Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities
Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities
** The demolition of a coal plant and what it means for the Navajo Nation
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Monday, October 7, 2024
San Juan Generating Station and San Juan Mine. Photo by San Juan Citizens Alliance/EcoFlight, Flickr ([link removed])
It took less than a minute to demolish ([link removed]) the smokestacks of the San Juan Generating Station coal power plant, but it could take decades for the members of the Navajo Nation to reckon with its complicated legacy and what its demolition means for the future of energy development and economic progress in their communities.
The demolition of the San Juan Generating Station, which stopped burning coal in 2022, marked an inflection point in the Navajo Nation’s long and complex history with energy development. Utilities have burned coal on or near Navajo land since the 1960s ([link removed]) , sending electricity to power the growth of cities across the southwestern United States, including Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Phoenix, San Diego, and Albuquerque.
“At one point San Juan Generating Station and the Four Corners Power Plant, according to Los Alamos National Lab, were the largest source of point-source pollution in the United States,” said ([link removed]) Mike Eisenfeld of the San Juan Citizens Alliance. Eisenfeld scheduled an EcoFlight tour on August 24 to witness both the demolition of the plant as well as the energy transition underway. Referring to the San Juan Generating Station specifically and the Four Corners Region generally, Eisenfeld said, “This is the last coal plant up here. All the others have been retired. Gone.” Today, several large-scale solar projects are in the works, including the San Juan Solar Project ([link removed]) .
** Quick hits
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Uranium and lithium exploration kicks up in Colorado and Utah
Land Desk ([link removed])
The demolition of a coal plant and what it means for the Navajo Nation
NPR ([link removed])
Bad news, bears: States are trying to end Endangered Species Act protections for grizzlies
Inside Climate News ([link removed])
BLM plans to limit, not prohibit grazing in Arizona's Sonoran Desert National Monument
E&E News ([link removed])
Study says wildfires harm a crucial part of California's economy: Nuts
LAist ([link removed])
Lawmakers erupt over second Big Oil collusion claim
E&E News ([link removed])
National parks, forests remain closed after catastrophic impacts from Hurricane Helene
CNN ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed])
Regulators need more time to consider utility's costly, complicated wildfire mitigation plan
Colorado Public Radio ([link removed])
** Quote of the day
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” The sheer possibility that these companies are using taxpayer resources to collude with international oil cartels and rob hardworking Americans’ pockets to pad their own is beyond reprehensible. It is time for Congress to work together to hold Big Oil accountable.”
—House Natural Resources Committee ranking member Raúl Grijalva, E&E News ([link removed])
** Picture This
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@nationalparkservice ([link removed])
🐻
It’s Fat Bear Week, oh what a treat
To see the chonkest of bears compete
They wiggle and wobble, oh so round
Who will be the fattest bear crowned?
Eating, then napping, then eating one more.
They stuffed their faces with salmon galore
Their bellies grew large, their fur full of fluff
Ready for winter and looking quite buff
So join the party and cheer on each bear
Vote for your favorites; show them you care
By the end of the week, a champion will rise
Best of luck to all who seek the grand prize!
Vote at fatbearweek.org
Image: A past winner of #FatBearWeek ([link removed]) , Bear 747, pictured standing in the water in 2023.
#Alaska ([link removed]) #katmai ([link removed]) #nationalpark ([link removed]) #bear ([link removed]) #competition ([link removed])
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