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Joel Myer, Communicator Emeritus, edits the Energy News Digest.
Hotshots – Today’s Top Five Stories
Columbia Generating
Station Upgrade in Richland to Power 125,000 More Homes by 2031 (KNDO &
KNDU-TV, Yakima/Tri-Cities, WA)
Solar & Wind
Power Curtailments Are Increasing in California (U.S. Energy Information
Administration)
https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=65364
After Reaching
Historic Lows, Hydropower Generation in the Pacific Northwest Expected to Rise
In 2025 (Washington State Standard)
California’s Ban on
Gas-Powered Cars is Dead (Autoblog)
https://www.autoblog.com/news/californias-ban-on-gas-powered-cars-is-dead
Get Ready for
Several Years of Killer Heat, Top Weather Forecasters Warn (Associated Press)
News Highlights (See
Stories Below)
1. Columbia
Generating Station Upgrade in Richland to Power 125,000 More Homes by 2031
2. News
Release: Energy Northwest & the Bonneville Power Administration Advance
Plan to Expand Region’s Nuclear Power
3. President
Trump Signs Executive Orders to Boost Nuclear Power, Speed Up Approvals
4. Oregon
Groups Rally Against Proposed Nuclear Reactor
5. After
Reaching Historic Lows, Hydropower Generation in the Pacific Northwest Expected
to Rise In 2025
6. California:
Edison’s Proposed Rate Hike Angers L.A. Wildfire Survivors
7. California
Utility to Pay $82 Million Settlement in Lawsuit Stemming from Huge 2020
Wildfire
8. Montana:
Without Utility Board Approval, NorthWestern Energy Implements 17% Electricity
Rate Increase
9. California’s
New Gold Rush? 31 Transmission Projects Worth $4.8 Billion Approved to Meet
Electric Load Growth
10. Ninth
Circuit Revives Tribal Challenge to Energy Transmission Line
11. Trump
Administration Orders Michigan Coal Plant to Stay Open
12. WA
State: Cushman Dams Now Produce More History Than Power for PenLight
13. Solar
& Wind Power Curtailments Are Increasing in California
14. Tariffs,
Congress Set to Shake Up U.S. Solar Industry
15. Some
Columbia Salmon, Steelhead Runs Show Improvement in Latest State Report on ESA
Runs
16. Hanford
Nuclear Site Was on the Brink of Layoffs. Then This Happened in D.C.
17. California
Turns on Water to Create New Wetlands on the Shore of the Shrinking Salton Sea
18. Get
Ready for Several Years of Killer Heat, Top Weather Forecasters Warn
19. Oregon
Lawmakers Are Now Considering a ‘Cap-And-Trade’ Program to Fund Roads, Wildfire
Prevention
20. Hawaii
to Become First State to Charge Visitors a Climate Fee
21. AT&T
Has $6 Billion Deal to Buy CenturyLink Fiber Broadband Business
22. Growing
Urban/Rural Broadband Gap
23. Biggest
California Utility Sees More Than 40% Jump in Data Center Interest, Executive
Says
24. California’s
Ban on Gas-Powered Cars is Dead
25. Is
Washington State Falling Out of Love with Tesla?
26. Electric
Vehicles Died a Century Ago. Could That Happen Again?
27. Search
Is About to Change as Google Adds More Artificial Intelligence Options. Here’s
What to Watch Out For.
28. Trade
Group Asking WA Supreme Court for Direct Appeal of Ruling Against Natural Gas
Initiative
29. Washington
Lawmakers Urge Trump to Reconsider Disaster Funds After Bomb Cyclone
30. Clean
Energy Cash Gushing into Red States Puts GOP Senators in a Bind
31. Fire
Restrictions in Effect in Oregon & Washington
32. Oregon
Could Be Headed for a Hot, Dry Summer
33. Gov.
Kotek Says Oregon Is Ready for Fire Season, But Federal Help Is Uncertain
34. Why
Is the Columbia River at a Crossroads? Here Are Some of the Biggest Questions
35. Yum!
You Can Now Take Some Roadkill Home to Eat in Southwest WA
36. Guest
Essay: Wind & Solar Are Bad Climate Change Solutions for Tri-Cities
37.
Columnist: Here’s What We Stand to Lose from
NOAA Funding Cuts
Word of the Day
Foment \FOE-ment\ Verb - To promote the growth or development of: rouse, incite.
Alfred knew before even sitting down at his drawing board that his new plan for reorganizing the tiddlywinks professional circuit would foment his frothing fans to a frenzy. Really, moving Schenectady, New York’s franchise, to a conference including Poughkeepsie? “Regional, competitive integrity my foot,” he mused, smoke from his smoldering cigarette curling into the green glass shade of his desk lamp. “I just want to avoid that twice annual trip to Rochester, especially in the winter.”
Energy & Utility
Issues
1.
Columbia Generating Station Upgrade in Richland to
Power 125,000 More Homes by 2031 (KNDO & KNDU-TV, Yakima/Tri-Cities, WA)
2.
News Release: Energy Northwest & the Bonneville
Power Administration Advance Plan to Expand Region’s Nuclear Power (Bonneville
Power Administration)
3.
President Trump Signs Executive Orders to Boost
Nuclear Power, Speed Up Approvals (Associated Press)
https://apnews.com/article/new-nuclear-reactors-trump-e7394fe688d2132a73f67f59bdbe792a
4.
Oregon Groups Rally Against Proposed Nuclear
Reactor (Kiowa County Press, CO)
https://kiowacountypress.net/content/oregon-groups-rally-against-proposed-nuclear-reactor
5.
After Reaching Historic Lows, Hydropower
Generation in the Pacific Northwest Expected to Rise In 2025 (Washington State
Standard)
6.
California: Edison’s Proposed Rate Hike Angers L.A.
Wildfire Survivors (Los Angeles Times, CA – Via Yahoo! News)
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/l-wildfires-edison-faces-blowback-100000124.html
7.
California Utility to Pay $82 Million Settlement
in Lawsuit Stemming from Huge 2020 Wildfire (Associated Press)
8.
Montana: Without Utility Board Approval,
NorthWestern Energy Implements 17% Electricity Rate Increase (Montana Free
Press)
9.
California’s New Gold Rush? 31 Transmission
Projects Worth $4.8 Billion Approved to Meet Electric Load Growth (Factor This)
10.
Ninth Circuit Revives Tribal Challenge to Energy
Transmission Line (Courthouse News Service)
https://www.courthousenews.com/ninth-circuit-revives-tribal-challenge-to-energy-transmission-line/
11.
Trump Administration Orders Michigan Coal Plant to
Stay Open (Associated Press)
https://apnews.com/article/michigan-power-plant-coal-trump-aa6244ce5e7cca4326e582c849e0bc98
12.
WA State: Cushman Dams Now Produce More History
Than Power for PenLight (Gig Harbor Now, WA)
https://www.gigharbornow.org/news/business/penlight-power-outages-tacoma-public-utility-cushman-dam/
Renewable Energy &
Self Storage
13.
Solar & Wind Power Curtailments Are
Increasing in California (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=65364
14.
Tariffs, Congress Set to Shake Up U.S. Solar
Industry (E&E News/Politico)
https://www.eenews.net/articles/3500-tariffs-cloud-outlook-for-us-solar-industry/
Fish & Wildlife
15.
Some Columbia Salmon, Steelhead Runs Show
Improvement in Latest State Report on ESA Runs (Northwest Sportsman)
Environmental Afflatus –
Clean Up on Aisle Three
16.
Hanford Nuclear Site Was on the Brink of Layoffs.
Then This Happened in D.C. (Tri-City Herald, WA – Via Yahoo! News)
https://www.yahoo.com/news/hanford-nuclear-brink-layoffs-then-120000325.html?fr=sycsrp_catchall
Water, Water, Anywhere?
17.
California Turns on Water to Create New Wetlands
on the Shore of the Shrinking Salton Sea (Phys.Org)
https://phys.org/news/2025-05-california-wetlands-shore-salton-sea.html
Climate Change
Sequestration Vault
18.
Get Ready for Several Years of Killer Heat, Top
Weather Forecasters Warn (Associated Press)
19.
Oregon Lawmakers Are Now Considering a ‘Cap-And-Trade’
Program to Fund Roads, Wildfire Prevention (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
20.
Hawaii to Become First State to Charge Visitors a
Climate Fee (Courthouse News Service)
https://www.courthousenews.com/hawaii-to-become-first-state-to-charge-visitors-a-climate-fee/
London Calling
–Telecommunications
21.
AT&T Has $6 Billion Deal to Buy CenturyLink Fiber
Broadband Business (Ars Technica)
22.
Growing Urban/Rural Broadband Gap (Pots &
Pans)
https://potsandpansbyccg.com/2025/05/27/growing-urban-rural-broadband-gap/
The Wizarding World of
Technology & Cybersecurity
23.
Biggest California Utility Sees More Than 40%
Jump in Data Center Interest, Executive Says (Reuters)
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/biggest-california-utility-sees-more-204119962.html
I Sing the Car Electric
24.
California’s Ban on Gas-Powered Cars is Dead
(Autoblog)
https://www.autoblog.com/news/californias-ban-on-gas-powered-cars-is-dead
25.
Is Washington State Falling Out of Love with Tesla?
(Cascade PBS)
https://www.cascadepbs.org/news/2025/05/washington-state-falling-out-love-tesla
26.
Electric Vehicles Died a Century Ago. Could That
Happen Again? (NY Times – Via DNYUZ)
https://dnyuz.com/2025/05/26/electric-vehicles-died-a-century-ago-could-that-happen-again/
Public Relations,
Marketing & Media
27.
Search Is About to Change as Google Adds More Artificial
Intelligence Options. Here’s What to Watch Out For. (Washington Post – Via MSN
News)
Politics, Governance,
and Management
28.
Trade Group Asking WA Supreme Court for Direct
Appeal of Ruling Against Natural Gas Initiative (The Center Square)
https://www.thecentersquare.com/washington/article_8a0e2b0b-a6ab-458c-b0e9-027cea80d4bc.html
29.
Washington Lawmakers Urge Trump to Reconsider
Disaster Funds After Bomb Cyclone (KOIN-TV, Portland, OR – Via MSN News)
30.
Clean Energy Cash Gushing into Red States Puts GOP
Senators in a Bind (Washington Post – Via MSN News)
Other Things to Know
About Today
31.
Fire Restrictions in Effect in Oregon & Washington
(Oregon Public Broadcasting)
32.
Oregon Could Be Headed for a Hot, Dry Summer (The
Oregonian, Portland, OR)
https://www.oregonlive.com/weather/2025/05/oregon-could-be-headed-for-a-hot-dry-summer.html
33.
Gov. Kotek Says Oregon Is Ready for Fire Season,
But Federal Help Is Uncertain (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
34.
Why Is the Columbia River at a Crossroads? Here Are
Some of the Biggest Questions (Tri-City Herald, WA – Paywall Advisory)
https://www.tri-cityherald.com/news/state/washington/seattle/article307228626.html
35.
Yum! You Can Now Take Some Roadkill Home to Eat in
Southwest WA (Washington State Standard)
Soapbox Serenade – Vox
Populi
36.
Guest Essay: Wind & Solar Are Bad Climate
Change Solutions for Tri-Cities (Tri-City Herald, WA – Paywall Advisory)
https://www.tri-cityherald.com/opinion/opn-columns-blogs/article306761346.html
37.
Columnist: Here’s What We Stand to Lose from NOAA
Funding Cuts (Columbia Insight)
https://columbiainsight.org/heres-what-we-stand-to-lose-from-noaa-funding-cuts/
Diversions – The Lizard King
Jim Morrison’s Stolen
Grave Bust Found After 37 Years
https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/20/style/jim-morrison-grave-bust-found-intl-scli
The Penny Costs
Nearly Four Cents to Make. Here’s How Much the U.S. Spends on Minting Its Other
Coins
https://apnews.com/article/cost-of-a-penny-nickel-dime-e38975c6811ad38ac0a986c8fccf3a4a
Nepali Sherpa Scales
Mount Everest for a Record 31st Time
https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/nepali-sherpa-scales-mount-everest-record-31st-time-2025-05-27/
Woman Transforms
Her NYC Stoop with Vibrant Display of LEGO Flowers
https://mymodernmet.com/kristi-hemric-lego-flowers/?
Song of the Day
The Doors – Riders
on the Storm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZT_OxPRmSw
Links & Paywall Advisory
Links in The Energy News Digest are for current stories. Media organizations frequently update their websites, which can result in broken links.
Although I choose
stories that are accessible without paying a subscription, individual
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