August 2025 Newsletter
ODOE Releases Draft Oregon Energy Strategy for Public Comment
The Oregon Department of Energy was pleased to release the draft Oregon Energy Strategy for public comment on August 14, 2025.
When finalized, the Oregon Energy Strategy will serve as an overarching approach for policy makers, agencies, and Oregonians to help make decisions on our long-term energy future. The final strategy report is due to the Governor and Legislature by November 1.
The draft Oregon Energy Strategy identifies five pathways that represent the direction Oregon needs to take to meet the state’s energy goals: energy efficiency, electrification, clean electricity, low-carbon fuels, and resilience. For each pathway, the draft strategy recommends policies to guide actions and decisions over time. The strategy also includes near-term legislative and policy actions.
Oregonians are invited to view a full draft of the Oregon Energy Strategy, read a summary of the recommendations (in English, Spanish, Russian, Vietnamese, and Chinese), watch a recording of the August 14 webinar ODOE held on the strategy, and listen to a special Grounded podcast episode all about the strategy before submitting public comments on the draft by 5 p.m. on September 22.
Additional background on the project is available on ODOE's website.
Energy Facility Siting Spotlight: Process Improvements
Since 1975, Oregon’s Energy Facility Siting Council has been reviewing, approving, and decommissioning state-jurisdiction energy facilities across the state – including wind, solar, natural gas, and other energy generation facilities that help keep power running in Oregon homes and businesses. Over the past five decades, the process has evolved to better respond to Oregon’s energy needs and priorities, including updating administrative rules, improved methods to submit public comments, creating new materials like flyers and videos to support public involvement, and more.
The Oregon Department of Energy’s facility siting division, which staffs EFSC, leads process improvement initiatives that will ensure the siting process remains relevant, timely, and responsive to Oregon’s needs.
On our blog this month, we share some recent improvements to the siting process in Oregon, including: new approaches to sharing information, such as video tutorials, to improve public engagement; updating administrative rules for solar facilities to make it easier for them to demonstrate compliance with noise regulations in the same way wind facilities do; adopting new rules for facility applications to clearly reflect how standards are being met and make the review process more efficient; improving the Site Certificate amendment process to be more efficient while ensuring adequate public participation; strengthening internal work like refining the compliance process, onboarding of new EFSC members, and much more.
Learn more about recent improvements – and some on the horizon – on ODOE's blog. Find even more resources on Oregon's facility siting process on ODOE's website.
ODOE Grant Program Supports Solar Canopy "Cloud" in Pendleton
A project that started as a “crazy dream” for the City of Pendleton’s Assistant Public Works Director Kyle Willman became a reality with help from ODOE’s Community Renewable Energy Grant Program.
At the time, Willman’s primary responsibility was the city’s Wastewater Treatment Plant, and he began thinking of ways to optimize an important step at the end of the treatment process: disinfecting wastewater in the chlorine contact chamber. The temperature of this large open-top contact chamber tank is crucial to the process, both for regulatory permits and for efficiency. Willman said lowering the water temperature lowers the amount of chlorine needed for disinfection, resulting in cost savings.
He considered covering the large tank with a sunshade, but the Eastern Oregon wind would make upkeep challenging. Instead, his dream led him to cover the tank with a solar panel canopy. The project was a recipient of a $900,000 construction grant from the first round of the Oregon Department of Energy’s Community Renewable Energy Program, also known as C-REP. The City of Pendleton contracted with Ameresco to provide technical expertise to take the solar canopy from a dream to a successful grant application and constructed project.
“I can’t thank ODOE and the C-REP people enough for giving the citizens of Pendleton this opportunity to do this project,” said Willman. “The project wouldn’t (have) happened without the program. It’s just that simple.”
The new solar panel canopy acts as cloud cover, which lowers the temperature of the water, lowers chlorine quantities, and reduces the presence of algae. Learn more about this exciting project on ODOE's blog.
ODOE is now accepting applications for a fourth round of Community Renewable Energy Program grant funding to support even more renewable energy and resilience projects. Learn more about the program and requirements.
ODOE at 50: History of Oregon's Climate Goals
As we’ve been sharing in this newsletter and on our blog this year, 2025 marks 50 years of the Oregon Department of Energy serving the state. As we continue leading Oregon to a safe, equitable, clean, and sustainable future for the next 50 years (and beyond!), we’re reflecting on what got us here. This month, we take a look back at the history of Oregon’s climate goals.
Oregon has a long history of setting state goals and implementing efforts to address greenhouse gas emissions. In 1990, an Oregon Task Force on Global Warming issued a report to the Governor and Legislature on how global warming could affect Oregon.
In 1995, ODOE followed up with a report on reducing Oregon’s greenhouse gas emissions, which included a greenhouse gas inventory and other data on CO2, methane, and other harmful GHGs. In the report, ODOE notes that “it will take significantly stronger actions than we initially believed, both at the state and Federal levels” to meet GHG emissions reduction benchmarks. Later in the 1990s, the Oregon Legislature passed a bill regulating CO2 emissions from energy facilities, including a new Energy Facility Siting Standard on CO2 – a standard that remains in place today.
In 2004, a new Governor’s Advisory Group on Global Warming published an Oregon Strategy for Greenhouse Gas Reductions with support from ODOE. The strategy included recommendations for greenhouse gas reduction goals, which were formally adopted in 2007 by the Oregon Legislature through HB 3543. The bill also established the Oregon Global Warming Commission and the Oregon Climate Change Research Institute. Over the next almost 20 years now, the commission – which is staffed by the Oregon Department of Energy – issued a number of reports on Oregon’s progress toward the GHG reduction goals, including a Roadmap to 2020 and a Roadmap to 2030, as well as bolstered work around natural and working lands. OCCRI has also issued Oregon Climate Assessments over the years, most recently in January 2025.
Dive into more history of Oregon's climate goals on our blog, and don't forget to be part of Oregon's future by weighing in on the draft Oregon Energy Strategy, which includes pathways, policies, and actions Oregon could take to achieve its energy policy objectives, including reducing GHG emissions.
Sara Millies-Lucke Reflects on Her Year at ODOE
Last fall, ODOE welcomed RARE AmeriCorps member Sara Lark Millies-Lucke to the agency to serve as the Rural Resilience Analyst to provide research and recommendations about how ODOE could better serve and communicate with the state’s consumer-owned utilities and rural communities. We’ve shared several stories from Sara Lark and the Community Navigator team on our blog and want to thank her for her work with ODOE. In her final blog post, Sara Lark reflected on her work and lessons learned from the past year with ODOE.
"Bittersweet is the best way to describe how I feel as my time closes as a Resource Assistance for Rural Environments (RARE) AmeriCorps member and Rural Resilience Analyst with the Oregon Department of Energy," Sara wrote in her blog. "I have made so many incredible connections and gained invaluable understanding of local government and the role of state policy on energy projects and community resilience."
Read more in Sara's own words on ODOE's blog.
Weigh in on ODOE's Next Strategic Plan
The Oregon Department of Energy has started a process to update our agency strategic plan and we want to hear from you.
Earlier this year, we shared a wrap-up report from our 2021-2024 plan, and now it's time to update the framework that will guide ODOE's focus over the next few years. Strategic planning helps our agency prioritize our work and build stronger collaboration with the people we serve.
Please fill out our strategic plan survey by Friday, September 19:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/ODOE-SP2025-Public-Survey
Thank you for your time and thoughtful comments on our strategic planning efforts!
Grounded Podcast: Future of Nuclear in Oregon
Explorations into nuclear power are making headlines, including in Oregon. Currently, a new nuclear power facility cannot be developed in Oregon without a permanent national repository for high-level radioactive waste being established and a vote by the people of Oregon. But over the last few legislative sessions, there has been an interest in considering a new role for nuclear energy in Oregon.
In 2025, two bills related to nuclear power moved out of committee and into Ways and Means for funding consideration – further than these types of bills have gone in the recent past.
In the latest episode of ODOE's Grounded podcast, we learn about the topics of the 2025 legislative session and Oregon’s nuclear future. We also hear from a company developing small modular reactors about their technology and potential roles for nuclear power. Give it a listen on our blog or your favorite podcast app.
Reports from Around the Agency
Save the date! ODOE Director Janine Benner will join the Beneficial Electrification League on September 16 for the Oregon Electrification Leadership Summit in Salem. Janine will present on a panel showcasing viewpoints from Oregon leaders on the benefits of electrification. Senior Policy Analyst Edith Bayer and Program Analyst Bryce McManus will also speak on panels at the event.
Director Benner was pleased to participate in an August 15 roundtable discussion with Congresswoman Bonamici, Oregon State University, and experts from the marine renewable energy industry to discuss the status of the industry, opportunities and challenges, and how Oregon can expand its leadership role for this technology. In her remarks, Janine shared that the draft Oregon Energy Strategy calls for increased clean electricity deployment and that marine renewable energy has the potential to play a role in helping Oregon meet its energy needs and policy objectives.
Director Benner and ODOE Government Relations Coordinator Christy Splitt joined Governor Kotek, state partners, and local community members in Hillsboro on August 25 for a ceremonial bill signing for four important energy affordability-related bills passed during the 2025 legislative session. “These four bills will help lower costs, make utilities more accountable, and ensure that households — not big energy users — come first. Every Oregonian deserves reliable, affordable energy, and this legislation moves us closer to that goal," said Governor Kotek.
The Oregon Hanford Cleanup Board met in Richland, WA earlier this month. Board members and ODOE staff enjoyed an opportunity to meet with the interim Hanford Site Manager and take a tour of several Hanford cleanup sites, such as the groundwater treatment facility.
Oregon Public Broadcasting's Monica Samayoa featured a story on the draft Oregon Energy Strategy this month, including a conversation with ODOE Senior Policy Analyst Edith Bayer.
ODOE Facilities Engineer Stephanie Kruse presented on a panel about housing retrofit options at the Center for Energy Poverty and Climate's 2025 Extreme Heat Summit in Indianapolis earlier this month. Stephanie discussed how Oregon is supporting energy efficiency improvements in homes, such as providing incentives for potentially life-saving heat pumps.
Stephanie also attended the Oregon Association of Nurseries' Climate Summit at the Far West Show. She joined a policy portion where a group of Oregon leaders discussed options for nursery and other agricultural businesses to participate in the clean energy transition.
Did you know ODOE's Energy Facility Siting Team is currently reviewing more than a dozen proposed or amended energy facilities? From wind to solar facilities – to combined wind, solar, and storage facilities – you can learn more about the state's process and how to get involved on our website. You can also sign up to receive a monthly facility siting update showing the latest and greatest.
Oregonians can now search for available renewable energy and energy efficiency incentive programs through ODOE’s Energy Hub for Incentive Programs and Projects in Oregon (Energy HIPPO!). Plug your address into the online calculator along with a few other basic pieces of information, and the tool will show the various programs you may be eligible for. The Energy HIPPO also provides other helpful resources for homeowners, renters, and contractors.
UPCOMING MEETINGS
Oregon Climate Action Commission | September 12, 2025 | Via Webinar
Energy Facility Siting Council | September 19, 2025 | Salem and Via Webinar
Current Rulemakings (click to see details)
Other Stakeholder Groups (click to see details)