A coalition of environmental and energy groups and state agencies have filed their opening arguments against Bonneville Power Administration as it asks a federal court to stop the power agency from moving to a new energy market based in the eastern United States. 

A nuclear energy future comes with the challenge of how to store the radioactive spent fuel used to create it.

Richland’s city council unanimously approved an option agreement with Atlas Agro for land for a data center at a Dec. 2 meeting. 

The developer planning a wind farm in the Horse Heaven Hills had already intended to scale back the number of turbines before the state recently restricted the project over nesting concerns for endangered ferruginous hawks. The revised plan now calls for fewer turbines, but ones that are taller, with larger blades, and potentially located closer to the Tri-Cities.

Even as the federal government withdraws support for clean energy projects and legal challenges against those same projects continue from tribal, environmental and community advocates, the industry is still expected to boom in the coming years. 

New federal legislation introduced by U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse would expand tax incentives for investments in new nuclear energy projects in the U.S., which the Washington Republican said puts the energy source on parity with other sources. 

Hermiston residents may soon have data centers to thank for reducing their monthly electricity bills.