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October 14, 2025 - In Community‚ Government‚ Local Resilience‚ News By Marketing Communications 0

CORE Hub October 2025 Newsletter

Good afternoon Partners,

We are navigating a time of uncertainty and disruption—but also one of possibility. As federal actions threaten climate resilience and renewable energy efforts, including rescinding critical funding for our rural and Tribal communities, our commitment to a just and thriving future for the Redwood Region remains unwavering. Whether or not offshore wind becomes a federal priority again, California has signaled its intent to move forward and our planning continues—grounded in care, climate justice, and collective action. We know these shifts have impacted many of you, and we’re here to adapt, support, and move forward together. 

This update includes hard truths, but also hope, learning, and opportunities to stay informed and connected. As always please reach out with your thoughts and questions. We appreciate you!

Upcoming opportunities for funding, leadership, and learning:

State and Federal Updates:

  • Governor Newsom signs executive order to bolster renewable energy in California
    • Office of Governor Gavin Newsom, August 29,2025; click here for media release
    • The EO outlines several actions the state is taking in response to the Trump Administration’s elimination of tax credits for renewable energy projects to ensure the state is able to “capture expiring clean energy tax credits and to further expedite clean energy deployment” 
  • A few of the bills Governor Newsom signed into law that might be of interest:
    • AB 39 (D, Zbur; chaptered 10/6/25): General plans: Local Electrification Planning Act 
      • What it will do: Requires each city, county, or city and county, to prepare and adopt a specified plan, or integrate into a general plan, local goals, objectives, policies, and feasible implementation measures to expand electric vehicle charging and other zero-emission vehicle fueling infrastructure, as well as measures for zero emission technology to address the needs of disadvantaged communities, low-income households, and small businesses.
    • AB 263 (D, Rogers; chaptered 9/26/25): Scott River: Shasta River: watersheds.
      • What it will do: Continues emergency flow levels for the Scott and Shasta Rivers (important tributaries to the Klamath River) through 2030 or until permanent long-term instream flow rules are established. Requires the State Water Resources Control Board to provide annual public updates and opportunities for public input on the progress towards developing permanent rules. 
    • AB 825 (D, Petrie-Norris; chaptered 9/19/25): Independent System Operator: independent regional organization
      • What it will do: Helps California advance inter-state energy coordination in support of the West-Wide Governance Pathways Initiative, with efforts to reduce costs to rate-payers and strengthen grid resilience under pressure. 
    • AB 1280 (D, Garcia; chaptered 10/6/25): Energy
      • What it will do: Authorizes the I-bank to provide financial assistance in connection with the financing or refinancing of climate catalyst projects to decarbonize industrial facilities. 
    • AB 1417 (D, Stefani; chaptered 10/6/25): Voluntary Offshore Wind and Coastal Resources Protection Program: community capacity funding activities and grants
      • What it will do: expand funding for local and Tribal communities, enhance the voluntary Offshore Wind and Coastal Resources Protection Program, and support workforce development and community engagement.
      • Thanks to Brightline Defense for their leadership on this bill, and support from local partners including 350 Humboldt and EPIC  
  • Interesting legislation to watch/learn from: SB 534: Green Empowerment Zone for the Salton Sea and Southeastern Desert Valleys
    • California Senate Bill (SB) 534 (D, Padilla) is a 2-year bill that would establish a Green Empowerment Zone for the Salton Sea and Southeastern Desert Valleys to foster clean energy economic growth in the region. This zone, encompassing specific areas in Imperial and Riverside counties, would be governed by a board tasked with identifying projects, distributing benefits to communities, and supporting the development of a clean energy economy. Overview of the Green Empowerment Zone model.
    • This is a concept/tool our region might be able to learn from.
  • The Trump Administration offers $625 million to reopen and ‘modernize’ coal plants
    • US Department of Energy, September 29, 2025
    • The Trump administration is opening more than 13 million acres of federal land to leasing for new coal mines. And it’s providing funding to keep demand for coal roaring. The Department of Energy announced it will offer $625 million to upgrade, reopen, and “modernize” coal-fired power plants across the country.

Resources, Information and Academic Articles:

  • Marine Energy Career Panel 2025 recording and slide deck
  • Data on Data Center costs
    • Union of Concerned Scientists, September 2025
    • A report found that residential customers in seven states that are part of the PJM Interconnection, an electricity market that covers the Mid-Atlantic and parts of the Midwest, are paying nearly $4.4 billion for transmission upgrades intended to deliver electricity to data centers.
    • The report analyzes the amount the whole ratebase is paying for transmission projects that benefit a single customer. It recommends that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission create a new customer class for such customers and require them to shoulder the cost.
  • Mapping California State Investments in Climate and Communities
    • UC Berkeley Center for Law, Energy, and the Environment (CLEE) 
    • White Paper, September 2025
    • This report explores state climate programs that fund community capacity building, economic development, and technical assistance. They have mapped these programs in two regions of California to show the ways in which state investments have manifested cumulatively in these areas, potentially providing a foundation for stronger community co-creation and meaningful participation in all phases of climate infrastructure projects.
  • Western Energy Markets Explainer
    • Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Office of Public Participation
    • This explainer offers a comprehensive overview of the electricity markets in the Western United States. It covers key features of the markets that enable coordinated and efficient management of the region’s electric transmission grid system. This explainer will help you understand how new developments in electricity markets in the West may impact energy costs, system reliability, and the implementation and achievement of state-level energy policies.
  • Unleashing American Energy Innovation, Security, and Leadership
    • ARCHES is a statewide public-private partnership working to advance industrial hydrogen. Many folks in our Network have been curious about who is working on hydrogen. This resource can help folks understand who some of the key players are. 
  • California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank (IBank) Climate Financing Products
    • Programs and loans designed to support California’s transition to a net-zero emissions economy by funding projects that promote clean energy, reduce greenhouse gases, and build resilience to climate change. Through initiatives like the Climate Catalyst Revolving Loan Fund, Climate Loan Guarantees, and Climate Loan Participations, IBank provides financial tools to public, private, and nonprofit entities for projects ranging from renewable energy and climate-smart infrastructure to supporting communities disproportionately affected by climate change. 
  • Monitoring Offshore Windfarm Impacts on the Commercial Fishing Industry Good Practice Guidance
    • Xodus Group 2025
    • This detailed guide was commissioned by the Scottish Government to help offshore wind developers and other marine industries effectively assess and monitor the effects of their projects on the commercial fishing sector.
  • Bird Survival in Wind Farms by Monte-Carlo Simulation Modelling Based on Wide-Ranging Flight Tracking Data of Multiple Birds During Different Seasons
    • Yordanov et al, 2025
    • This paper presents a study using advanced modeling and long-term field data to assess the risk of bird collisions with wind turbines, focusing on the Common Buzzard
  • Offshore wind turbines constitute benthic secondary production hotspots on and around constructions
    • Danheim et al 2025
    • This paper investigates the ecological impact of introducing artificial hard substrates (turbine foundations) into marine areas typically dominated by soft-bottoms. The study’s core finding is that offshore wind turbine foundations act as ecological hotspots for secondary production (the creation of new organic matter by consumers) in the surrounding seabed ecosystem.

Local Project Updates: 

  • Trump Administration Appears to Claw Back $88 Million Grant for Local Tribal Energy Resilience Project
    • Lost Coast Outpost, October 7, 2025
    • Excerpt from press release from the Redwood Coast Energy Authority:
      • “The TERAS project is designed to support more than 140 miles of power lines on the Hoopa 1101 circuit, which experiences some of the most frequent and longest-duration power outages in the state. This electricity circuit serves communities along the Trinity and Klamath Rivers — including Hoopa, Weitchpec, and Orleans — which are home to essential government services for the Hoopa Valley, Yurok, and Karuk Tribes. Already, Tribal Nations pay 56% higher electricity prices than the U.S. average and experience 6.5 times more outages. Along the Hoopa 1101 circuit, families and Tribal facilities currently experience dozens of outages each year, which take their local water, critical communication, and health systems offline, increase the risks to elders during heat waves and freezing weather, interfere with classroom education and information access, and cause a significant loss in stored food and other supplies.”
  • Humboldt Bay Harbor District Commissioner Greg Dale interviewed
    • High Country News, September 30, 2025
    • The Trump administration has rolled back support for wind energy, canceling federal funding for projects like the Humboldt Bay offshore wind terminal and imposing new permitting barriers. These actions have stalled or halted numerous wind developments nationwide, threatening clean energy progress, job creation, and climate goals as states and developers scramble to adapt.
  • New Solar Energy and Battery Storage Project Launched Near Arcata
    • Lost Coast Outpost, October 8, 2025
    • From Redwood Coast Energy Authority Press Release: “Foster Clean Power represents a milestone for our community,” Beth Burks, RCEA Executive Director, said. “By combining solar and battery storage, we’re not only producing more clean energy locally but also ensuring that power is available when our community needs it most. This project is proof that renewable energy, environmental stewardship, and community benefit can go hand in hand.”

In the news:

Thank you from the CORE Hub Team! 

Previous CORE Hub August 2025 Newsletter
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