM Political Report)
• A California county approves an exploratory oil and gas well after some residents opposed the project due to groundwater contamination concerns. (Santa Ynez Valley News)

CARBON CAPTURE: Wyoming lawmakers advance a bill that would pay a $10-per-ton incentive for captured carbon dioxide that’s injected into aging oil fields to stimulate petroleum production. (WyoFile)

COAL: Environmental groups petition the U.S. EPA to rescind a western Colorado coal mine’s state-issued air quality permit, saying it amounted to a ​“free pass” for the facility to pollute. (Colorado Newsline)

MINING: A mining company says it has identified substantial uranium deposits in Wyoming’s Powder River Basin. (Cowboy State Daily)

CLIMATE:

• Hawaii advocates say while the state has made strides in decarbonizing its power grid, the transportation sector’s reliance on fossil fuels threaten broader climate goals. (Capital & Main)
• A Colorado county advances a rule requiring residents to offset exterior energy use for snowmelt systems, pools or spas by adding on-site clean energy installations or paying a mitigation fee. (Aspen Journalism)

UTILITIES: Analysts predict climate change-exacerbated wildfire risk and a shifting legal landscape may prompt insurers to stop offering utilities wildfire liability policies. (Utility Dive)

SOLAR:

• The Biden administration awards a Colorado model rocket company $520,000 to help fund a solar array expected to offset 98% of its headquarters’ power use. (Cañon City Daily Record)
• A rural Colorado county approves a proposed 5 MW solar plant on 50 acres of private land. (Journal-Advocate)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: A California startup expects to begin production of its solar-powered electric vehicles later this year. (CBS8)

HYDROGEN: Debate over hydrogen’s role in decarbonizing transportation continues as California prepares to receive its first train powered by the fuel. (Canary Media)

POLITICS: Arizona lawmakers propose bills that would repeal a ban on public funding for light rail and lift a prohibition on agency actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. (Arizona Republic)

BIOFUELS: A Northwest natural gas utility plans to build a facility in Washington state that converts landfill gas into methane fuel. (KPQ)

COMMENTARY: A public policy professor says the demise of NuScale’s proposed small modular reactor project in Idaho shows the technology is too expensive and unproven and should be abandoned. (Utility Dive)