EJToday is a daily weekday digest of top environment/energy news and information of interest to environmental journalists, independently curated by Editor Joseph A. Davis. Sign up below to receive in your inbox. For queries, email EJToday@SEJ.org. For more info, read an EJToday FAQ. Plus, follow EJToday on social media at @EJTodayNews, and flag stories of note by including the @EJTodayNews handle on your posts. And tell us how to make EJToday even better by taking this brief survey.
Want to join the EJToday team? Volunteer time commitments can vary from just an hour a month up to a daily contribution, and would involve helping to curate content of interest. To learn more, reach out to the director of publications, Adam Glenn, at sejournaleditor@sej.org.
Note: Members have additional options to choose from (you'll need your log-in info).
"The data, which appeared fleetingly online on Wednesday, confirmed transmission in two households. Scientists called on the agency to release the full report."
"Aid projects were designed to help Central Americans withstand extreme weather at home. Their end could undercut Trump’s goal of reducing migration."
"Microplastics contamination is widespread in seafood sampled in a recent study, adding to growing evidence of the dangerous substances’ ubiquity in the nation’s food system, and a growing threat to human health." "The peer-reviewed study detected microplastics in 180 of 182 samples comprising five types of fish and pink shrimp".
"In a setback for the Trump administration, the Supreme Court has rejected requests to freeze proceedings in a set of pending cases, including one involving California’s long-standing authority to set strict tailpipe emissions for vehicles."
"The House Natural Resources ranking member is worried Elon Musk could stand to benefit if parts of NOAA were privatized."
"President Trump says increasing liquefied natural gas exports will lower gas prices. He’s got it all backward."
"The California Department of Public Health has unveiled an online dashboard that tracks cases of the lung disease silicosis among fabricators of artificial-stone countertops in the state."
"A new and starkly different vision for the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been outlined by the Trump administration – one that involves mass staff cuts, an influx of industry lobbyists and, unusually, the promotion of artificial intelligence as a key agency priority."
"The EPA on Thursday put 168 employees within its environmental justice office on administrative leave as the Trump administration executes presidential actions to roll back diversity initiatives."
"About 780 coal units, individual generators with a boiler and a turbine capable of producing electricity, have retired since 2000. And more than half of the remaining units are also slated for retirement, according to new data from the Global Energy Monitor, an organization that collects international energy data."
"The Trump administration has directed federal agency staff to remove climate references and scientific data from many web pages. Researchers are rushing to archive it."
"One bill that would have required oil companies to help pay for damages from climate-driven disasters failed and another that would levy heavy fines on refineries that release toxic air contaminants was watered down."
"The Trump administration on Thursday told states it was blocking money for electric vehicle chargers, including $71 million for Washington, one of the latest steps by the White House to halt Biden-era funding. The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program, known as NEVI, was set to dole out a total of $5 billion to states to build charging networks along highways. The Federal Highway Administration previously approved states’ plans for using the money."
"As the Trump administration moves to shutter international humanitarian aid efforts, a host of environmental and climate programs have also been impacted."
"Staff members at a division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have been told this week to stop all contact with foreign nationals, including on international treaties and seafood catch limits, stoking confusion and fear among government scientists as the Trump administration begins to shape its vision for their work."
