EJToday: Top Headlines

Published on SEJ (https://www.sej.org)

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 [1]. Sign up below to receive in your inbox. For queries, email EJToday@SEJ.org [2]. For more info, read an EJToday FAQ [3]. Plus, follow EJToday on social media at @EJTodayNews [4], 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 [5].

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"Feds Greenlight $2B Renewable Energy Project On Yakama Nation Sacred Site" [9]

"Federal energy regulators last Thursday greenlit a roughly $2 billion renewable energy megaproject on a Yakama Nation sacred site overlooking the Columbia River in Klickitat County."

Activism [10]
Climate Change [11]
Energy & Fuel [12]
Environmental Justice [13]
Environmental Politics [14]
Laws & Regulations [15]
People & Population [16]
Religion, Faith and Spirituality [17]
Technology [18]
Water & Oceans [19]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Northwest (OR WA) [22]
Source: Washington State Standard [23], 02/03/2026
- Read more about "Feds Greenlight $2B Renewable Energy Project On Yakama Nation Sacred Site" [9]
Experts Call Omaha Coal Plant Clean Bill Of Health Misleading [24]

"On paper, the public power district serving much of eastern Nebraska has been trying to quit coal at its North Omaha plant since 2014. That June, its board voted to retire three of the plant’s five coal units in 2016 and convert the final two to natural gas in 2023."

Air [25]
Climate Change [11]
Energy & Fuel [12]
Environmental Health [26]
Environmental Politics [14]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Pollution [27]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Great Plains (IA KS ND NE MO SD) [28]
Source: Flatwater Free Press [29], 02/03/2026
- Read more about Experts Call Omaha Coal Plant Clean Bill Of Health Misleading [24]
"Trump’s Exemption For EtO Polluters Faces Its Latest Test In Court" [30]

"The president exempted about 40 medical sterilization companies from Biden-era emissions standards. A new lawsuit challenges his authority."

Chemicals [31]
Environmental Health [26]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Pollution [27]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Source: Grist [32], 02/03/2026
- Read more about "Trump’s Exemption For EtO Polluters Faces Its Latest Test In Court" [30]
"Forever Stained" [33]

"How a SC riverkeeper’s detective work reveals a deeper tale about the carpet industry's PFAS legacy"

Chemicals [31]
Consumer [34]
Economy & Business [35]
Environmental Health [26]
Environmental Politics [14]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Pollution [27]
Waste [36]
Water & Oceans [19]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [37]
Source: Charleston Post and Courier [38], 02/03/2026
- Read more about "Forever Stained" [33]
"The Flimsy Numbers Behind The GOP Push To Sell Off Federal Properties" [39]

"House Republicans say they want to offload "underutilized" federal buildings. Their math isn’t mathing."

Economy & Business [35]
Environmental Politics [14]
Infrastructure [40]
Laws & Regulations [15]
People & Population [16]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Source: Public Domain [41], 02/03/2026
- Read more about "The Flimsy Numbers Behind The GOP Push To Sell Off Federal Properties" [39]
"Bomb Cyclone Brings Freezing Temperatures And Snow To Millions In US" [42]

"A bomb cyclone produced freezing temperatures across a large portion of the US from the Gulf coast to New England, bringing heavy snow to North Carolina where two were killed in storm-related conditions, and setting records in Florida, where officials warned of ice and falling iguanas."

Climate Change [11]
Disasters [43]
People & Population [16]
Water & Oceans [19]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [37]
Source: Guardian [44], 02/02/2026
- Read more about "Bomb Cyclone Brings Freezing Temperatures And Snow To Millions In US" [42]
"The Future Of NCAR Remains Highly Uncertain" [45]

"Members of the American Meteorological Society were briefed Wednesday about ongoing developments on the future of the National Center for Atmospheric Research, which the White House has said it will break up."

Climate Change [11]
Environmental Health [26]
Environmental Politics [14]
Environmental Studies [46]
Science [47]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Source: Yale Climate Connections [48], 02/02/2026
- Read more about "The Future Of NCAR Remains Highly Uncertain" [45]
Trump DOE's Climate Skepticism Effort Violated Federal Law, Judge Rules [49]

"A federal judge ruled the U.S. Department of Energy violated federal law by hand picking scientists to produce a report downplaying global warming. The group met at least 18 times in secret and failed to comply with the Federal Advisory Committee Act’s requirements for transparency and public meetings."

Climate Change [11]
Energy & Fuel [12]
Environmental Health [26]
Environmental Politics [14]
Journalism & Media [50]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Science [47]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Source: LA Times [51], 02/02/2026
- Read more about Trump DOE's Climate Skepticism Effort Violated Federal Law, Judge Rules [49]
Texas Petrochemical Plants Emitted 1.6 Million Pounds Of Pollutants In Freeze [52]

"As freezing temperatures swept over West Texas last week, leaky pipeline systems in the Permian Basin of West Texas began to suck in air, spoiling their products, risking an explosion and leading operators to release or burn off vast volumes of gas."

Chemicals [31]
Climate Change [11]
Environmental Health [26]
Environmental Politics [14]
Laws & Regulations [15]
People & Population [16]
Pollution [27]
Public [20]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [53]
Source: Inside Climate News [54], 02/02/2026
- Read more about Texas Petrochemical Plants Emitted 1.6 Million Pounds Of Pollutants In Freeze [52]
Trump Offshore Drilling Plan Could Trigger Thousands of Oil Spills: Study [55]

"A sweeping proposal by the Trump administration to expand offshore oil and gas drilling could result in more than 4,000 oil spills in U.S. waters, according to a new analysis by the Center for Biological Diversity."

Energy & Fuel [12]
Environmental Politics [14]
Fish & Fisheries [56]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Pollution [27]
Water & Oceans [19]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Source: Inside Climate News [57], 02/02/2026
- Read more about Trump Offshore Drilling Plan Could Trigger Thousands of Oil Spills: Study [55]
What South Carolina’s Soaring Measles Outbreak Means For Rest Of US [58]

"South Carolina is battling the country’s largest measles outbreak since the disease was eliminated from the United States more than a quarter-century ago, with more than 840 cases overwhelmingly in unvaccinated children and adults."

Disasters [43]
Environmental Health [26]
Environmental Politics [14]
Health [59]
Laws & Regulations [15]
People & Population [16]
Science [47]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [37]
Source: Washington Post [60], 02/02/2026
- Read more about What South Carolina’s Soaring Measles Outbreak Means For Rest Of US [58]
Enviros File Suit Over Public Records on Endangered Species Act Rollbacks [61]

"The Center for Biological Diversity filed a lawsuit Tuesday over public records related to the Trump administration's efforts to weaken the Endangered Species Act."

Biodiversity [62]
Environmental Politics [14]
Government [63]
Journalism & Media [50]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Science [47]
Wildlife [64]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Source: National Parks Traveler [65], 02/02/2026
- Read more about Enviros File Suit Over Public Records on Endangered Species Act Rollbacks [61]
Biomass Industry Promised Southern Towns Prosperity. They Are Still Dying [66]

"States gave Drax millions in tax breaks in the hopes of boosting jobs."

Agriculture [67]
Climate Change [11]
Energy & Fuel [12]
Environmental Health [26]
Environmental Justice [13]
Environmental Politics [14]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Pollution [27]
Technology [18]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [37]
Source: Verite News [68], 02/02/2026
- Read more about Biomass Industry Promised Southern Towns Prosperity. They Are Still Dying [66]
Trump’s EPA Rollbacks Could Harm Air And Water — And Worsen Global Heating [69]

"In his first year back in office, Donald Trump has fundamentally reshaped the Environmental Protection Agency, initiating nearly 70 actions to undo rules protecting ecosystems and the climate."

Air [25]
Chemicals [31]
Climate Change [11]
Environmental Health [26]
Environmental Justice [13]
Environmental Politics [14]
Laws & Regulations [15]
Pollution [27]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Source: Guardian [70], 02/02/2026
- Read more about Trump’s EPA Rollbacks Could Harm Air And Water — And Worsen Global Heating [69]
"Six Books To Help You Explore The Role Of Storytelling In The Climate Fight" [71]

"This special selection includes books on storytelling, science, and climate change."

Climate Change [11]
Journalism & Media [50]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
International [72]
Source: Yale Climate Connections [73], 02/02/2026
- Read more about "Six Books To Help You Explore The Role Of Storytelling In The Climate Fight" [71]

Pages

Source URL:https://www.sej.org/headlines/list/%2A/221?page=1

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[43] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/disaster [44] https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/01/bomb-cyclone-snow-cold-weather-storm-us [45] https://www.sej.org/headlines/future-ncar-remains-highly-uncertain [46] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/environmentalists [47] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/science [48] https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2026/01/the-future-of-ncar-remains-highly-uncertain/ [49] https://www.sej.org/headlines/trump-does-climate-skepticism-effort-violated-federal-law-judge-rules [50] https://www.sej.org/category/topics-beat/journalism/media [51] https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2026-01-30/trump-administrations-climate-skepticism-effort-violated-federal-law-judge-rules [52] https://www.sej.org/headlines/texas-petrochemical-plants-emitted-16-million-pounds-pollutants-freeze [53] https://www.sej.org/category/region/national/southwest [54] 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