"In an ongoing legal battle with the Biden administration over a Nevada lithium mine, environmentalists are poised to return to court with a new approach accusing U.S. wildlife officials of dragging their feet on a year-old petition seeking endangered species status for a tiny snail that lives nearby."
"The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has quietly proposed maintaining a target cancer-risk level for air pollution permits that scientists and public health officials consider inadequate to protect public health, especially for communities like those east of Houston that are exposed simultaneously to many sources of industrial emissions."
"U.S. chemical manufacturer Honeywell International released chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)—climate super-pollutants and ozone depleting substances that are banned except for limited uses under an international environmental agreement—according to a report released Oct. 10 by the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), a non-profit environmental organization based in Washington, D.C."
"The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) declared 21 species extinct Monday, including 10 birds and two freshwater fish."
"The Energy Department awarded up to $7 billion in grants for clean hydrogen “hubs,” but environmentalists warn some of the money could prop up fossil fuels and fail to cut emissions."
"Federal prosecutors said in a sentencing memo Thursday that hackers hired by an Israeli private investigator stole communications between climate activists that were later used in court by Exxon Mobil Corp."
"Canada's Supreme Court dealt a blow to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government on Friday by ruling that a federal law assessing how major projects such as coal mines and oil sands plants impact the environment is largely unconstitutional."
"A road critical to operating a proposed open-pit mine in a remote part of Alaska hit a new hurdle Friday when the Biden administration issued a finding that the road could threaten Alaska Native communities and their lifestyle more than previously estimated."
As global sales of electric vehicles surge, the positive impact on climate change emissions could be a critical benefit. But as our Backgrounder points out, it’s not as simple as that. There are challenges with politics, tax laws, mineral access, related pollution regulations and union jobs. Get an overview of the issue, in this latest entry in our expanding 2024 Journalists’ Guide to Environment + Energy.
Reporting on environmental stories often leads to the state legislature, where key material can be frustratingly hard to access. Whether that’s because the state is deliberately hiding information, has poor systems for sharing it or isn’t even tracking it, there are ways to get what you need. Four seasoned environment reporters offer tips, tricks and commiseration.
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