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OIL & GAS: The Alaska Indigenous community closest to the Willow drilling project withdraws its opposition to the development on the condition that ConocoPhillips protects subsistence resources. (Northern Journal)
ALSO:
CLIMATE:
URANIUM: The Havasupai Tribe and Arizona advocates oppose the Pinyon Plain uranium mine’s reopening near the Grand Canyon, saying it could contaminate groundwater. (Arizona Republic)
SOLAR:
CLEAN ENERGY: A Wyoming county seeks public comment on two utility-scale solar and wind projects proposed for private land. (Douglas Budget)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
HYDROGEN:
GRID: Storms batter Hawaii utility lines and generators, leading to power shortages and outages. (KHON)
COMMENTARY: A California advocate urges the state to incentivize rooftop solar to offset net metering cuts, saying it would solve distributed generation’s equity problem while lowering utility bills and fighting climate change. (Los Angeles Times)
STORAGE: Developers bring a 185 MW battery energy storage installation online in Hawaii to replace the capacity and grid services formerly provided by a shuttered coal plant. (Canary Media)
ALSO:
SOLAR:
WIND: Developers break ground on the SunZia wind project in New Mexico, set to be the biggest wind facility in the Western Hemisphere. (Associated Press)
OIL & GAS:
NATURAL GAS: A New Mexico utility says it needs to build a controversial natural gas storage facility on a city’s outskirts to ensure reliability, but residents worry about safety. (NM Political Report)
CLEAN ENERGY: A Nevada county votes to oppose proposed lithium mining operations near a wildlife refuge and solar developments on federal lands, saying they could strain diminishing water supplies. (Nevada Current)
URANIUM: Wyoming officials say rising commodity prices led to a uranium production uptick last year following a long period of industry near-dormancy. (WyoToday Media)
CLIMATE: Colorado advocates push back on a university’s plan to upgrade heating and power equipment, saying it isn’t enough to slash carbon emissions. (Colorado Newsline)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
GRID:
COMMENTARY: A Hawaii lawmaker urges the state to file a lawsuit against the fossil fuel industry to hold it accountable for its contributions to climate change. (Honolulu Civil Beat)
Community solar could be an important tool to lower electricity bills and bring clean energy to low-income communities. But even as federal incentives aim to lower the cost of building community solar arrays, big issues still stand in the way, advocates tell the Energy News Network.
When a community solar array is built, people in the area can sign up to receive electricity that’s often cleaner and cheaper than what they’d get from their utility. It’s ideal for residents who can’t put solar on their own roofs because of installation costs or other reasons.
Incentives introduced under the Inflation Reduction Act aim to boost community solar, with extra tax credits slated for arrays that benefit low-income people and areas. But it’s not easy to qualify a household as low-income. The process varies from state to state, but it often requires that people provide tax returns and other documentation to prove their income — something that could make customers reluctant to buy in.
Federal law does try to tackle this problem by letting LIHEAP eligibility count as a measure of eligibility for low-income community solar bonuses. The low-income heating assistance program has been around for decades, so it’s more familiar to many people. States can also designate whole areas as low-income to smooth the process.
Read more about the challenges holding up community solar, plus some solutions that are rolling out, at the Energy News Network.
🚌 New school: The U.S. EPA announces nearly $1 billion in grants for schools to replace diesel buses with electric and low-emissions vehicles, with a vast majority going to schools in low-income, rural and tribal communities. (Guardian)
⚡ The grid’s big year: 2024 could be a make-or-break year for lawmakers, regulators and utilities to push through federal reforms aimed at making it quicker and easier to expand the power grid. (Canary Media)
💰 What’s stopping decarbonization: Upfront cost is the biggest barrier keeping people from making home energy upgrades like swapping out gas stoves, while lowering energy costs and environmental impact is a top motivator, a survey finds. (Canary Media)
🔋 The sunshine neighborhood: Every residence in an 86-home Florida development comes with solar panels and a home battery, ensuring none of its homeowners pay electric bills and offering a model for sustainable building. (Washington Post)
☀️ Solar tax swap: First Solar enters two deals to sell $700 million worth of federal tax credits, a first-of-its-kind transaction that will let the U.S. solar panel manufacturer quickly bring in money from domestic production incentives it could otherwise only use to trim its tax bill. (Canary Media)
🚙 Big cars, big emissions: Several automakers’ average fuel efficiency dropped from 2017 to 2022, largely because of the growing popularity of SUVs and pickup trucks. (Washington Post)
🔌 The EV incentives list is here: The federal government published a list of electric vehicles that qualify for $7,500 and $3,750 incentives, which can now be redeemed at thousands of dealerships. (Inside Climate News)
🏗️ Gas bans meet their end: A federal appeals court reaffirms its decision to strike down Berkeley, California’s ban on gas hookups in new buildings, invalidating other local gas bans in the 9th Circuit’s territory of 11 Western states. (Grist)
🥾 Electrifying tourism: An Alaska carbon offset program uses tourists’ donations to purchase electric heat pumps for local residents. (Grist)
UTILITIES: Following the defeat of a ballot measure to replace Maine’s investor-owned utilities with a consumer-owned power company, policymakers and advocates explore new ways to improve service. (Maine Morning Star)
POLICY:
WIND:
GRID: Utility crews mobilize and New Jersey’s governor declares a state of emergency ahead of a “powerhouse” rain and wind storm expected to sweep the Northeast tonight. (WHAM, NBC 5, NorthJersey.com)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Massachusetts and Connecticut are set to receive enough federal funds to respectively purchase 85 and 50 electric school buses apiece. (Worcester Telegram & Gazette, CT Mirror)
SOLAR: In Northfield, Massachusetts, an almost 11 MW solar project makes installation progress as it resumes development following the end of an appeal of the local planning board’s decision. (Daily Hampshire Gazette)
NUCLEAR: New Hampshire and Massachusetts legislators request a public forum as they question a proposed consolidation of NextEra’s emergency management plan at the Seabrook plant and other nuclear stations it operates. (In-Depth NH, New Hampshire Bulletin)
BUILDINGS: A new social media campaign launched by New York City teenagers encourages the mayor’s office to accelerate school building retrofits. (Gothamist)
CLIMATE:
CLIMATE: The U.S. Supreme Court denies six fossil fuel companies’ request to move the Minnesota attorney general’s climate lawsuit to federal court, keeping the case at the state level. (Star Tribune)
CLEAN ENERGY:
POLITICS: The former Ohio Republican Party chairman wants to have his conviction in the state’s largest bribery scandal thrown out, saying government officials abused their charging and prosecuting power. (Cincinnati Enquirer)
PIPELINES: About 200 landowners gather in South Dakota’s capital to call on lawmakers to pass bills preventing the use of eminent domain for carbon pipelines and allowing counties to set local siting restrictions. (South Dakota Searchlight)
GRID: Indiana utility NIPSCO and a chemical company will pay $66.7 million to settle charges related to manipulating grid operator MISO’s demand response program. (Utility Dive)
SOLAR:
POWER PLANTS:
OIL & GAS: Longtime scientist and advocate Sandra Steingraber says researchers have an obligation to speak on hydraulic fracking’s links to environmental health problems, and likens well sites as “these sort of giant cigarettes in the earth.” (Inside Climate News)
STORAGE: A subsidiary of LG Energy Solution plans to build 10 grid-scale battery storage projects in the U.S. this year following the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act. (Utility Dive)
HYDROGEN: Industry groups say the Biden administration’s proposed rules for a hydrogen production tax credit would kneecap the nascent industry while environmental groups say they are needed to keep emissions in check. (States Newsroom)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: The U.S. EPA announces nearly $1 billion in grants for schools to replace diesel buses with electric and low-emissions vehicles, with a vast majority going to schools in low-income, rural and tribal communities. (Guardian)
ALSO:
CLEAN ENERGY: Upfront cost is the biggest barrier to home energy upgrades like swapping out gas stoves, while lowering energy costs and environmental impact is a top motivator, a survey finds. (Canary Media)
CLIMATE:
OIL & GAS:
HYDROGEN:
CARBON CAPTURE: The U.S. EPA’s decision last month to hand over carbon capture permitting to state officials in Louisiana has environmental advocates worried that economic considerations will trump public health. (Grist)
STORAGE: A subsidiary of LG Energy Solution plans to build 10 grid-scale battery storage projects in the U.S. this year following the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act. (Utility Dive)
SOLAR: Hawaii advocates say lower payments for customers’ surplus rooftop solar power could incentivize customers to install arrays for their own use rather than exporting to the grid, imperiling the state’s energy transition. (Hawaii Public Radio)
UTILITIES: Following the defeat of a ballot measure to replace Maine’s investor-owned utilities with a consumer-owned power company, policymakers and advocates explore new ways to improve service. (Maine Morning Star)
COAL: Two years later, West Virginia lawmakers have yet to act on a workgroup’s recommendations for revitalizing devastated coalfield communities. (Mountain State Spotlight)
COMMENTARY: Solar farms built beyond a certain size have the ability to affect cloud cover and weather, impacting solar power production in faraway areas, two researchers find. (The Conversation)
SOLAR: Hawaii advocates say lower payments for customers’ excess rooftop solar could incentivize customers to only install arrays for their own use and avoid exporting to the grid, imperiling the state’s energy transition. (Hawaii Public Radio)
WIND: A nonprofit seeks additional historic protections for a World War II Japanese incarceration camp in Idaho, with a goal of halting the proposed Lava Ridge Wind Project. (Boise State Public Radio)
CLEAN ENERGY: Alaska lawmakers are set to consider bills related to community solar, sustainable energy loans and clean energy standards for utilities this legislative session. (Alaska Public Media)
OIL & GAS:
COAL: Wyoming considers partnering with a mining company to explore using coal in asphalt. (Cowboy State Daily)
ELECTRIFICATION:
NUCLEAR: Oregon small modular nuclear reactor startup NuScale says it laid off 154 workers as part of its shift from its research phase to commercialization of its technology. (Oregonian)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
GRID:
CRITICAL MATERIALS: The U.S. Supreme Court rejects Alaska’s bid to review the U.S. EPA’s denial of the proposed Pebble copper and gold mine, dealing a blow to the state’s efforts to revive the project. (E&E News)
FOSSIL FUELS: Massachusetts officially allows seven municipalities to test banning oil and gas hookups in most construction and notable renovation projects. (Boston Globe)
UTILITIES: Connecticut utility regulators form a program to financially help eligible groups — like environmental justice communities or small businesses — participate in public utility proceedings. (CT News Junkie)
WIND: Maine lawmakers consider how to ease the process for getting a major wind farm off the ground in rural Aroostook County now that utility regulators are seeking to rebid the project. (Bangor Daily News)
GRID:
SOLAR:
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Philadelphia’s municipal vehicle fleet reached 250 electric models in 2023, but thousands more city vehicles still run on gasoline. (WHYY)
BUILDINGS: Although more extreme weather events are hitting Maine, only 1% of homeowners have flood insurance. (Portland Press Herald)
POLICY:
STORAGE: Analysts predict the federal climate package will drive a record-breaking year for battery installations, with Texas and California continuing to lead the industry’s growth. (S&P Global)
TRANSPORTATION:
OIL & GAS:
SOLAR: A federal program meant to expand low-income community solar may face challenges verifying income and building trust in communities that have largely been left out of the clean energy transition. (Energy News Network)
BUILDINGS:
WIND: The offshore wind industry looks to rebound in 2024 after a year of canceled contracts and missed launch dates. (E&E News)
GRID: The U.S. Department of Energy will release up to $70 million for public and private entities, universities and national laboratories to advance grid security and resilience research. (Utility Dive)
CLIMATE:
COAL ASH: The U.S. EPA’s assessment of coal ash as more carcinogenic than previously realized could shift North Carolina’s plans to clean up the substance in Chapel Hill and at least 70 other sites around the state. (NC Newsline)
OIL & GAS: The U.S. Energy Department approves a $189 million loan to build a real-time laser monitoring network to track methane emissions from oil and gas facilities in Colorado, New Mexico and other states. (Reuters)
ALSO: New Mexico regulators agree to plug and reclaim a Texas company’s 300 idle oil and gas wells and allow the operator to reimburse the state over the next several decades. (KOAT 7)
NATURAL GAS: New Mexico regulators begin hearings on a controversial proposed natural gas storage facility in Rio Rancho. (Santa Fe New Mexican)
NUCLEAR:
CLIMATE:
SOLAR:
TRANSPORTATION: A proposal to establish a half-cent sales tax to fund road repairs, carpool lanes and expanded public transit in San Diego County qualifies for the Nov. 5 ballot. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
CARBON CAPTURE: A California county proposes charging companies a per-acre fee for sequestering captured carbon. (Bakersfield Californian)
COMMENTARY:
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