A (non-comprehensive) list of interesting and relevant climate change, climate policy, and environmental justice stories.
Biden Environmental Justice Goals Face Headwinds in Courtrooms. As the Biden administration makes strides toward more robust environmental justice guidance, courtroom battles over air toxics and civil rights are tightening the bounds of legal recourse for communities overburdened with air pollution. (read the full story here)
Countries draw battle lines for talks on new climate finance goal. Developed and developing countries are gearing up for heated discussions over the size of the goal and who should provide money for it (read the full story here)
Exxon CEO blames public for failure to fix climate change. The world isn’t on track to meet its climate goals — and it’s the public’s fault, a leading oil company CEO told journalists. Exxon Mobil Corp. CEO Darren Woods told editors from Fortune that the world has “waited too long” to begin investing in a broader suite of technologies to slow planetary heating. (read the full story here)
Here’s Where Biden’s Climate Law Is Working, and Where It’s Falling Short. Electric vehicles are booming as expected, a new analysis found, but renewable power isn’t growing as quickly as hoped. (read the full story here)
US spends billions on roads rather than public transport in ‘climate time bomb’. New analysis finds money from Biden’s $1.2tn infrastructure bill has overwhelmingly been spent on widening highways for cars. (read the full story here)
Climate change could unearth, disturb Cold War-era nuclear waste buried by the US, officials say. Long-term environmental changes were not taken into account during disposal. (read the full story here)
People displaced by climate crisis to testify in first-of-its-kind hearing in US. Inter-American Commission on Human Rights will hear how climate is driving forced migration across the Americas. (read the full story here)
‘A Trojan horse of legitimacy’: Shell launches a ‘climate tech’ startup advertising jobs in oil and gas. Onward touts a vision of a ‘clean energy future’, but experts say ventures like this are part of fossil fuel firms’ greenwashing plan. (read the full story here)
EPA air monitors could boost environmental justice. The agency’s science advisers are set to discuss how the aging monitoring network could aid climate and racial equity objectives. (read the full story here)