In the news today…
Nuclear:
- The Casper Star Tribune reports that the EPA has entered a new agreement that will boost uranium production in Wyoming by removing hurdles for a mining process that advocates warn increases pollution and strains scarce water resources.
EPA:
- InsideEPA reports power and coal industry groups are largely backing EPA’s proposal to craft a nationwide permit program for coal ash disposal while state and tribal governments are floating targeted revisions.
- E&E Greenwire reports EPA finalized a rule to speed up industry permit appeals, overhauling the decades-old process at the agency.
Minerals:
- MarketScreener reports U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Andrew Wheeler signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Chairman Kristine L. Svinicki to improve coordination and cooperation in the regulation of the in-situ recovery (ISR) process of uranium extraction.
- Mining.com and Associated Press report the Trump administration on Thursday moved to streamline water rules on uranium mining, in a move environmentalists said allows the Environmental Protection Agency to give up authority on regulating water pollution.
- Mining.com reports Tesla boss Elon Musk is calling on miners to produce more nickel, a key ingredient in the batteries that power his company’s electric cars, and has offered a “giant contract for a long period of time” to any firm able to extracted it in an efficient, environmentally sustainable manner.
Mining:
- The Nevada Independent reports it is strange to see a tax on renewable energy in Nevada in connection with mining.
- Reuters reports Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth on Thursday unveiled a plan to rehabilitate communities hurt by the decline of the U.S. coal industry.
Coal:
- WYMT and E&E Greenwire report Rhino Resource Partners, one of the companies that purchased assets from bankrupt coal operator Blackjewel last year, has filed for bankruptcy protection.
- The New Republic reports when coal companies go bankrupt, people lose their livelihoods and the taxpayers are on the line to pay for environmental clean up.
- Associated Press reports a coal-fired power plant in western New Mexico will be shutting down by the end of the year, and local officials are bracing for the economic consequences of the closure.
Energy:
- Billings Gazette reports Colstrip Power Plant co-owner PacifiCorp has agreed to remove Colstrip from customer bills in Washington state by 2023, two years ahead of the state’s 2025 coal power ban.
- Reuters reports coal should play no part in any country’s post-coronavirus stimulus plan and economic recovery should align with global climate goals, U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said in a lecture to Chinese students.
- E&E Energywire reports the decision to close the Coal Creek Station in North Dakota prompts questions about transmission lines.
- E&E News PM reports a group of vulnerable Senate Republicans is pleading with leadership to include clean energy in the next pandemic stimulus package.