Discover the Latest News and Initiatives for a Sustainable Future

CARBON CAPTURE: A Bill Gates-backed startup plans to begin production at what it says will be the world’s largest carbon removal plant this week, where it will collect woody biomass from area paper mills and convert it into bricks to be stored underground. (E&E News)

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ALSO: West Virginia lawmakers advance a bill to shift control of the permitting of carbon capture wells from the U.S. EPA to the state. (WV News)

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SOLAR:

• Puerto Rico’s governor signs a bill to extend the island’s net-metering program and protect its generous solar credits to accelerate the clean energy transition, even as states move to slow or dismantle their programs. (Grist)
• Mississippi State University uses a rebate incentive from the Tennessee Valley Authority to build the largest on-campus solar facility in the Southeastern Conference. (news release)
• Dozens of Kentucky residents join a lawsuit to block a town’s settlement with a solar farm they claim would harm their property values. (WEHT)

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OIL & GAS:

• Oil and gas operators in the Permian Basin raked in record profits last year, boosted by more than $1.4 billion in federal and state subsidies. (New York Times, news release)
• Oklahoma moves to shut down nine oil and gas wastewater wells that sit within ten miles of the epicenter of last week’s 5.1 magnitude earthquake. (KWTV/KSBI)

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EMISSIONS: A judge denies a motion by Virginia’s attorney general to throw out a lawsuit by an energy conservation group that seeks to block the state’s withdrawal from a regional carbon market. (Roanoke Times)

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OVERSIGHT: Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry appoints a new leader for the state agency that oversees coastal restoration and hurricane protection, while also considering whether to merge that agency with the energy and natural resources department to make it easier for oil and gas companies to operate. (Louisiana Illuminator, NOLA.com)

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ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• Electric vehicle maker Rivian announces it will reveal the crossover SUV model the company will make at its planned Georgia factory. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
• An Alabama airport announces construction of its first electric aircraft charging station. (WAKA)

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PIPELINES: A federal judge blocks a company’s attempt to condemn and transfer property for a Texas pipeline before talking to landowners it’s so far been unable to reach. (Texas Public Radio)

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GRID:

• North Carolina clean energy groups endorse Duke Energy’s proposal for a local, more proactive transmission planning process that could become a model for the Southeast. (Utility Dive)
• Despite congressional funding, projects to build and expand transmission lines between Texas wind farms and eastern cities have stalled in a clogged permitting system. (Houston Chronicle)
• A Texas grid regulator appointed after 2021’s Winter Storm Uri who resigned in December discusses weatherization and other efforts to make the grid more reliable as the state’s population and energy mix continue to shift. (Houston Chronicle)

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ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE: The U.S. EPA holds listening sessions to “ground-truth” its efforts in Richmond, Virginia, and other environmentally stressed communities as President Biden nears the end of his first term. (Inside Climate News)

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EFFICIENCY: North Carolina officials confirm the state applied for federal efficiency and appliance rebates, which should be available to residents later this year. (Winston-Salem Journal)

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COMMENTARY: News that Alabama Power is entering negotiations with the U.S. EPA to remove and recycle tons of coal ash could be good news for 300 square miles of “America’s Amazon” downstream from a coal-fired power plant, writes an opinion contributor. (New York Times)

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OIL & GAS: The federal Bureau of Land Management abandons work on a resource management plan ten years in the making that would guide oil and gas development in northwestern New Mexico’s Chaco region, baffling conservationists and the industry alike. (Capital & Main)

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ALSO:

• Colorado regulators reject proposed oil and gas drilling near residential areas following protest from residents, advocates and local officials. (Longmont Times-Call)
• A Colorado petroleum refinery reports more than a dozen malfunctions sent excessive amounts of harmful pollutants into the air over a Denver-area neighborhood since Dec. 1. (Greeley Tribune)
• Wyoming’s oil and gas industry pushes back on the Biden administration’s LNG export terminal permitting moratorium, saying it shuts off potential markets for their product. (Cowboy State Daily)
• A company plans to expand a Permian Basin oil and gas wastewater pipeline to meet burgeoning demand. (Carlsbad Current-Argus)

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MINING:

• An Arizona media investigation finds proposed lithium mines across the West will require billions of gallons of water, further stressing supplies in drought-plagued areas. (Howard Center)
• Arizona environmentalists file a lawsuit accusing state regulators of secretly approving a waste pipeline for a proposed copper mine. (Arizona Daily Star)  
• Conservationists call on Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs to order the closure of a uranium mine near the Grand Canyon, saying it could contaminate water and harm cultural sites. (news release)

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UTILITIES: An Oregon county joins winemakers’ lawsuit against Pacific Power for its alleged role in sparking the 2020 Labor Day wildfires. (KOIN)

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ELECTRIFICATION: Colorado residents accuse Xcel Energy of hampering efforts to electrify their homes and disconnect from natural gas service. (Daily Camera)

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SOLAR:

• California advocates ask the state’s Supreme Court to review regulators’ decision to slash net-metering rates for rooftop solar. (Sacramento Bee)
• Data show demand for rooftop solar installations in California has fallen 80% since regulators slashed net-metering compensation for residential arrays. (CalMatters)
• Washington state lawmakers consider a bill aimed at increasing low-income households’ access to community solar. (Daily Herald)

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ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Oregon receives $1.27 million in federal funding to develop electric vehicle charging infrastructure in underserved communities. (KPIC 4)

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CLIMATE:

• Oregon allocates $10 million for farmers and ranchers to establish “natural climate solutions” that keep carbon in soil. (OPB)  
• The National Science Foundation awards a Colorado-Wyoming partnership $15 million to launch a climate solutions and clean energy innovation hub. (Colorado Sun)
• The National Science Foundation chooses an Arizona university to lead a multi-institutional effort to tackle climate change’s effects and spur economic development in the desert Southwest. (news release)

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POLITICS: Republican Utah lawmakers establish an “environmental stewardship” caucus that emphasizes the importance of fossil fuels. (Deseret News)

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POLICY: A majority of Maryland voters want the state to be tougher on oil and gas companies by making them pay for climate-related infrastructure upgrades, a new poll finds. (Maryland Matters)

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ALSO: New Hampshire’s lack of resources for local, county and state officials to put together successful grant applications may be why it recently missed out on funds for electric vehicle charging infrastructure. (NHPR)

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GRID: Federal energy regulators approve new reforms proposed by PJM Interconnection to improve reliability by changing the grid operator’s resource adequacy risk modeling and capacity accreditation processes. (Utility Dive)

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GAS:

• Pennsylvania and Ohio grid operators and regulators tell state lawmakers in a joint hearing organized by Republicans that natural gas-fired electricity is needed to maintain reliability. (E&E News)
• The developer of a controversial liquefied natural gas facility in Chester, Pennsylvania, discusses its plans to move forward despite President Biden’s pause on related permitting. (WHYY)

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OFFSHORE WIND: Federal ocean energy officials kick off a public comment period for the draft environmental assessment of the Beacon Wind project. (North American Wind Power)

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FLOODS: Some New Jersey towns along the Passaic River experience frequent flooding, but climate resiliency projects that could alleviate the issue come with large price tags. (Gothamist)

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BUILDINGS: A Massachusetts historical society’s museum receives net-zero certification after installing a solar array. (Berkshire Eagle)

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CLIMATE:

• In central Pennsylvania, some bird species have seen their populations decline by as much as 50% in the past 17 years, a problem bird conservation experts partially attribute to climate change. (WITF)
• Connecticut environmental officials use $2 million in Inflation Reduction Act funds to grow the number of trees in disadvantaged communities and help mitigate the urban heat island effect. (Connecticut Public Radio)

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AFFORDABILITY: Maine lawmakers may extend a soon-to-expire electric bill assistance program that helps low-income ratepayers make timely payments in exchange for bill forgiveness. (Portland Press Herald)

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