August 2026 Newsletter
Coming Soon: Executive Order Reports on Clean Energy Siting and Deployment in Oregon
The Oregon Department of Energy is working on a pair of reports following publication of the Oregon Energy Strategy and Governor Kotek's Executive Order 25-29 late last year. ODOE's reports discuss barriers to clean energy deployment in Oregon and opportunities for streamlining the public siting process for clean energy facilities.
ODOE held an open comment period and listening sessions for the reports this spring and earlier this summer — many thanks to the Oregonians who weighed in with their good ideas! We are working on finalizing both reports and expect to submit them to the Governor and make them available to the public in mid-September.
Learn more about the Oregon Energy Strategy and our work to implement the five pathways to meet Oregon's energy policy objectives.
Partners Prep for Hanford Waste Shipments Through Oregon
Starting as soon as late 2027, shipments of transuranic waste from the Hanford Site in Richland, Washington, will journey through Oregon on their way to a permanent disposal site in New Mexico. Earlier this month, ODOE joined the Washington State Department of Ecology, Western Interstate Energy Board, and some members of the Oregon Hanford Cleanup Board at the U.S. Department of Energy office in Richland, Washington, to learn more about the shipments.
Beginning in 1943 at the Hanford site, the federal government produced plutonium for America’s nuclear weapons program for more than 40 years. The process created large amounts of radioactive and chemically hazardous waste. Efforts are underway to clean up the site and part of the cleanup includes relocating materials offsite to safe, permanent disposal locations.
Not all waste from Hanford is the same or gets the same treatment. In this case, the transuranic, or TRU, waste scheduled to ship through Oregon includes lab equipment, protective clothing, and tools tainted with small amounts of plutonium and other radioactive materials. Before a break in shipping in 2011, U.S. DOE had already sent nearly 600 shipments successfully through Oregon. When shipments resume, U.S. DOE expects to ship 10-12 shipments per week over a ten-year period. Shipments will travel along Interstate 84 from Umatilla to Ontario on route to America’s only location for permanent disposal of this waste in New Mexico.
At the August meeting, attendees were able to view an example of the shipment truck and canisters, hear from two of the contracted drivers, learn about truck inspections for radiologic material, and ask questions.
Safety is the priority for all organizations involved. ODOE is coordinating with partners along the shipping route to raise awareness of the upcoming shipments, prepare for permit and inspection needs, and offer additional training for first responders. ODOE supports safe transportation of TRU waste to advance Hanford cleanup, and advocates that U.S. DOE treat all radioactive waste shipments through Oregon with the same level of consideration, planning, transparency, and safety as TRU shipments.
Oregon Establishes Natural and Working Lands Net Carbon Sequestration Goals
The Oregon Climate Action Commission and Oregon Department of Energy established natural and working lands net carbon sequestration goals for the state during the commission’s meeting on July 17, 2026. The goal setting followed direction in House Bill 3409, which was passed by the Oregon Legislature in 2023 (and further amended by Senate Bill 1525 in 2024).
The bill directed ODOE and the OCAC to consult with the Oregon Department of Forestry, the Department of Agriculture, the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, and the Department of Fish and Wildlife to establish nonbinding biological carbon sequestration and storage goals for Oregon’s natural and working lands. The action updates a recommendation made by the commission in its 2021 Natural and Working Lands Proposal.
In a report to the commission discussed during its July 17 meeting, the Oregon Department of Energy presented three options for voting commission members to consider. OCAC members chose the third option and adopted bold new goals for net sequestration in Oregon’s natural and working lands:
Achieve net sequestration of at least 57.6 MMTCO2e per year across all land categories by 2035.
Achieve net sequestration of at least 62.4 MMTCO2e per year across all land categories by 2050.
The goals, while voluntary, set a guidepost for considering land management and stewardship as part of Oregon’s ongoing climate action — and they are critical. Even if Oregon met all of its greenhouse gas emissions goals, it would still be necessary to remove legacy emissions already in the atmosphere to keep the global temperatures from rising beyond the global targets. Oregon’s lands can help at a scale no other carbon removal technologies have achieved yet.
ODOE and the OCAC will continue to track land-based net sequestration and storage, as first published in 2025’s Land-Based Net Carbon Inventory, and report on progress toward achieving these new natural and working lands goals by tracking natural climate solutions implementation over time. Natural climate solutions are actions that maintain or enhance ecosystem resilience and community well-being while also sequestering and storing carbon.
Later this year, ODOE and the OCAC will release a draft report on natural climate solutions and metrics, which will outline natural climate solutions for the state and how to track them and their effects.
Oregon Climate Action Commission Recruiting New Members
The Oregon Climate Action Commission is seeking two new members to support its work and advance its statutory duties. Interested Oregon residents are encouraged to apply for one of the commission’s vacant voting positions. The commission is seeking a youth voting member and an at-large voting member.
The Oregon Climate Action Commission makes recommendations on statutory and administrative changes, policy measures, and other actions that should be carried out to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions in Oregon consistent with the state’s emissions reduction and sequestration goals, and prepare communities for the effects of climate change. The commission’s voting members are public officials subject to executive appointment by Oregon’s Governor. With the exception of the youth representative, who serves a two-year term, commissioners are appointed to serve four-year terms and are eligible for reappointment.
This recruitment will be open until filled; applications submitted by September 15, 2026 will receive priority consideration. Interested candidates must submit a resume and an electronic application to the Governor’s Office that includes a short personal biography and briefly describes why the applicant is interested in serving on the commission. The application and instructions are available on the Governors Boards and Commissions webpage.
Learn more about this recruitment on the OCAC's blog. The commission’s recent work products, meetings materials, and other resources can be found on the commission’s website. Please direct questions about the recruitment process to OCAC@energy.oregon.gov.
Getting Grounded: Heat Pumps!
When looking at how to heat or cool your home, heat pumps are a popular and efficient choice. Heat pumps don’t generate heat. They move heat from the air (or other sources) into your home to provide heating, or move heat from inside your home to the outside to provide cooling.
Overall, heat pumps can be up to three times more energy efficient than other options, which can translate to savings on your energy bill.
On this episode of our Getting Grounded, our energy fundamentals series of mini podcast episodes, host Katelyn Jackson is joined by Stephanie Kruse, ODOE facilities engineer, who walks us through heat pump basics.
Give the episode a listen on our blog or your favorite podcast app, and check out ODOE's heat pump incentive programs.
Reports from Around the Agency
Tell us how we're doing! Have you joined an ODOE meeting, attended an event, or participated in one of our programs recently? We'd love to hear how we're doing. Take our customer service survey online.
ODOE is proud to join Portland General Electric, the National Association of State Energy Officials, and fellow state agencies to host a Fleet Forward Electric Ride & Drive on September 29, 2026 at Portland International Raceway. Designed for fleet managers, operators, maintenance professionals and organizations exploring fleet electrification, the hands-on event offers the opportunity to test drive zero-emission medium- and heavy-duty vehicles, explore the latest fleet and charging technologies and connect with industry experts. Register online to attend.
ODOE Government Relations Coordinator Christy Splitt and Senior Policy Advisor Rob Del Mar attended the Eastern Oregon Economic Summit, hosted by the Eastern Oregon Women’s Coalition. Christy moderated a panel centering the role of rural electric co-ops in the region. She also attended a tour that included Treasure Valley Community College’s Advanced Energy & Trades Center and the Verde Light Community Solar facility, the first project to be completed with a grant from ODOE’s Community Renewable Energy Grant Program. Rob met with a developer, county commissioners, and other state agency staff to discuss a proposed lithium mine at the McDermitt caldera in southeast Oregon.
On August 27, ODOE Director Janine Benner and Community Navigator Sarah Moehrke were pleased to join Oregon State University and other government and private partners at a ribbon cutting celebrating the completion and commencement of operations of the PacWave wave energy test facility in Seal Rock, Oregon. The first of its kind in the country, this facility will help companies test wave energy technologies, supporting integration of this clean resource into Oregon’s energy future.
Also on August 27, ODOE Assistant Director for Energy Development Services Pandian Krishnaswamy and Incentives Analyst Toby White joined the City of Hood River for a ceremonial ribbon-cutting at its Dee Bridge Hydroelectric Project. ODOE was proud to support the renewable energy project with a $500,000 Community Renewable Energy Grant in 2022; it’s the first project in the program to implement inline hydropower at a pressure reducing station.
ODOE Codes and Standards Analyst Madeline O’Dwyer participated in a panel discussion about elevating building affordability in state energy and economic strategies at the 2026 NASEO National Buildings Summit this month. The summit brings together state, federal, and industry leaders to advance practical solutions for energy affordability, innovation, and optimization.
ODOE Energy Policy Analysts Wendy Simons and David Hutchinson attended the 2026 Farwest Show, the largest nursery and greenhouse trade show in the western U.S., this month. Wendy and Hutch connected with attending agricultural businesses to share about ODOE’s Oregon Rural and Agricultural Energy Assistance program.
ODOE is excited to see our friends at the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality have reopened the Clean Vehicle Rebate program, which provides incentives for Oregonians purchasing electric vehicles. Learn more on DEQ's website.
Planning to join a virtual ODOE meeting? We have transitioned all of our public meetings to the Microsoft Teams platform. Check out this handy guide to get started. We hope to see you in a meeting soon!
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.
LOOKING AHEAD
Oregon Climate Action Commission | September 11, 2026 | Via Webinar
Oregon Climate Action Committee Meetings | Various Dates and Times
Energy Facility Siting Council | September 18, 2026 | Salem and Via Webinar
Current Rulemakings (click to see details)
Other Stakeholder Groups (click to see details)
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