EJToday: Top Headlines

"‘No Water, No Life’: Iraq’s Tigris River In Danger Of Disappearing" [9]

"Iraq’s famed Tigris is heavily polluted and at risk of drying up. Unless urgent action is taken to save the river, life will be fundamentally altered for the ancient communities who live on its banks."

Agriculture [10]
Climate Change [11]
Disasters [12]
Environmental Health [13]
Environmental Studies [14]
People & Population [15]
Pollution [16]
Water & Oceans [17]
Public [18]
Middle East [19]
Source: Guardian [20], 12/17/2025
- Read more about "‘No Water, No Life’: Iraq’s Tigris River In Danger Of Disappearing" [9]
"EU Scraps 2035 Ban On New Petrol And Diesel Cars To Boost Auto Industry" [21]

"The EU on Tuesday walked back a 2035 ban on new petrol and diesel cars seen as a milestone in the fight against climate change, as the bloc pivots to bolstering its crisis-hit auto sector."

Climate Change [11]
Consumer [22]
Economy & Business [23]
Energy & Fuel [24]
Environmental Politics [25]
Laws & Regulations [26]
Pollution [16]
Transportation [27]
Public [18]
Europe [28]
Source: France 24 [29], 12/17/2025
- Read more about "EU Scraps 2035 Ban On New Petrol And Diesel Cars To Boost Auto Industry" [21]
Proposed NIH Caps On Open-Access Publishing Fees Roil Scientific Community [30]

"Sometime next year, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will announce new limits on how much funding grantees can spend on publication fees to make their articles open access, or free to read."

Journalism & Media [31]
Laws & Regulations [26]
Science [32]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [33]
Source: Science [34], 12/17/2025
- Read more about Proposed NIH Caps On Open-Access Publishing Fees Roil Scientific Community [30]
Navajo Said No To A Hydro Project. Trump DOE Doesn't Want It To Happen Again [35]

"The U.S. Energy Secretary said allowing tribes to weigh in on energy projects on their land creates "unnecessary burdens to the development of critical infrastructure.""

Energy & Fuel [24]
Environmental Justice [36]
Environmental Politics [25]
Government [37]
Infrastructure [38]
Laws & Regulations [26]
People & Population [15]
Religion, Faith and Spirituality [39]
Technology [40]
Water & Oceans [17]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [33]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [41]
Source: Grist [42], 12/17/2025
- Read more about Navajo Said No To A Hydro Project. Trump DOE Doesn't Want It To Happen Again [35]
"Where Global Emissions Stand, 10 Years After The Paris Climate Agreement" [43]

"The watershed summit in 2015 was far from perfect, but its impact so far has been significant and measurable"

Climate Change [11]
Disasters [12]
Economy & Business [23]
Energy & Fuel [24]
Environmental Politics [25]
Laws & Regulations [26]
People & Population [15]
Planning & Growth [44]
Technology [40]
Water & Oceans [17]
Public [18]
International [45]
Source: Guardian [46], 12/17/2025
- Read more about "Where Global Emissions Stand, 10 Years After The Paris Climate Agreement" [43]
"Hong Kong’s Jimmy Lai Is Convicted of National Security Charges" [47]

"The former publisher of a pro-democracy newspaper, Apple Daily, is expected to spend the rest of his life in prison."

Journalism & Media [31]
Laws & Regulations [26]
Public [18]
Asia [48]
Source: CJR [49], 12/16/2025
- Read more about "Hong Kong’s Jimmy Lai Is Convicted of National Security Charges" [47]
"Trump Goes To War With States Over AI" [50]

"The president’s order to limit states’ ability to regulate the spread of artificial intelligence is poised to set off political and legal fireworks that mirror his efforts to curb climate action."

Climate Change [11]
Economy & Business [23]
Energy & Fuel [24]
Environmental Politics [25]
Infrastructure [38]
Laws & Regulations [26]
Technology [40]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [33]
Source: E&E News [51], 12/16/2025
- Read more about "Trump Goes To War With States Over AI" [50]
"Arizona City Rejects Data Center After AI Lobbying Push" [52]

"Officials in this Phoenix suburb on Thursday rejected a proposed artificial intelligence data center despite pressure from a former U.S. senator and the tech industry — capping a fight over local control that has captured national attention."

Climate Change [11]
Energy & Fuel [24]
Environmental Politics [25]
Infrastructure [38]
Laws & Regulations [26]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [33]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [41]
Source: E&E News [53], 12/16/2025
- Read more about "Arizona City Rejects Data Center After AI Lobbying Push" [52]
"How The US Freight Rail Industry Got Dirtier Than Coal Power Plants" [54]

"U.S. railroads together produced about 485,000 tons of nitrogen oxide in 2024, compared to 452,000 tons emitted by U.S. coal-fired power plants, according to a Reuters calculation of reported annual fuel consumption multiplied by the EPA’s 2023 weighted-average emission rates."

Air [55]
Energy & Fuel [24]
Environmental Health [13]
Environmental Politics [25]
Infrastructure [38]
Laws & Regulations [26]
Pollution [16]
Transportation [27]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [33]
Source: Reuters [56], 12/16/2025
- Read more about "How The US Freight Rail Industry Got Dirtier Than Coal Power Plants" [54]
"Ford Will Take $19.5 Billion Hit as It Rolls Back E.V. Plans" [57]

"Ford Motor said the costs came from its decision to make fewer electric vehicles than it had planned and more hybrids that use both gasoline engines and batteries."

"Ford Motor said Monday that it would scale back plans to produce electric vehicles and take a $19.5 billion hit to its profit to cover the costs of a major change in strategy.
Climate Change [11]
Consumer [22]
Economy & Business [23]
Energy & Fuel [24]
Environmental Politics [25]
Pollution [16]
Transportation [27]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [33]
Source: NYTimes [58], 12/16/2025
- Read more about "Ford Will Take $19.5 Billion Hit as It Rolls Back E.V. Plans" [57]
As Wildfires Mount, So Do Efforts To Use Less Plastic in Homebuilding [59]

"As wildfires driven by climate change are spurring efforts to build homes with fire-safe materials, the dangers of the use of plastic in construction needs more recognition, experts say." "Plastic used in building construction burns hotter than traditional materials and produces toxic smoke and runoff."

Chemicals [60]
Disasters [12]
Environmental Health [13]
Infrastructure [38]
Laws & Regulations [26]
People & Population [15]
Pollution [16]
Technology [40]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [33]
Source: Thomson Reuters Fdn. [61], 12/16/2025
- Read more about As Wildfires Mount, So Do Efforts To Use Less Plastic in Homebuilding [59]
"Indiana Says It’s Retiring Two Coal Plants, But Is It Making Other Plans?" [62]

"The Trump administration’s determination to keep fossil-fueled power plants running beyond their scheduled closure dates is creating uncertainty about the fate of two Indiana coal facilities set to retire by the end of this year."

Climate Change [11]
Energy & Fuel [24]
Environmental Health [13]
Environmental Politics [25]
Infrastructure [38]
Laws & Regulations [26]
Pollution [16]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [33]
Source: Canary Media [63], 12/16/2025
- Read more about "Indiana Says It’s Retiring Two Coal Plants, But Is It Making Other Plans?" [62]
Nation Famous for Marine Conservation Is Bankrolling Its Own Destruction [64]

"Costa Rica’s fuel subsidies are funding widespread poaching and overfishing in supposedly protected waters."

Biodiversity [65]
Energy & Fuel [24]
Fish & Fisheries [66]
Laws & Regulations [26]
Public [18]
Central America & the Caribbean [67]
Source: Inside Climate News [68], 12/16/2025
- Read more about Nation Famous for Marine Conservation Is Bankrolling Its Own Destruction [64]
Wyo. Ranchers Wanting Solar Say Utilities and State Stand in Their Way [69]

"Tim Teichert and Jason Thornock want the sun to help them survive as ranchers in Cokeville, Wyoming. On an overcast May day, the two drove around the one-restaurant town, lamenting high electricity prices and restrictive Wyoming laws that they say have thrown an unnecessary burden onto their broad shoulders."

Agriculture [10]
Climate Change [11]
Energy & Fuel [24]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [33]
Mountain West (CO ID MT NV UT WY) [70]
Source: Inside Climate News [71], 12/16/2025
- Read more about Wyo. Ranchers Wanting Solar Say Utilities and State Stand in Their Way [69]
"How the Pandemic Lockdowns Changed a Songbird’s Beak" [72]

"For ecologists, the Covid-19 pandemic has presented a remarkable natural experiment in what can happen to wild animals when humans stay home."

Biodiversity [65]
Environmental Studies [14]
Wildlife [73]
Public [18]
National (U.S.) [33]
California [74]
Source: NYTimes [75], 12/16/2025
- Read more about "How the Pandemic Lockdowns Changed a Songbird’s Beak" [72]

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