EJToday: Top Headlines

Feds Pave The Way For Big Tech To Plug Data Centers Right Into Power Plants [9]

Federal regulators will allow tech companies to effectively plug massive data centers directly into power plants, issuing a long-awaited order Thursday, as the Trump administration urges them to help the U.S. lead the world in artificial intelligence and revive domestic manufacturing.

Climate Change [10]
Consumer [11]
Economy & Business [12]
Energy & Fuel [13]
Environmental Politics [14]
Infrastructure [15]
Laws & Regulations [16]
People & Population [17]
Pollution [18]
Technology [19]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [22]
Source: AP [23], 12/22/2025
- Read more about Feds Pave The Way For Big Tech To Plug Data Centers Right Into Power Plants [9]
"Controversial Dakota Pipeline Gets a Big, Belated Government Boost" [24]

"A delayed environmental review cleared the Dakota Access Pipeline to continue operating. Separately, a North Dakota judge expressed unusual exasperation over the tangled legal battles."

Activism [25]
Climate Change [10]
Disasters [26]
Economy & Business [12]
Energy & Fuel [13]
Environmental Justice [27]
Environmental Politics [14]
Infrastructure [15]
Laws & Regulations [16]
Pollution [18]
Religion, Faith and Spirituality [28]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Canada [29]
Source: NYTimes [30], 12/22/2025
- Read more about "Controversial Dakota Pipeline Gets a Big, Belated Government Boost" [24]
"Pumped Hydro Energy Storage Is Having a Renaissance" [31]

"As the world looks to incorporate more renewables into energy grids, centuries-old systems that can balance supply and demand are being reappraised and innovated upon."

Climate Change [10]
Energy & Fuel [13]
Infrastructure [15]
Technology [19]
Water & Oceans [32]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
International [33]
Source: WIRED [34], 12/22/2025
- Read more about "Pumped Hydro Energy Storage Is Having a Renaissance" [31]
"The World’s Last Flock of Wild Whooping Cranes Gets More Living Space" [35]

"On an isolated stretch of Texas coastline, conservation groups have acquired more than 3,000 acres of nearly pristine prairie to preserve as habitat for endangered whooping cranes, one of the rarest birds in North America."

Biodiversity [36]
Environmental Politics [14]
Natural Resources [37]
Wildlife [38]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Southwest (AZ NM OK TX) [39]
Source: Inside Climate News [40], 12/22/2025
- Read more about "The World’s Last Flock of Wild Whooping Cranes Gets More Living Space" [35]
AP Photogs Capture Destruction, Heartache And Resilience Amid Climate Change [41]

"Climate change, caused mainly by the use of oil, gas and coal as energy sources, hit people hard in 2025, with suffering and heartache captured by Associated Press photographers around the globe."

Climate Change [10]
Disasters [26]
Environmental Health [42]
People & Population [17]
Water & Oceans [32]
Public [20]
International [33]
Source: AP [43], 12/22/2025
- Read more about AP Photogs Capture Destruction, Heartache And Resilience Amid Climate Change [41]
"SPEED Act Passes in House Despite Changes That Threaten Clean Power" [44]

"The Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development Act, or SPEED Act, overcame opposition from environmentalists and many Democrats who oppose the bill’s sweeping changes to a bedrock environmental law."

Climate Change [10]
Energy & Fuel [13]
Environmental Politics [14]
Environmental Studies [45]
Infrastructure [15]
Laws & Regulations [16]
Pollution [18]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Source: Inside Climate News [46], 12/19/2025
- Read more about "SPEED Act Passes in House Despite Changes That Threaten Clean Power" [44]
Senate Confirms Isaacman as NASA Administrator In Do-Over After Musk Feud [47]

"The Senate on Wednesday confirmed billionaire entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to be NASA administrator on Wednesday, placing him atop the agency after a monthslong saga where President Donald Trump revoked his nomination as part of a feud with tech billionaire Elon Musk."

Climate Change [10]
Environmental Politics [14]
People & Population [17]
Science [48]
Technology [19]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Source: AP [49], 12/19/2025
- Read more about Senate Confirms Isaacman as NASA Administrator In Do-Over After Musk Feud [47]
"Trump Officials Dive Into The West’s Biggest Water War" [50]

"The Trump administration is turning up the pressure on Western states to cut a deal to shrink their water use as the drought-stricken Colorado River careens towards crisis."

Agriculture [51]
Climate Change [10]
Disasters [26]
Economy & Business [12]
Environmental Politics [14]
Laws & Regulations [16]
Water & Oceans [32]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Source: Politico [52], 12/19/2025
- Read more about "Trump Officials Dive Into The West’s Biggest Water War" [50]
"Trump Admin Orders Washington State Coal Plant To Stay Running" [53]

"The Trump administration has ordered another aging, costly coal plant to keep operating past its long-planned retirement date — this time in Centralia, Washington."

Air [54]
Climate Change [10]
Infrastructure [15]
Laws & Regulations [16]
Pollution [18]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Northwest (OR WA) [55]
Source: Canary Media [56], 12/19/2025
- Read more about "Trump Admin Orders Washington State Coal Plant To Stay Running" [53]
"Is RFK Jr. Backing Big Food’s Drive To Overturn Tough New State Laws?" [57]

"Secretary Kennedy echoes industry talking points on food safety laws"

Agriculture [51]
Consumer [11]
Economy & Business [12]
Environmental Health [42]
Environmental Politics [14]
Food [58]
Laws & Regulations [16]
People & Population [17]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Source: U.S. Right to Know [59], 12/19/2025
- Read more about "Is RFK Jr. Backing Big Food’s Drive To Overturn Tough New State Laws?" [57]
"PJM’s Capacity Costs Hit Record As Grid Falls Short On Supply" [60]

"Data center construction and clogged-up generation queues are driving costs — and political backlash — in the country’s biggest power market."

Energy & Fuel [13]
Environmental Politics [14]
Infrastructure [15]
Laws & Regulations [16]
Technology [19]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Mid-Atlantic (DC DE MD PA VA WV) [61]
Northeast (CT MA ME NH NJ NY RI VT) [62]
Source: Canary Media [63], 12/19/2025
- Read more about "PJM’s Capacity Costs Hit Record As Grid Falls Short On Supply" [60]
"Gas Exports Are Driving Up Americans’ Energy Bills, Report Says" [64]

"Higher exports of liquefied natural gas in 2025 played a significant role in rising utility bills, an analysis of federal data found."

Economy & Business [12]
Energy & Fuel [13]
Infrastructure [15]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Source: Inside Climate News [65], 12/19/2025
- Read more about "Gas Exports Are Driving Up Americans’ Energy Bills, Report Says" [64]
Federal Judge Blocks Whitmer From Shutting Down Pipeline Under Great Lakes [66]

"A federal judge on Wednesday blocked Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer ‘s attempt to shut down an aging oil pipeline running beneath a channel linking two of the Great Lakes, finding that only the federal government can regulate interstate pipeline safety."

Disasters [26]
Energy & Fuel [13]
Infrastructure [15]
Laws & Regulations [16]
Pollution [18]
Water & Oceans [32]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Great Lakes (IL IN MI MN OH WI) [67]
Canada [29]
Source: AP [68], 12/19/2025
- Read more about Federal Judge Blocks Whitmer From Shutting Down Pipeline Under Great Lakes [66]
DOE Watchdog Will Audit Trump Cuts Of Nearly $8B In Clean Energy Grants [69]

"An internal watchdog in the U.S. Department of Energy will investigate the Trump administration’s termination of $7.6 billion in grants for hundreds of clean energy projects across 16 states that voted for former Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election."

Climate Change [10]
Economy & Business [12]
Energy & Fuel [13]
Environmental Politics [14]
Laws & Regulations [16]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
Source: AP [70], 12/19/2025
- Read more about DOE Watchdog Will Audit Trump Cuts Of Nearly $8B In Clean Energy Grants [69]
Mississippi Residents Say Wood-Pellet Plant Harming Their Town [71]

"Residents of Gloster, Mississippi, are suing plant that exports wood pellets to UK and Europe. Company says it is reducing emissions"

Environmental Health [42]
Environmental Justice [27]
Forests [72]
Laws & Regulations [16]
People & Population [17]
Pollution [18]
Public [20]
National (U.S.) [21]
SE (AL AR FL GA KY LA MS NC PR SC TN) [22]
Source: Verite News [73], 12/19/2025
- Read more about Mississippi Residents Say Wood-Pellet Plant Harming Their Town [71]

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