Good afternoon and happy Tuesday, readers! We hope you stayed safe and warm if you were hit by yesterday’s snowstorm.
To start today’s Daily on Energy, Callie and Maydeen take a look at President-elect Donald Trump’s continued opposition to the offshore wind industry and vowing to pause federal funding for future projects. There are also reports that Trump will consider issuing an executive order to protect gas stoves and heaters.
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden designated two national monuments on tribal land in California to protect the area from energy development. The move is yet another effort by the administration to establish Biden’s climate agenda before the incoming Trump administration.
Welcome to Daily on Energy, written by Washington Examiner energy and environment writers Callie Patteson (@CalliePatteson) and Maydeen Merino (@MaydeenMerino). Email cpatteson@washingtonexaminer dot com or mmerino@washingtonexaminer dot com for tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. If a friend sent this to you and you’d like to sign up, click here. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email, and we’ll add you to our list.
TRUMP TO PUSH POLICY HALTING CONSTRUCTION OF WINDMILLS: During a press conference held at Mar-A-Lago today, President-elect Donald Trump continued his protest against the offshore wind industry, promising to support policy that would prevent wind turbines from being built during his administration.
Proposed policy: In a lengthy diatribe against offshore wind, the Republican accused windmills of littering the U.S., comparing it to “garbage in a field.” He went on to call offshore wind the “most expensive energy ever” that only works if developers receive subsidies for construction and operation.
“We’re gonna try and have a policy where no windmills are being built,” Trump said, without further detailing if this would impact current projects under construction.
Trump is expected to issue an executive order towards the start of his administration related to the offshore wind industry. Previously, it was speculated that the order would halt federal funding for future projects.
Watch out whales: Trump, who has rallied against the offshore wind industry since before his first presidential campaign, went on to claim offshore windmills are “driving the whales crazy.” The president-elect pointed to increased whale deaths off the coast of Massachusetts where there have been several large whale strandings in recent months.
However, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation has insisted that the recent whale deaths are not related to wind farm activity.
“We are well aware of social media campaigns which attribute these mortalities to offshore wind development, but, at least in our response area, there are no wind surveys or construction activities taking place,” WDC Executive Director Regina Asmutis-Silvia said in December.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has also denied that noise or vibrations from offshore wind surveys and construction has caused the deaths of whales.
TRUMP WEIGHS EXECUTIVE ACTION PROTECTING GAS-APPLIANCES: Trump is reportedly considering issuing an executive order that would protect gas-powered appliances – like stoves and heating systems.
The details: Two sources familiar with the plans told Reuters that the incoming president is weighing issuing an order that would likely limit federal funding for state or local initiatives restricting or raising the costs of gas stoves and heaters.
Republican lawmakers, and Trump himself, have for years lambasted Democratic efforts to increase regulation for gas-powered appliances in new homes, apartments and other buildings amid concerns over human health risks and dangerous methane emissions.
Some background: Many Democratic-run cities and states have pushed to ban natural gas-powered stoves in newly constructed homes, with New York becoming the first state to do so in 2021. Their ban is set to go into effect as soon as 2026. Berkeley, California has also passed a ban on natural gas hookups for new buildings and has been followed by other cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Voters in Democratic-led Washington state voted against the possibility of a similar measure during the November general election. More than half of the state’s voters support an initiative that blocks Washington state’s building code council from barring, discouraging, or penalizing the use of natural gas in stoves and heaving.
The Biden administration also sought to further regulate the industry via the Department of Energy, issuing first-of-its-kind efficiency standards for gas stoves in January of last year.
Read more from Callie here.
BIDEN DESIGNATES TWO NEW NATIONAL MONUMENTS: President Joe Biden created two new national monuments on tribal land in California, an action meant to protect the area from energy development just two weeks before President-elect Donald Trump enters office.
Biden designated the Chuckwalla National Monument in Southern California near Joshua Tree National Park, which will conserve more than 624,000 acres. The second monument, the Sáttítla National Monument in Northern California, is over 224,000 acres.
The establishment of the two national monuments answers the requests of Tribal groups that urged the president to set protections for their sacred lands before leaving office. The Chuckwalla is considered the ancestral homeland of Tribal groups like the Cahuilla, Chemehuevi, Mojave, Quechan, and Serrano Nations and other Indigenous peoples. Similarly, Sáttítla is the ancestral homeland and sacred to the Pit River Tribe and Modoc Peoples.
The monuments would be protected from new drilling, mining, and logging. The sites will not affect valid existing rights and would allow activities such as hazardous fuel reduction in the Sáttítla Highlands and military training in both national monuments.
The Bureau of Land Management will manage Chuckwalla, and Sáttítla National Monument will be managed by the U.S. Forest Service.
The designation of the two national monuments is the latest move by the Biden administration to establish its climate agenda before the incoming Trump administration seeks to undo many of its policies. Biden is also setting a record for the most land and water protected by any president.
“With today’s designations and yesterday’s actions to protect the East and West coasts and the Northern Bering Sea from offshore oil and natural gas drilling, President Biden has now protected 674 million acres of U.S. lands and waters,” the White House said in a statement.
TRUMP’S ENERGY NOMINEES FACE CONFIRMATION HEARINGS NEXT WEEK: The three men picked to deliver on Trump’s oil and gas focused energy agenda are reportedly set to appear before the Senate next week for confirmation hearings.
The details: Democratic staff with knowledge of the process confirmed to Politico this week that first up will be North Dakota Republican Gov. Doug Burgum. Burgum, who was tapped by Trump to serve as secretary of the Interior, will go before the Energy and Natural Resources Committee on Jan. 14.
One day later, Liberty Energy CEO Chris Wright is poised to appear before the Senate Energy Committee. Wright was selected to serve as Energy Secretary.
Former Republican New York Rep. Lee Zeldin is also expected to appear before the Environment and Public Works Committee next week, though that exact date has not yet been confirmed. It will likely fall on Jan. 15 or Jan. 16. Zeldin was picked to head up the Environmental Protection Agency.
With Republicans holding the majority in the Senate, all three nominees are expected to be confirmed with few hurdles.
REPUBLICANS VOW TO USE ‘EVERY TOOL’ TO REVERSE OFFSHORE DRILLING BAN: A number of Republican lawmakers have promised to back Trump’s efforts in reversing Biden’s recent ban on offshore oil and gas drilling in some federal waters, indicating a Congressional pathway to revoke the executive order.
A reminder: Yesterday, the White House announced Biden’s plans to permanently ban new oil and gas drilling off the entire East Coast and the coasts of California, Oregon, and Washington state. Drilling is also to be barred in some areas off of Alaska and the eastern Gulf of Mexico. The order does not impact current leases or drilling operations and does not target regions considered to be the drilling hubs for the industry, such as the western and central regions of the Gulf of Mexico.
Trump’s promise: The incoming president has vowed to revoke the order. Though he will likely face difficulty doing so as a court ruled against Trump in 2019 when he attempted to walk back a similar ban implemented by former President Barack Obama. The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, which allows presidents to protect federal waters from oil and gas development, does not include language allowing presidents to reverse past orders.
Though that ruling has not deterred the president-elect who said today, “I’m going to have it revoked on Day one.” Trump added that his administration would take action immediately, and noted that he doesn’t believe he should have to go through to the courts to do so.
The details: In the 2019 ruling, the judge ruled that only Congress would be able to revoke federal water protections implemented in a past executive order. With Republicans in control of the House and Senate, that may be possible.
“In the 119th Congress, we will use every tool, including reconciliation, to restore and unleash these revenues, fueling conservation, coastal resilience and energy independence, and ensuring America — not OPEC, Russia or China — leads the world,” House Natural Resources Chair Bruce Westerman (R-AR) told E&E News.
Meanwhile Republican Rep. Clay Higgins of Louisiana posted on X that he would be introducing legislation allowing Trump to overturn Biden’s ban.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA TO FACE A ‘LIFE THREATHENING’ WIND STORM: A powerful wind storm is expected to unfold later today into Thursday in Southern California, increasing risk for wildfires and power outages.
The National Weather Service (NWS) predicts high winds to peak between Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning. During this peak, NWS said winds of 35 to 50 mph and widespread damaging gusts of 50 to 80mph can be expected. Some Los Angeles and Ventura county areas could see isolated wind gusts of 80 to 100 mph.
“HEADS UP!!! A LIFE-THREATENING, DESTRUCTIVE, Widespread Windstorm is expected Tue afternoon-Weds morning across much of Ventura/LA Co. Areas not typically windy will be impacted. See graphic for areas of greatest concern. Stay indoors, away from windows, expect power outages,” the National Weather Service of Los Angeles said on X.
NWS issued red flag warnings for most of Southern California today and Wednesday due to the increased wildfire risks. Cal Fire is increasing staffing and resources in preparation for fires.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said, “The state is taking early, proactive steps to coordinate with local partners to protect communities as dangerous weather enters our state. We are no strangers to winter-time wildfire threats, so I ask all Californians to pay attention to local authorities and be prepared to evacuate if told to go.”
ICYMI – BLM APPROVES LARGE SOLAR PROJECT IN ARIZONA: The Bureau of Land Management on Monday approved a 600-megawatt solar project in Arizona that will generate power to nearly 180,000 homes annually.
The agency said Jove Solar, LLC’s proposed solar facility and battery energy storage system project will be built on 3,495 acres of public land and 38 acres of county lands in La Paz County. It would connect to the 500-kilovolt Cielo Azul switching station and Ten West Link high voltage transmission line that connects Arizona to Southern California.
“BLM supports efficient development of clean energy on our nation’s public lands to move toward a carbon pollution-free power sector,” said Ray Castro, BLM Yuma Field Manager. “We will continue to engage with Tribal, federal, state, and local governments, local communities, stakeholder groups, and industry as this project moves toward construction.”
RUNDOWN
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