A (non-comprehensive) list of interesting and relevant climate change, climate policy, and environmental justice stories.
Environmental Groups Cut Programs as Funding Shifts to Climate Change. The Natural Resources Defense Council is eliminating its longstanding program promoting nuclear safety and cleanup as donors focus on the climate crisis. (see the full article here)
With Democrats Back in Control of Virginia’s General Assembly, Environmentalists See a Narrow Path Forward for Climate Policy. New Democratic majorities in the Senate and House of Delegates aren’t nearly big enough to override vetoes by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, described by one Democrat as “mostly hostile to climate policy.” But Democrats will control the regulation of utilities. (see the full article here)
Texas Republicans Target Climate Science in Textbooks Ahead of Education Board Vote. Republican Railroad Commissioner Wayne Christian wants the Texas Board of Education to reject new science textbooks, which accurately describe the causes and effects of climate change. (see the full article here)
Why Michigan’s Clean Energy Bill Is a Really Big Deal. A comparison with laws in Illinois and Minnesota shows the scope of the state’s ambition. (see the full article here)
Planned Fossil Fuel Production Vastly Exceeds the World’s Climate Goals, ‘Throwing Humanity’s Future Into Question’. Among the 20 top fossil fuel-producing countries, the U.S., Brazil and Saudi Arabia foresee significant increases in domestic oil production, while Russia, India and Indonesia all project substantial increases in coal. (see the full article here)
Trudeau’s halt on carbon tax could undo years of his tentpole climate policy. Decision to pause levy on home heating oil in Atlantic Canada has experts concerned about efforts to combat climate crisis (see the full article here)
Smart climate policy is good for people, not just the environment. Fighting climate change can improve our diets and physical health. It’s not too late to adopt smarter policy (see the full article here)
Why many scientists are now saying climate change is an all-out ‘emergency’. Escalating rhetoric comes as new study shows there are just six years left to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius at current CO2 emissions rate. (see the full article here)
The EU, the US and the UAE are rallying other governments to join a global deal to triple renewable energy this decade and sign a pledge at the upcoming COP28 climate negotiations. (see the full article here)
A study led by James Hansen, the former NASA scientists who issued a foundational warning about climate change to the US Congress in the 1980s, has found that the Earth’s climate is more sensitive to human-caused changes than scientists had realised until now and global heating is accelerating (see the full story here)