Trump dramatically fast-tracks Utah uranium mine review

This roundup of energy news headlines comes from our Western Energy News newsletter. Sign up to get it in your inbox each morning.

MINING

• Advocates push back against the Trump administration’s plan to fast-track environmental review for the proposed Velvet-Wood uranium mine in southeastern Utah, saying it inhibits public input and risks missing potential dangers. (New York Times, news release)

• Nevada residents and officials work to ensure that the Thacker Pass and Rhyolite Ridge lithium mines under development mitigate environmental and socioeconomic impacts and bring tangible benefits to nearby rural communities. (Nevada Independent)

• A federal judge temporarily blocks the Trump administration from resuming permitting for the proposed Oak Flat copper mine in central Arizona until the U.S. Supreme Court weighs in on a lawsuit seeking to halt the project. (Arizona Republic)

CLIMATE

• Colorado’s Supreme Court clears the way for Boulder County’s lawsuit seeking to hold fossil fuel firms liable for climate-driven disasters to move forward in state courts. (CPR)

• Democratic California lawmakers say ​“rancid” politics and anxiety over gasoline prices has stifled legislative efforts to hold oil and gas companies accountable for climate-related damages. (Capital & Main)

STORAGE

• A Washington State University finds closed-loop pumped hydropower storage projects can mitigate environmental and cultural impacts by consulting with tribal nations and siting facilities at least a half-mile from shorelines. (Northwest Public Broadcasting)

• Pacific Gas & Electric plans to restart its battery energy storage facility in Moss Landing, California, next month, saying it has taken measures to avoid a repeat of January’s destructive blaze. (Mercury News)

GRID

• Analysts predict inadequate transmission capacity and lagging clean energy deployment in the Northwest will lead to higher utility costs and increased outages as electricity demand grows. (OPB/​ProPublica)

• California energy officials are ​“cautiously optimistic” the state’s grid will hold up this summer, but warn that extreme heat and wildfires could threaten reliability. (San Diego Union-Tribune)

CLEAN ENERGY

• Aypa Power secures $535 million in debt financing for its proposed 160 MW solar-plus-storage project in southern California. (PV Magazine)

• Advocate Bill McKibben accuses liberals of spreading misinformation to spark opposition to a proposed 96 MW solar-plus-storage facility near Santa Fe. (Santa Fe New Mexican)

GEOTHERMAL

• Utah lawmakers and officials urge Congress and the Trump administration to encourage geothermal energy development by offering more federal leases and streamlining permitting. (Utah News Dispatch)

UTILITIES

• Southwest Gas asks Nevada regulators to allow the utility to recover ​“Call Before You Dig” gas-line location costs from ratepayers. (Nevada Current)

• Washington state utility Puget Sound Energy plans to join SPP’s day-ahead power market, citing its ​“member-driven governance structure.” (News Data)

COMMENTARY

• California university professors urge Santa Barbara County to phase out over 1,000 existing oil and gas wells and ban new drilling, saying it would avoid more than 300,000 megatons of carbon pollution and save $22 million in climate damages. (Santa Barbara Independent)