EJToday: Top Headlines

Final “Grandmother” Cottonwood Toppled, Protesters Arrested in Arizona [9]

"Armed Border Patrol agents raided a protest camp in Lochiel, in southeast Arizona, making way for contractors to cut down the last standing cottonwood tree Monday morning for a double border wall, after protesters protected it for more than 70 days."

Environmental Politics [10]
Forests [11]
Laws & Regulations [12]
Public [13]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [14]
Source: Arizona Luminaria [15], 10/06/2026
- Read more about Final “Grandmother” Cottonwood Toppled, Protesters Arrested in Arizona [9]
Effort To Save Calif. Joshua Trees Scrapped As Trump DOI Blocks Funding [16]

"A slate of projects aimed at preserving the future of the iconic Joshua tree has been scrapped after the Trump administration blocked more than $25 million in funding for national parks this year."

Biodiversity [17]
Environmental Politics [10]
Forests [11]
Laws & Regulations [12]
Public [13]
National (U.S.) [18]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [19]
Source: Los Angeles Times [20], 10/06/2026
- Read more about Effort To Save Calif. Joshua Trees Scrapped As Trump DOI Blocks Funding [16]
Studying Super El Niño Could Save Lives. NOAA Is Scaling Back Research [21]

"The powerful El Niño climate pattern brewing in the Pacific Ocean is already influencing extreme weather around the planet. Federal forecasters say it could become the biggest yet, far outpacing any in recorded history and ultimately impacting millions of people."

Climate Change [22]
Environmental Health [23]
Environmental Politics [10]
Science [24]
Water & Oceans [25]
Public [13]
National (U.S.) [18]
Source: NPR [26], 10/06/2026
- Read more about Studying Super El Niño Could Save Lives. NOAA Is Scaling Back Research [21]
Drivers Will Pay The Price For Trump’s Fuel Economy Rollbacks [27]

"Americans will pay more at the pump as the president eases up expectations on automakers. It’s one of several ways the White House is raising the cost of living."

Consumer [28]
Economy & Business [29]
Energy & Fuel [30]
Laws & Regulations [12]
Transportation [31]
Public [13]
National (U.S.) [18]
Source: Grist [32], 10/06/2026
- Read more about Drivers Will Pay The Price For Trump’s Fuel Economy Rollbacks [27]
Fifty Billion Seedlings: Can Ethiopia Replant Its Ravaged Forests? [33]

"A legacy of deforestation has left Ethiopia struggling with more intense flooding and drought. The country is trying to restore its native forests through one of the world’s most ambitious and well-funded tree-planting campaigns, but experts question whether the trees will survive."

Agriculture [34]
Biodiversity [17]
Forests [11]
Public [13]
Middle East [35]
Source: Yale Environment 360 [36], 10/06/2026
- Read more about Fifty Billion Seedlings: Can Ethiopia Replant Its Ravaged Forests? [33]
A Supreme Court Battle Over Climate Change Begins [37]

"The justices are about to hear a lawsuit that could determine whether the oil industry faces billions of dollars in liability for damages caused by global warming."

Climate Change [22]
Disasters [38]
Environmental Health [23]
Environmental Politics [10]
Laws & Regulations [12]
People & Population [39]
Public [13]
National (U.S.) [18]
Mountain West (CO ID MT NV UT WY) [40]
Source: New York Times [41], 10/05/2026
- Read more about A Supreme Court Battle Over Climate Change Begins [37]
U.S.-Russia Talks on Ukraine Now Involve an Oil Deal Tied to Trump Allies [42]

"The Trump administration’s talks with Russia about ending the war in Ukraine have expanded to include a multibillion-dollar oil deal that would benefit Middle Eastern business executives with ties to the two main U.S. negotiators, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner."

Conflict/Corruption [43]
Economy & Business [29]
Energy & Fuel [30]
Military [44]
Public [13]
National (U.S.) [18]
Europe [45]
Source: New York Times [46], 10/05/2026
- Read more about U.S.-Russia Talks on Ukraine Now Involve an Oil Deal Tied to Trump Allies [42]
Judge Bars Building Of Border Barrier In Big Bend National Park [47]

"A federal judge on Friday barred the Trump administration from building a US-Mexico border barrier through Big Bend National Park in Texas while courts consider an environmental lawsuit challenging the project."

Environmental Politics [10]
Infrastructure [48]
Laws & Regulations [12]
Natural Resources [49]
People & Population [39]
Public [13]
National (U.S.) [18]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [14]
Source: Reuters [50], 10/05/2026
- Read more about Judge Bars Building Of Border Barrier In Big Bend National Park [47]
Calif. Law Aims to Stop ‘Predatory’ Developers Moving In After Wildfires [51]

"Sylvie Andrews walks among the brilliant white poppies, purple California grapes and olive-green thorns surrounding her yard’s blackened pizza oven—one of the only things that survived last year’s devastating Eaton Fire. But her eyes scan the block beyond, ever-aware of changes to her neighborhood."

Climate Change [22]
Disasters [38]
Environmental Justice [52]
Laws & Regulations [12]
Planning & Growth [53]
Public [13]
National (U.S.) [18]
Source: Inside Climate News [54], 10/05/2026
- Read more about Calif. Law Aims to Stop ‘Predatory’ Developers Moving In After Wildfires [51]
Petition Calls For US Actions To Lower Pesticide Residues In Food [55]

"The US should review policies that allow major food crops to be sprayed directly with herbicides shortly before harvest, and should tighten related policies that allow for high levels of residues of those pesticides in finished food products, according to a petition filed Thursday with the government regulators."

Agriculture [34]
Chemicals [56]
Consumer [28]
Environmental Health [23]
Food [57]
Laws & Regulations [12]
People & Population [39]
Pollution [58]
Public [13]
National (U.S.) [18]
Source: The New Lede [59], 10/05/2026
- Read more about Petition Calls For US Actions To Lower Pesticide Residues In Food [55]
Products From Recycled Black Plastics Expose People To Dangerous Chemicals [60]

"Recycled black plastics leach hazardous chemicals that disrupt metabolism and hormone genes, raising hidden safety concerns for everyday consumer products."

Chemicals [56]
Consumer [28]
Energy & Fuel [30]
Environmental Health [23]
Environmental Politics [10]
Laws & Regulations [12]
People & Population [39]
Pollution [58]
Public [13]
National (U.S.) [18]
Source: Earth.com [61], 10/05/2026
- Read more about Products From Recycled Black Plastics Expose People To Dangerous Chemicals [60]
New Bill In Congress Seeks To Investigate Toxic Dump Off California Coast [62]

"Two members of Congress are ramping up efforts to investigate the consequences of DDT pollution off the Southern California coast — an issue that has horrified scientists and policymakers since they learned that as many as half a million barrels of toxic waste had been dumped into the ocean after World War II."

Chemicals [56]
Consumer [28]
Environmental Health [23]
Laws & Regulations [12]
Pollution [58]
Water & Oceans [25]
Public [13]
National (U.S.) [18]
California [63]
Source: Los Angeles Times [64], 10/05/2026
- Read more about New Bill In Congress Seeks To Investigate Toxic Dump Off California Coast [62]
Amazon Rainforest Policies At Stake In Brazilian Presidential Election [65]

"Brazil’s October presidential election could reshape the future of the Amazon, with the winner leading the country that contains about 60% of the world’s largest rainforest — an ecosystem vital to the global climate."

Climate Change [22]
Environmental Justice [52]
Environmental Politics [10]
Forests [11]
Public [13]
South America [66]
Source: AP [67], 10/05/2026
- Read more about Amazon Rainforest Policies At Stake In Brazilian Presidential Election [65]
SEC Move Would Hinder Shareholders Pushing Companies on Climate Action [68]

"The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission wants to scrap a rule that allows shareholders to formally petition companies, one of the ways that shareholder advocacy groups have pressed for more action on climate and sustainability."

Activism [69]
Climate Change [22]
Economy & Business [29]
Environmental Politics [10]
Laws & Regulations [12]
Public [13]
National (U.S.) [18]
Source: Inside Climate News [70], 10/05/2026
- Read more about SEC Move Would Hinder Shareholders Pushing Companies on Climate Action [68]
In a Warming Arctic, Inuit Bear Guards Protect Communities [71]

"Traditional knowledge and specialized training are helping people adapt to a changing landscape as polar bears appear in new places and at different times."

Biodiversity [17]
People & Population [39]
Wildlife [72]
Public [13]
Alaska and Hawaii [73]
Antarctica & Arctic [74]
Source: IndigiNews [75], 10/05/2026
- Read more about In a Warming Arctic, Inuit Bear Guards Protect Communities [71]

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