The Department of the Interior (DOI) and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) on Thursday said they had begun a process to offer Bluewater Wind Delaware the first commercial wind lease off the coast of Delaware under the “Smart from the Start” Atlantic Offshore Wind program.

California’s Assembly on Tuesday passed a renewable energy mandate that would require the state’s power companies to generate 33%—up from the current 20%—of their power from renewable sources by 2020. The mandate is the most ambitious in the U.S.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) last week completed a Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS) for a limited work authorization (LWA) and the combined construction and operating licenses (COLs) for Southern Co.’s Vogtle Units 3 and 4 proposed for construction near Waynesboro, Ga.

Rules proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under Section 316(b) of the Clean Water Act on Monday call for flexible technology standards, determined on a case-by-case basis, for more than 670 power plants across the nation that pull in at least 2 million gallons per day of cooling water. The EPA said the proposal, which seeks to protect aquatic life, establishes a “common sense framework, putting a premium on public input and flexibility.”

The Senate is expected to vote on Thursday on an amendment introduced by Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to small business legislation that could permanently block the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from promulgating climate change rules.

Nearly 20 Senate Democrats asked President Obama in a letter today not to agree to spending plans passed by the GOP-controlled House last month that would block funding for the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) implementation of greenhouse gas rules.

As chief executives of 34 renewable energy companies urged congressional Republican and Democratic leaders to support the Department of Energy’s loan guarantee program, a study released by the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) suggests grants are a simpler and more effective way to help finance projects than tax credits.

AC power is now available at Units 1, 2, and 4 of the six-reactor quake- and tsunami-hit Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan, according to recent updates; however, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) still believes “the overall situation remains of serious concern.”

Georgia Power last week said it would seek the Georgia Public Service Commission’s approval to decertify two coal-generating units totaling 569 MW. The decision was based on “a need to install environmental controls to meet a variety of existing and expected environmental regulations,” the company said.

Sempra Generation last week officially dedicated the 48-MW Copper Mountain Solar facility, a project located adjacent to the company’s 10-MW El Dorado Solar installation in Boulder City, Nev., about 40 miles southeast of Las Vegas. Sempra is calling the facility “the largest photovoltaic solar plant in the U.S.”