The Biden administration will distribute $580 million to 15 Native American tribes toward settling water rights claims, the Interior Department announced Thursday night. The funds will include $460 million allocated from the bipartisan infrastructure law for settlements reached before November 2021 and another $120 million from the Reclamation Water Settlement Fund, which Congress established in…
Author: Zack Budryk
Treasury Department expands definition of SUVs eligible for electric vehicle tax credit
The Biden administration will expand eligibility for an Inflation Reduction Act-enabled tax cut for electric vehicles, the Treasury Department announced Friday. The department has updated the classification standards used to determine eligibility, expanding the definition of an SUV. The $7,500 tax credit applies to SUVs costing up to $80,000, but there is no such benefit…
Oversight chair requests details on Kerry’s international climate negotiations
House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) on Thursday requested information from U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry on the details of Kerry’s international negotiations for the Biden administration, particularly with Chinese officials. In a Thursday letter, Comer said Kerry has thus far not responded to inquiries from the Republicans on the committee regarding the nature…
Six Colorado River states submit alternative to federal cuts
Six of the seven states on the Colorado River said Monday night that they have reached a framework for an alternative to potential looming federal cuts after the Jan. 31 deadline. Representatives for Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming said they have reached an alternative on updates to the 2007 guidelines for the…
99 percent of U.S. coal plants are more expensive than new renewables would be: report
All of the nation’s coal-fired power plants but one are less cost-effective to operate than constructing new solar or wind facilities in the United States, according to a study published Monday by the firm Energy Innovation. Analysts compared operating costs at the 210 coal plants in the continental U.S. in 2021 to the estimated costs…
Former Rep. Tim Ryan joins Landrieu at pro-natural gas group
Former Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio), who left his seat to run against now-Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) in 2022, will join the leadership council of Natural Allies for a Clean Energy Future, the D.C.-based natural gas trade group announced Thursday. Ryan will join former Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) and replace another former Democratic senator, Heidi Heitkamp…
Biden administration announces restrictions on hardrock mining in 225,000 acres of Minnesota wilderness
The Biden administration will protect some 225,000 new acres in a northeastern Minnesota wilderness area from mineral leasing, Interior Department officials confirmed on a call with reporters Thursday. The protections will be effective for 20 years, officials said, and will protect parts of the Rainy River watershed, including lands ceded to the Chippewa Bands of…
Biden restores protections for Tongass forest after Trump-era rollback
The U.S. Forest Service has finalized a rule restoring protections rolled back under the Trump administration for the Tongass National Forest in Alaska, the largest such forest in the U.S. “As our nation’s largest national forest and the largest intact temperate rainforest in the world, the Tongass National Forest is key to conserving biodiversity and…
Study: Car-focused decarbonization could require triple current lithium production
Broad investment in mass transit and reduced reliance on cars could reduce the additional lithium required to transition to electric vehicles by 90 percent, according to research from the Climate and Community Project and the University of California, Davis. The research, first shared with The Guardian, found a scenario in which current demand for EVs…
Bill to withdraw Virginia from carbon-trading program dies in state committee
A committee of the Virginia Senate on Tuesday defeated a bill backed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) that would withdraw the state from a regional carbon-trading initiative. The Senate Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources Committee voted down Senate Bill 1001 in a party line 8-6 vote. The measure, sponsored by state Sen. Richard Stuart (R),…