"The Trump administration just dealt a blow to the biggest transmission line project currently underway in the United States." "The Grain Belt Express is over a decade in the making and would bring huge amounts of cheap wind and solar from the plains to the East. Its future is now murky."
"A coalition of environmental, labor and public safety groups are calling on US lawmakers to reject the Trump administration’s move to eliminate a federal unit that investigates chemical accidents, citing risks to more than 170 million people who lives in zones at risk for such events."
"A draft executive order viewed by ProPublica directs the secretary of transportation to “use all available authorities to eliminate or expedite” environmental reviews for launch licenses — a change Elon Musk’s SpaceX and others have long sought."
"As the likes of Ford and Mercedes retreat, Great Wall Motor and BYD are building factories and bringing affordable EVs and hybrids to one of the world’s biggest markets."
"If you were a miner in California during the Gold Rush, you might have dined on a California red-legged frog."
"The $1.6bn Biden-era plan for a gas-powered blast furnace at a steel mill in Middletown, Ohio, is indefinitely on hold"
"The Trump administration said on Thursday that it would apply new layers of political review to wind and solar projects, potentially creating hurdles for renewable energy developments across the country."
For environmental journalists looking for data riches to help tell their stories — whether about urban heat islands, sea-surface temperatures or air pollution — NASA has the satellites whose sensors capture insights galore. The latest Reporter’s Toolbox offers an introduction to the U.S. space agency’s incredibly extensive data portal, and how to get started amid the wealth of information (caveat: before it’s gone).
"Sandwiched between the Delaware River and closely spaced homes, the Monroe Energy oil refinery in Trainer exemplifies the need for better regulation of a dangerous chemical used around the country to produce high-octane gasoline, environmental groups said." "Monroe Energy in Delaware County is among more than 40 still using hydrofluoric acid, despite safer alternatives"
