Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities
** BLM holds record-breaking solar auction in Nevada
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Thursday, June 29, 2023
Nevada Crescent Dunes solar energy development. Photo by BLM Nevada, Flickr ([link removed])
The Bureau of Land Management held an auction for utility-scale solar energy development on four parcels of land in Nevada this week, resulting in $105 million in high bids ([link removed]) , the highest-yielding onshore renewable energy auction in the agency’s history. The BLM estimates that if solar projects on all four parcels are developed, they could produce nearly 3,000 megawatts of electricity, or enough to power about 1 million homes. ([link removed])
** California votes to protect Joshua trees
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California lawmakers have voted to pass the Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act ([link removed]) as part of the state’s budget agreement. The legislation will prohibit the unpermitted killing or removal of the trees, require the development of a conservation plan, and create a fund to protect the species.
Quick hits
** Humans have used enough groundwater to shift Earth's tilt
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Washington Post ([link removed])
** Nonprofit sues feds to speed up protection for tiny cactus ferruginous pygmy owl
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KJZZ ([link removed])
** Climate change is turning snow into rain, raising risk of floods, mudslides
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New York Times ([link removed])
** BLM holds record-breaking solar auction in Nevada
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E&E News ([link removed])
** Infestation of destructive Mormon crickets hits western Colorado
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Colorado Sun ([link removed])
** Legislation would regulate rock climbing on federal lands
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Source NM ([link removed]) | Denver Post ([link removed]) [opinion]
** Despite spending billions to battle wildfires, climate change is still winning
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Associated Press ([link removed])
** Podcast: Field trip to Yosemite National Park
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Washington Post ([link removed])
Quote of the day
” The Supreme Court's recent decision, narrowing the EPA's jurisdiction over the nation's waterways and wetlands, is nothing short of an environmental tragedy.”
—Rob Hayes, Environmental Advocates NY, E&E News ([link removed])
Picture this
** @USFWS ([link removed])
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What big ears you have! All the better to hear you with my deer.
Did you know that mule deer were named after their big mule-like ears? Their extra-large ears are often almost as big as their faces.
Photo: John Magera/USFWS at Cibola National Wildlife Refuge in Arizona
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