Our Neighborhood Earth - Environmental Impact

Our Neighborhood

Earth

Keeping It Green

(There's No Planet B)

Atmospheric CO2 Levels

(Monthly Averages)

Mar. 24, 2026: 432.2 ppm
10 years ago: 396 ppm
Pre-industrial base: 280
Safe level: 350 ppm

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

Page Updated:
May 19, 2026

US Emissions by Sector Chart

Where is all that CO2 coming from? This graph breaks it down by economic sector.
Greenest U.S. Cities
Safe Water in Pictures
U.S. WEA Grassroots Accelerator
Safer Habitats

Environmental Impact News - Within the Past Month (Latest Dates First)
• She Was Finding Sources of Dangerous Water and Soil Pollution Melanie Malone Led a Research Project to Identify and Study Contamination Sites in Washington State. Then... May 19, 2026 -Melanie Malone: I’m an environmental scientist, and my specialty is contamination in soil and water. People are often given general advice, such as, “Don’t go into the river,” or “The air quality is bad.” But they don’t often have a lot of information on what the pollutants are, where they are coming from or how they can protect themselves. Near the end of 2022, I received a $1.2 million grant from the Environmental Protection Agency to study ways in which harm to people from pollution was being overlooked along the Lower Duwamish River in Seattle. • E.P.A. Clears a Weedkiller, Saying It Won’t Push Species to Extinction Paving the Way For Continued Use of Atrazine, a Widely Used Herbicide That Has Been Linked to Birth defects and Cancer in Humans May 19, 2026 -The Trump administration has determined that atrazine, a weedkiller used widely on corn and other crops, does not pose an extinction risk to threatened or endangered wildlife, effectively justifying its continued use, according to a federal review made public this week. The findings were the latest turn in a yearslong policy battle over a herbicide that has become a pillar of food production in America, but has been linked to hormonal disruptions in frogs and contamination of waterways across the country, along with cancer and other diseases in humans. • WHO Declares Ebola Outbreak In Congo A Global Health Emergency Ebola is Transmitted Through Blood and Other Bodily Fluid as Well as Contaminated Surfaces {Society of ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISTS} May 18, 2026 -"The World Health Organization declared a new Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda to be a "public health emergency of international concern" on Sunday. However WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stressed in a statement it "does not meet the criteria of pandemic emergency" and advised countries against closing their borders. The outbreak was first reported in the DRC's eastern Ituri province on Friday and there are already hundreds of suspected cases, including one that crossed the border into Uganda. The latest strain of the virus has no vaccine either, according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, or Africa CDC. • Earthquake Hits Southwest China; Thousands Evacuate, Buildings Collapse Rescue Workers Walk Past a Damaged Building Following the Earthquake at Taiyang Village in Liuzhou May 17, 2026 -A magnitude 5.2 earthquake in China's southwest region of Guangxi early on Monday killed two and forced more than 7,000 in the city of Liuzhou to evacuate as search and rescue operations continue and authorities warn of transport disruptions. There were two confirmed deaths with one still missing, and four people were sent to the hospital, although none of them had life-threatening injuries, According to CCTV and state news agencyXinhuav. • Evacuations Lifted For Colorado Town of Campo After Wildfire Spreads From Oklahoma Mandatory Evacuations Were Lifted Sunday For a Town Along Colorado's Southern Border After a Fast-Moving Wildfire Crossed Over the State Line {CBS NEWS} May 17, 2026 -Baca County Emergency Management issued an evacuation order for the Town of Campo and Rd 24 to Highway 287 south of Road J to the state line on Sunday before it was lifted. On Sunday night, Baca County authorities said the evacuations had been lifted for just the town of Campo, but not for rural residents near the town. "Check on neighbors. Follow Baca County Emergency Management Facebook for information. Call 911 only for life-threat emergencies," BCEM advised. • Platner’s Energy Plan Prioritizes Lowering Costs and Taking on Big Oil and More Senate Candidate Graham Platner’s Key Energy Goal is to Reduce Costs For Mainers May 17, 2026 -Graham Platner, the presumptive Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate from Maine, is known for a few things: his “more Bernie than Bernie” message of wresting back control from the rich and powerful; his biography as a Marine Corps veteran and oyster farmer with limited political experience; and his history of controversial and offensive online commentary and tattoos. Climate champion? Not so much. But in recent weeks, Platner, who has talked about finding peace from some of his post-combat demons and political disillusionment while working on the clear blue waters of the Gulf of Maine, has started to roll out a message of protecting both the planet and pocketbooks, including through an energy plan released last week. • High Fuel Costs Test Washington and Oregon's Fishing Industry Since the War in Iran Began in Late February, Another Factor is Compounding That Risk. Diesel Costs Have Surged, Cutting Thousands of Dollars From Already Thin Margins {KURW} May 15, 2026 -On a sunny morning in Garibaldi, Oregon, Jesse Coon offloads his catch. Men in waterproof fishing bibs pack salmon into ice and hose out the boat, named Steel Fin. Standing next to stacked coolers of freshly caught fish, Coon pulls out one of the Chinook salmon his crew just caught and explains how it senses bait in the water. “If you look at it really close, there's actually pores — holes right there — and that's their nervous system. And they can sense electricity that's put off by bait fish, and every living creature," he said. • Nooksack River Flood Recovery is Complicated Where Does the Water Go? May 16, 2026 -As they race to protect themselves against the next catastrophic flood, communities along the Nooksack River are caught in a pressure cooker. Up the river that weaves through forests and farmlands from the foot of Mount Baker to Bellingham Bay in Puget Sound, Bruce Bosch has told many he fears he could be “the last mayor of Sumas,” as the border town regroups months after its second catastrophic flood in less than five years. Smaller cities like Sumas and its neighbor Everson want to increase the river’s capacity. • California’s Growing Mushroom Poisoning Outbreak is the Biggest-Ever in U.S. Of the 47 Known Cases, Four People Have Died {NBC NEWS} May 15, 2026 -California’s monthslong spate of mushroom poisonings, in which four people have died and 43 others hospitalized, has become the largest known outbreak of its kind in U.S. history, experts say. Three cases were reported earlier this week, long after the typical growing season for the mushrooms behind the illnesses, leaving public health officials and mycologists puzzled about why the poisonings have been so widespread and what is causing the trend. • US Government Planning Dramatic Colorado River Water Cuts Due to Drought, Overuse Federal Plan Could Cut Arizona, California, Nevada Water Use By Up to 40% May 15, 2026 -The U.S. government has proposed a new water-sharing plan for the drought-stricken Colorado River that could cut up to 40% of current supplies to Arizona, California and Nevada, according to a senior Arizona official. With a 20-year-old plan expiring this year, and talks between seven states that share the river at an impasse, the federal government late last week intervened with a strategy to deal with severe water shortages, according to Tom Buschatzke, director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources. • Can Some Very Tiny Particles Cool the Planet? One Tech Company Says Yes May 14, 2026 -A company at the forefront of solar geoengineering — the notion that blocking radiation from the sun could cool a warming planet — has disclosed details of the materials it wants to sprinkle in the atmosphere. Stardust Solutions, led by former members of Israel’s nuclear energy program, is publishing research on Thursday that reveals the chemical properties of its particles, how they would affect the atmosphere and how high-flying aircraft would disperse the material. • The Toxic Aftermath of the L.A.-Area Fires Altadena Residents Have Found Hazardous Substances Such as Lead and Asbestos On Their Properties... {NBC NEWS} May 14, 2026 - A mother in Altadena started her son on chelation therapy to remove lead from his blood. A geochemist will not enter his home without a respirator and a full-body suit. A cinematographer spent thousands to get the lot where his home once stood tested for heavy metals and remediated — work the government cleanup program did not do. Sixteen months after the Eaton Fire, these are the extreme measures Altadena residents are taking to deal with a host of toxic compounds, including arsenic and asbestos, plaguing their families and properties. The contamination is a result of the unprecedented nature of this urban firestorm, in which thousands of houses and cars became the blaze’s fuel, releasing heavy metals into the smoke. • How 13,000 Acres of South African Wilderness Got a Second Chance at Life Nature Wins Again {HEALTHY HAPPY NEWS} May 13, 2026 -In a heartwarming victory for Mother Nature, conservationists in South Africa have successfully reclaimed 13,000 acres of vital native habitat from the grip of invasive species. The restoration effort, spanning from 2017 to 2025, proves that when dedicated people come together, they can heal our planet one acre at a time. Teams working under the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) tackled the challenge head-on, removing invasive trees and fish that threatened to choke out South Africa’s unique native ecosystems. These alien species, while sometimes introduced with good intentions decades ago, had grown out of control and were crowding out the plants and animals that naturally belong in these precious landscapes. • How 13,000 Acres of South African Wilderness Got a Second Chance at Life Nature Wins Again {HEAlthy HAPY NEWS} May 13, 2026 -In a heartwarming victory for Mother Nature, conservationists in South Africa have successfully reclaimed 13,000 acres of vital native habitat from the grip of invasive species. The restoration effort, spanning from 2017 to 2025, proves that when dedicated people come together, they can heal our planet one acre at a time. Conservationists removed invasive species from 13,000 acres of precious South African habitat over 8 years Native plants and animals are making a beautiful comeback in restored ecosystems International cooperation shows what’s possible when communities unite for nature. • Plants May Have Survived Earth’s Massive Extinctions by Doubling Their Genome This May Be an Emergency Strategy to Survive Extinctions {ZME SCIENCE} May 12, 2026 -When the world goes bad, some plants do something astonishing. They can’t run or hide, nor can they do much about changing their ecosystem. Instead, they copy themselves. We’re not just talking about a gene here or there; we’re talking about whole-genome duplication. A sweeping new analysis of 470 flowering plant genomes suggests that whole-genome duplication can work as an evolutionary gamble. Most of the time, it fizzles out. But during global crises, when life on Earth really is in trouble, these plants seem to have had a survival edge. • Scientists Create ‘Living Plastic’ That Can Self-Destruct On Command Living Plastics Could Turn Disposal From an Afterthought Into a Built-In Feature {ZME SCIENCE} May 12, 2026 -Plastic is useful because it is extremely durable. That is also the problem. The same polymer chains that give plastic its strength can linger for years, decades, or even centuries, breaking into smaller fragments rather than degrading completely into the natural environment. Now, researchers have built a plastic with a strange escape hatch: dormant microbes embedded inside it. When activated, the microbes wake up and help digest the polymer material from within. In a new study, researchers at the Shenzhen Institute of Synthetic Biology in China engineered two strains of acillus subtilis to work together inside a plastic film. • A New Rift Might Be Opening in Africa, and Helium Is Leaking From Below Helium Hints at a Young Rift Under Zambia {ZME SCIENCE} May 12, 2026 -For millions of years, eastern Africa has been slowly tearing itself apart. The process (called rifting) has left behind deep valleys, volcanoes and lakes that trace one of the planet’s great geological scars. Now, scientists say another part of Africa might also be splitting apart farther south. A new study of hot springs in Zambia’s Kafue Rift has found helium and carbon isotope signatures in the region. These isotopes suggest that mantle-derived fluids reaching the surface — in other words, a new rift system. • EPA Plan Would Let Work Start On Data Centers, Power Plants Before Air Permits Developers Could Start Building “Non-Emitting” Components Ahead of Air Permitting Under Administrator Lee Zeldin’s Proposal {E&E NEWS} May 11, 2026 -EPA on Monday proposed allowing data centers, power plants and other industrial facilities to begin certain construction work before obtaining required federal air permits. The proposal is the latest development in the Trump administration’s effort to juice new manufacturing and other industries, especially artificial intelligence. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said the change will cut through red tape to speed up projects. “Today’s proposal works to provide solutions to issues that have held up critical American infrastructure and advance the next great technological forefront,” he said in a statement. • 3 Simple Ways to Reduce Your Body’s Exposure to Plastic Chemicals Feel Like There’s Nothing You Can Do About Your Exposure to Plastic? A Study Suggests You Could Make a Difference in as Little as Seven Days May 11, 2026 -When it comes to plastic-related particles and chemicals, people often feel helpless and overwhelmed. Plastic contamination feels so pervasive, inevitable and frustrating, especially since the research is limited on how to reduce your exposure. That’s why a new randomized controlled trial published in Nature Medicine immediately caught my eye. Researchers at the University of Western Australia found that in just seven days, a few specific lifestyle changes — from consuming a low-plastic diet to using low-plastic personal care products — could reduce the amount of plastic-associated chemicals in urine by as much as 60 and 35 percent, respectively. • Do Houseplants Improve Air Quality? Air Purifiers Are More Effective and Easier to Maintain {The Economist} May 10, 2026 -Clean air is important for health, yet many homes are rife with pollutants. Household products such as cleaning solvents, waxes, paints and varnishes often contain volatile organic compounds like benzene and toluene, which can cause skin irritation, eye damage, neurological disorders and cancer. Furnishings and carpets, for their part, can slowly release formaldehyde, another carcinogenic molecule. The presence of these toxins is particularly problematic for children who spend much of their time indoors and have sensitive lungs. Air purifiers can help, but houseplants have in recent years been marketed as a more aesthetic alternative. Amazon, an e-commerce giant, sells plants described as being for “air purification” alongside more traditional categories such as “low-maintenance” and “pet-friendly”. But how good a job can plants actually do? • 6 Tick-Borne Diseases That Should Be on Your Radar With Tick Season In Full Force, Here Are the Most Common Diseases They Spread in the U.S. May 10, 2026 -Tick season has arrived, which means that between now and September in the United States, you’re more likely to discover a tick on your skin after spending time outdoors. In fact, emergency room visits for ticks are happening earlier, and hitting higher levels, than they have in the past. If you do spot a tick on yourself or a loved one, remove it immediately: Ticks can harbor different kinds of bacteria and viruses, and the longer it’s attached, the higher your chances of developing a tick-borne disease. • Water Restored in City of Victor, Goldfield After Multi-Day Outage As of Wednesday Morning, the City Remains Under a boil Advisory {KKTV11} May 10, 2026 - Wednesday night, the City of Victor said portions of the water system have been experiencing “higher than normal” water pressure as a result of the main water line repair. City officials said they are aware of the problem and are making adjustments in the system to stabilize the pressure. During this time, residents are asked to monitor plumbing systems and appliances, specifically water heaters, boilers, pressure regulators and any other water-connected equipment, for signs of leaks • WA Flood Victims’ Struggle Offers a Warning For Cities Behind Urban Levees Urban Levees Are Not as Good as You Think May 10, 2026 -The city assured everyone the levees remained stable, holding back the White River’s floodwaters. So Jessica Adams and Kevin Wik tucked into bed in the early morning hours of Dec. 16, their worries assuaged. The couple had just returned to their home on White River Drive after living for 2 ½ months in Seattle Children’s hospital for the premature birth of their twins, navigating a labyrinth of polished floors and fluorescent lights. While doctors had cleared their infant son, Jaxson, to come home, his sister, Maxine, remained hospitalized, connected to an assortment of tubes to help her breathe and eat.. • Why the Colorado River is Once Again Facing a Water Crisis A Stopgap Proposal From Arizona, California and Nevada is Unlikely to Break the Stalemate in Negotiations Over the Future of the River May 10, 2026 -The situation on the Colorado River has rarely been more dire than in this moment. The snowpacks that feed the river are the smallest on record. The reservoirs that hold the majority of its water are nearing historic lows. Neither a stopgap proposal aimed at stabilizing the nation’s largest reservoir, nor a late-season snowstorm are sufficient to avert a looming water crisis, experts say. But with Western states at an impasse in negotiations over the river’s future, recent short-term wins may at least temporarily hold off cuts to people’s water supply in the lower part of the basin. • Lake Powell Forecast to Receive 13% of Its Usual Flows, New Report Shows Flows Into the Reservoir Reflect the Horrible, No Good Winter in States Like Colorado — and Increasingly Worrisome Water Security in the West {THE COLORADO SUN} May 9, 2026 -Lake Powell, one of the Colorado River’s most important reservoirs, is set to receive 13% of its normal spring runoff, the lowest amount from upstream snowmelt on record, according to a federal forecast Thursday. The reservoir, located on the Utah-Arizona border, helps pace the flow of water to millions of people, multibillion-dollar industries, hydropower facilities and protected environments in the immense Colorado River Basin. It is also in dire straits: As of Thursday, it held 23% of its capacity. It’s months away from extremely low water levels that would halt hydropower generation at Glen Canyon Dam. • Smog, Lies and Pineapples: How LA Cleaned up Its Air Government Officials and Community Members Behind the Decades-Long Effort to Clear Southern California Skies May 9, 2026 -As a child growing up in Southern California, Ann Carlson remembers mountains obscured by haze and yellowish brown air that stung her eyes and made her lungs ache. It was just “the environment,” her stepfather said of the smog many years later. It would be decades before Carlson learned the complicated causes of the noxious air, what was to blame—oil companies, automakers and, yes, the environment—and the wide range of people wearing a lot of different hats who deserve the thanks for decades of improvements in Southern California air quality. • A Deadly Hantavirus Cluster Hit a Cruise Ship What You Need To Know {ZME SCIENCE} May 9, 2026 -A rare and deadly hantavirus outbreak on a cruise ship has sparked international concern, killed three people, and sent health officials in several countries scrambling to trace contacts. That’s terrifying, and hantavirus can be a terrifying infection. But this isn’t COVID all over again. This is not the type of virus that will start spreading like wildfire through our communities. But this doesn’t mean you should ignore it. • How China's Evolving Consumer Habits May Protect the Amazon Rainforest Chinese Meat Importers Pledge to Buy Deforestation-Free Brazilian Beef, Challenging Industry Assumptions May 9, 2026 -New Jersey is home to nearly 9 percent of the nation’s Superfund sites—more than any other state. They range from chemical plantsMay 9, 2026 -When Xing Yanling posted on WeChat about her visit to the Brazilian Amazon in April, she described to her friends in China the unforgettable sensation of being “enveloped by tens of thousands of shades of green.” Xing is no ordinary tourist. She leads the Tianjin Meat Industry Association, representing importers responsible for around 40% of China's beef purchases from Brazil. • NJ Leads the Nation in Superfund Sites as EPA Funding Cuts and Staff Reductions Threaten Cleanups The Trump Administration has Cut Regional Staffing Serving the State By a Third, Making Progress On Superfund Cleanups “Nearly Impossible” May 9, 2026 -New Jersey is home to nearly 9 percent of the nation’s Superfund sites—more than any other state. They range from chemical plants with toxic byproducts leached into the soil, to oil-filled lagoons, open fields rife with septic waste and rivers polluted with toxic chemicals. Many have remained contaminated for decades. In January, Trump signed a bill allocating $8.8 billion for the Environmental Protection Agency for the 2026 fiscal year. Within that budget, congressional appropriations specifically for the Superfund Program were set at $282.75 million—a 47 percent reduction from the previous year. • A Large Oil Slick Is Detected Off a Key Iranian Oil Depot The Slick Has Raised Concerns About the Condition of Iran’s Oil Infrastructure May 8, 2026 -A large oil slick is spreading in the Persian Gulf off Kharg Island, Iran’s primary crude oil export terminal, satellite images show, raising concerns about the state of Iranian oil infrastructure straining under a U.S.-imposed naval blockade. The apparent spill, located off the western coast of the island, had spread over an area of more than 20 square miles as of Thursday, according to an estimate by Orbital EOS, a global oil spill monitoring service. More than 3,000 barrels of oil may have been released, Orbital EOS said. • New York Is Working on a Blueprint for Greener Buildings The City is Investigating Just How Much Carbon It Takes to Build Its Famous Skyline... {THE WALL STREET JOURNAL} May 8, 2026 -New York City is drilling into the carbon cost of constructing its famous skyline. A city-funded study aimed at shedding light on the climate impact of its tightly packed towers is scrutinizing everything from the steel beams that form the skeletons of the skyscrapers to the concrete that binds them together and the glass panels that become their walls and windows. The effort will shape new building standards. • Report Finds FDA Allows 25 Chemicals Linked to Cancer to Be Used in US Food System “These Substances Should Be Nowhere Near Our Food,” Doa Says {Environmental Defense Fund } May 18, 2026 -Could a dangerous chemical be lurking in your morning coffee? A recent report by the experts at Environmental Defense Fund found that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has been allowing 25 chemicals linked to cancer into America’s food system. A shopping cart going down a colorful aisle at the grocery store Limiting highly processed, packaged foods in favor of fresh, unpackaged fruits and vegetables can reduce your exposure to chemicals. Most are used in packaging or processing, but research shows many can migrate into the food itself. Eight of the chemicals identified by EDF are known human carcinogens and 17 are probable human carcinogens. • Can Wildflowers Heal the Toxic Mess the L.A. Fires Left Behind? Native Plants Can Help Repair the Damage—and Sowing the Seeds Can Help Restore a Community’s Hope May 7, 2026 -One gloomy day early last summer, my husband, our two children, and I put on our N95 masks and went “home.” The bulldozers had recently been through, clearing the charred wreckage of the house in Los Angeles’s Pacific Palisades neighborhood that we’d occupied for the better part of the kids’ childhoods. On January 7, 2025, a catastrophic wind-driven fire, which started in the Santa Monica Mountains, had obliterated Pacific Palisades and parts of Malibu; on the same day, a separate blaze, the Eaton Fire, tore through Altadena, a community in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, 30 miles to the east. Between the Palisades and Eaton fires, some 16,000 structures were destroyed, rendering tens of thousands of people temporarily homeless and turning the lush places where they had lived into wastelands. • A Data Center Drained 30M Gallons of Water Unnoticed - Until Residents Complained About Low Water Pressure As Fed Protections Stall While the Trump Administration is Directing Hundreds of Millions of Dollars to Coal Projects, Miners in Appalachia Are Suffering From a Resurgence of Black Lung Disease {GREENWIRE} May 7, 2026 -The neighbors of a data center in Georgia are steaming after they discovered the facility had sucked up nearly 30 million gallons of water — without initially paying for it. Outrage started bubbling up last year when residents of an affluent subdivision named Annelise Park in Fayetteville, Georgia, noticed their water pressure was unusually low. When the county utility investigated, officials discovered two industrial-scale water hookups feeding a data center campus located 20 miles south of downtown Atlanta. One water connection had been installed without the utility’s knowledge, and the other was not linked to the company’s account and therefore wasn’t being billed. • The Cost of Mining in Indonesia Dirty Nickel {NPR} May 7, 2026 -Over the past decade, Indonesia has rapidly grown its nickel industry and now produces more than half the world’s nickel supply. The majority of Indonesia’s nickel is currently used for stainless steel production, with the rest going to battery supply, like those in electric vehicles (EVs) and data centers. Indonesia’s government has big ambitions for the country to become a giant in the green-energy transition, but its nickel mining remains far from clean and has come at a cost to the environment and the livelihood of locals. • The Fight for Cleaner Air in the South Bronx Since Congestion Pricing Was Implemented in Manhattan, a Study Found a 2 percent Increase In Pollution In Parts of the Bronx May 7, 2026 -The dirtiest air in the South Bronx is outside Mychal Johnson’s office window. Johnson, a founding board member of South Bronx Unite, a community group, knows this because one of the 19 sensors that measured air quality for a Columbia University study was placed on the fire escape outside his window a couple of years ago. The sensor has checked for fine particulate matter — toxic particles that are smaller than a human hair and are produced by fossil-fuel combustion — ever since. • Everyday Heroes Quietly Saving Millions of Acres The Heartwarming Legacy You Need to Hear About {HEALTHY HAPPY NEWS} May 7, 2026 -In a world that sometimes feels consumed by bad news, here’s a story that will restore your faith in humanity: Everyday people are quietly protecting an absolutely stunning 85 million acres of private land for conservation across the United States and Australia. This incredible movement is being driven not by governments or corporations, but by generous, forward-thinking citizens who care deeply about preserving nature for future generations. Australia has emerged as a shining example, now boasting one of the world’s largest networks of privately-conserved land. The country has amassed an incredible 24 million acres of protected habitat, and the numbers keep growing. • Trump Panel Calls for FEMA Overhaul A White House Task Force Called For Speeding Up Aid and Responding to Fewer Disasters. But Some of Its Ideas Would Require Action By Congress to Become Reality May 7, 2026 -An expert panel appointed by President Trump recommended on Thursday that the Federal Emergency Management Agency make changes that could speed the flow of federal disaster aid to communities but also shift more responsibility and costs onto states. Members of the panel described a disaster agency that they said has gotten too involved in long-term recovery efforts and become political, specifically criticizing its actions to help states during the coronavirus pandemic. Changes they recommended — which they acknowledged would require action by Congress — included significant overhaul of the way FEMA helps state and local governments pay for recovery and provides housing to disaster survivors. • Faster Slaughterhouse Line Speeds Are Increasingly a Climate Problem Reacting to Trump Administration Proposals Calling For Higher-Paced Processing, Critics Say Protections For Workers, Animals and Food Safety Are Not the Only Concerns May 7, 2026 -Jill Mauer spent more than 30 years as a government inspector, watching over meat plants as workers slaughtered and processed animals into market-ready chops and wings. Now she has a warning. In comments Mauer submitted last month to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, she wrote that recent Trump administration proposals to speed up processing in slaughterhouses will endanger workers, forcing them to work more quickly in already dangerous conditions. • Magnitude 4.0 Earthquake Strikes Southern Colorado Near Trinidad Minor Shaking Was Felt in Trinidad, Walsenburg, Near the Spanish Peaks, and in Pueblo {KOAA News} May 7, 2026 -A magnitude 4.0 earthquake struck about 10.5 miles SSW of Weston at 11:44 a.m. Thursday, according to data from the U.S. Geological Survey. The quake was at a depth of 5.4 miles. This part of the Raton Mesa has seen several earthquakes in this intensity range over recent years, and weaker quakes are fairly common. • Trump Administration Lifts Ban on ‘Cyanide Bombs’ on Public Lands The Bureau of Land Management Will Allow the Use of the Spring-Loaded Traps, Which Can Kill Coyotes and Other Animals That Prey On Livestock May 7, 2026 -The Trump administration is lifting a ban on the use of “cyanide bombs” on public lands, reversing course over the objections of environmentalists and animal-rights activists. The Bureau of Land Management will once again allow the use of the devices, which are spring-loaded traps intended to kill coyotes, foxes and other animals that prey on livestock, according to an internal April memorandum reviewed by The New York Times. • America the Undammed More Miles of the Country’s Rivers Were Reconnected Last Year Thanks to Dam Removals Than At Any Other Time in History May 7, 2026 -Even though the two dams spanning the river in Bedford, Pa., were old, troublesome and functionally useless, locals just couldn’t quit them. The dams were built for swimming and fishing, but so much silt had built up that the river was mere inches deep. They trapped debris, worsened flooding and thwarted migratory fish. They were also falling apart, drawing warnings from the Environmental Protection Agency that they would have to be replaced, repaired or removed, at local taxpayer expense. • A 1,500-Foot Tsunami Took Scientists By Surprise Now We Know Why It Happened May 6, 2026 -Early in the morning on August 10, 2025, Christine Smith awoke in a boat anchored in an inlet along southeast Alaska’s glacier-threaded coast. Smith and her husband were leading a small cruise on their 65-foot wooden boat, the David B. Inclement weather had forced them to spend the night 50 miles from their planned anchor spot in Tracy Arm, a dramatic fjord to the southeast of Juneau. As the naturalist and chef on board, Smith prepared to make breakfast and write about the rainy, foggy conditions in her daily log. Her husband, the captain, got her attention, asking, “Have you ever seen this before?” • Fin-Tech: How Sharks Could Sharpen Ocean Forecasts Sensors Strapped to 19 Sharks Off America's East Coast Cut Errors in a Leading Climate Model By as Much as 43% May 6, 2026 -The vast ocean dwarfs our efforts to understand it. Sensor-laden buoys, high-flying satellites and sophisticated computer models can only do so much to plumb the depths of the waters covering more than two-thirds of the planet. But a creature with intimate knowledge of the ocean might help humans get a more accurate picture of what lies beneath. Sharks could serve as mobile, wide-ranging sensor systems, collecting data that improves our understanding of ocean conditions in ways that might inform fisheries management and other critical activities, according to new research in the journal NPI Climate and Atmospheric Science. • Nevada’s Hidden Earthquake Risk Revealed as Las Vegas, Reno Shake A Recent Series of Earthquakes in Nevada has Served as a Jolting Reminder of the State’s Seismic Risk May 6, 2026 -It started with a scary earthquake near Reno, then more unsettling shaking near Las Vegas. Neither earthquake caused significant damage, but it has gotten Nevada talking about the large geological forces that caused them. Although California is known for its seismic activity, experts say, the danger does not stop at the state line. There are many fault systems that crisscross the California-Nevada border, and one area scientists worry about is the Lake Tahoe Basin, according to Christie Rowe, director of the Nevada Seismological Laboratory. • Human Activity Is Causing Major River Deltas to Sink up to 20 Times Faster Than Sea Level Rise And With Them, a Global Food System {ZME SCIENCE} May 6, 2026 -“I would like for me and my children to live here forever,” said Lâm Thu Sang, a resident of Vietnam’s C?n Th?, a city of more than 2 million people located near the mouth of the Mekong River on one of the world’s largest river deltas. But that may not be possible. In the past, about 160 million metric tons of sediment was annually funneled down the 4,300-kilometer (nearly 2,700-mile) Mekong River to form and nourish the vast delta where the river meets the sea. By 2024, that deposition rate had fallen by 70% per year — starving the delta of much of its source material. This massive landslide produced a tsunami that reached 481 meters on the opposite side of the fjord—higher than all but the world’s 14 tallest buildings—and registered on seismic detectors around the globe. For days after the slope collapsed, the waters of the fjord churned with a standing wave known as a seiche. • A Landslide in Alaska Set Off a Tsunami There May Be More to Come May 6, 2026 -Nearly 500 feet up a near-vertical rock face, scraped clean of soil and alder trees, Bretwood Higman, a geologist, looked down across the Tracy Arm fjord in southeast Alaska at a scene of devastation. At 5:26 a.m. on Aug. 10 last year, a mass of rock with a volume 24 times larger than that of the great pyramid of Giza crashed down the mountainside, sending a wave of water 1,578 feet up the opposite wall and setting off a tsunami that roared down the fjord. It swept over the ridge that Dr. Higman was now standing on. The whole thing took about a minute. • Texas PV Module Production to Exceed 15 GW In 2026 Texas Isn’t Just Building Clean Energy Projects—It’s Building the Factories, Too {energy central} May 6, 2026 -Texas solar PV module production is set to top 15 GW this year. It could contribute nearly half of all silicon-based modules made domestically in 2026. Why it matters: Texas has become the stress test for America’s clean energy buildout. Can the US pair massive demand, deployment, and domestic manufacturing in one place? We’re about to find out. • Microsoft Reconsiders Clean-Energy Pledge Made Harder by AI The Tech Giant May Drop One of the Industry’s Most Ambitious Climate Targets {Bloomberg} May 6, 2026 -Microsoft Corp. may shelve one of the industry’s most ambitious clean-energy targets as it tries to remove hurdles that could hold it back in the race to power data centers, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The company is weighing whether to delay — or even abandon altogether — its 2030 target of matching 100% of its hourly electricity use with renewable energy purchases, according to the people, who requested anonymity to discuss a private matter. • Storm Season Is Here and the National Weather Service Is Short-Handed The Reporters Have Been Tracking Changes in National Weather Service Staffing Levels and Forecasting Activity Across Trump’s Second Term May 6, 2026 -The National Weather Service is struggling to recover from last year’s deep staff cuts, raising doubts among some meteorologists about whether the agency is ready for severe storms or hurricane season, which starts next month. One key facility in Oklahoma that leads tornado forecasting and warnings has an unusual five open positions, its website shows. Others around the country will lose meteorologists temporarily as officials shuffle them to cities that will host World Cup soccer games in June and July, according to an internal email reviewed by The New York Times. • Her Elementary School Was Built on a Drilling Waste Site She Thought Her Daughter Was Faking Sick. Then She Found Learned the Truth {THE BARBED WIRE} May 5, 2026 -If anyone had told Joey Giminiani what was under his house, he never would’ve bought it. On April 23, Giminiani took off work at the electric utility and joined a Zoom meeting from the home he had sunk his life savings into. He watched as the residential developers on the call insisted on two things. First, that no matter what anyone said, the site was safe. And second, that no one ever had any reason to tell him what lay beneath it. • As PJM Reopens Interconnection Queue, Experts Warn Damage to Maryland’s Clean Energy Plans Is Already Done Gas and Nuclear Projects Make Up Roughly 55 Percent of the Total Capacity of the More Than 800 New Generation Projects... May 5, 2026 -olorado’s top wildfire officials said they expect a significantly increased risk of wildfire this summer—and while they’ll partner with neighboring states as much as they can, resources for fighting the blazes will be tested. A dismal snowpack this winter is likely to leave a parched landscape and tinderbox conditions from Colorado’s thickly forested ski mountains to its grassy eastern plains. Officials here are anticipating an exceptionally dire next few months in their state and beyond. • Carbon Dioxide Levels in the Atmosphere Just Hit a ‘Depressing’ New Record These Data Come From the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Mauna Loa Observatory, Which May Soon Be Shut Down Because of Proposed Government Budget Cuts May 5, 2026 -Climate scientists, who have warned of the dangers of global warming for decades, have found some countries to listen. This week, representatives of more than 50 nations gathered in Santa Marta, Colombia, at what was billed as the first global summit on phasing out fossil fuels. One of the first orders of business was to launch a panel of scientists that will advise those countries on how to shift to clean energy. “Here, you have a coalition of governments that decided they actually want to be informed by the science,” says Margaretha Wewerinke-Singh, an international climate-change law specialist at the University of Amsterdam. • The Climate Case For Cooperation Between Package Delivery Rivals A Sweeping New Study of Chinese E-Commerce Delivery Suggests That the Largest Available Climate Win Isn't a New Technology May 5, 2026 -A combination of sustainability strategies could slash emissions from delivering parcels from online orders in China by more than four-fifths, according to a new analysis. The study also finds the climate impact of these deliveries may be more than 9 times greater than previous studies have estimated. The researchers tested two strategies to reduce so-called last-mile emissions – that is, the impact of final delivery of parcels to individual addresses. The first was simply replacing gasoline-powered delivery vehicles with electric ones. If implemented nationwide, they found it could save 18.2% of last-mile emissions. The EV switch would have the largest impact in smaller cities, reducing emissions by almost 30% there compared to about 7% in the largest cities. • The Tragedy of Green Politics: How the US-China Rivalry Is Costing the Climate The Global Effort to Stabilize the Climate Has Been Caught In the Geopolitical Crossfire of a New Cold War Between Washington and Beijing {EARTH.ORG} May 5, 2026 -The oil and gas companies that donated heavily to support Donald Trump’s 2024 reelection campaign have been repaid many times over since the US and Israel started a war with Iran in late February. The skyrocketing fuel prices that are affecting ordinary people across the globe are a gift for fossil fuel giants, for whom the spike has meant an extra $30 million in profit every hour in the first month of the conflict. But the longer term results of Trump’s warmaking may dampen his donors’ mood. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has been an emphatic reminder that as well as being the key to the fight against climate change, renewable energy sources offer security against the geopolitical shockwaves that have become increasingly frequent in recent years. This reality has sent countries scrambling to invest in clean energy, doubling Chinese solar panel exports (already at nearly unprecedented levels) in March. • Soil at D.C. Golf Course Where East Wing Debris Was Dumped Contains Toxic Metals The National Park Service Said the Dump of Debris Does Not Exceed Environmental Limits, But... May 4, 2026 -Soil at a public golf course in Washington where the Trump administration dumped debris from the demolition of the White House East Wing has tested positive for lead, chromium and other toxic metals, according to data released by the National Park Service. The data, which the Park Service published on its website last week, showed relatively low levels of these contaminants in the soil at East Potomac Golf Links. • Firefighters Reach 100% Containment on Large Wildfire in Southeast Colorado Following a Long Operation to Stop the Poitrey Canyon Fire in Southeast Colorado, Firefighters Have Reached 100% Containment {CBS News} May 4, 2026 -The wildfire ignited on private property in Las Animas County, northwest of the Town of Kim, on April 24 and quickly grew to over 2,000 acres. Dry, windy conditions fueled the fire's spread, prompting Gov. Jared Polis to declare a disaster emergency. ?The Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control said that air tankers and helicopters aided its containment efforts. By late Sunday night, they had reached 100% containment of the fire. • Dirty Fuel Powered Massachusetts Electric Heat Pump Surge This Winter The Spike Was Significant Enough That ISO New England Had to Ask Federal Regulators For Emergency Air Pollution Waivers {WCVB5} May 4, 2026 -Massachusetts has spent years encouraging homeowners to switch to electric heat, arguing that heat pumps are a cleaner alternative to fossil fuels. But during this winter’s prolonged cold snap, the electricity powering many of those systems came increasingly from oil-fired power plants, highlighting the challenges facing New England’s energy transition and the limits of the regional grid. As snow fell across the region on Jan. 25, grid operators made a significant shift behind the scenes. Power plants capable of burning oil began doing so in significantly greater numbers, and for six days, oil surpassed natural gas as New England’s top source of electricity. • Light Without Electricity? Glowing Algae Could Make It Possible {PHYS.ORG} May 4, 2026 -Imagine a sea of glowing blue lights pulsing to the beat of the music. But instead of glow sticks filled with toxic chemicals, the luminescence comes from living algae, shimmering on demand. In a new study published in Science Advances, researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder and collaborators unveil a new technology that could make it possible.They've successfully turned on the "light switch" in algae and kept them lit up using simple chemical solutions. The finding opens the door for future technologies such as autonomous robots that can operate in dark environments and living sensors for water quality. • War Harms the Environment. Can a Peace Treaty Repair the Damage? Experts At a U.N. Institute See Opportunities For Ecological Improvement In the Peace Talks Between Kurdish Fighters and Turkey May 4, 2026 -On a sweltering July day, 30 Kurdistan Workers’ Party fighters stripped the rifles from their backs and tossed them into a blazing fire. The symbolic ceremony last year marked the end of a decades-long conflict with Turkey. Now, one of the big lingering questions is how to repair the grim toll on the environment. Fighting in the Kurdish region, which stretches across several countries besides Turkey, left scorched forests, water contamination and declining biodiversity. • How Microplastics Are Likely Helping to Heat Up the Planet A New Study Indicates That Minuscule Pieces of Plastic — Particularly Ones of Various Colors — Are Contributing to Heating the Atmosphere. May 4, 2026 -Microplastics lurk in nearly every corner of the globe. Scientists have found the tiny particles in rivers and lakes, in agricultural soil and in the oceans. They have infiltrated our food and water, cleaning products and cosmetics, even our own bodies. But do they also play a role in hastening the warming of the planet? It’s a question researchers inch closer toward answering in a new study published Monday that finds these minuscule pieces of plastic — particularly ones of various colors — are contributing to heating the atmosphere. • Norwegian Fish Farms Polluting Fjords With Waste Likened to ‘Raw Sewage of Millions of People’ ‘Fish Sludge’ In Coastal Waters Now Has Nutrient Levels Equivalent to Those In Untreated Effluent of Country the Size of Australia May 4, 2026 -Norwegian fish farms are filling fjords and other coastal waters with nutrient pollution equivalent to the raw sewage of tens of millions of people each year, a report has found. Norway is the largest farmed salmon producer in the world, and nutrients in fish feed are excreted directly into coastal waters. Analysis from the Sunstone Institute found that Norwegian aquaculture released 75,000 tonnes of nitrogen, 13,000 tonnes of phosphorus and 360,000 tonnes of organic carbon in 2025. • Golden Declares Stage 1 Drought Emergency Water Restrictions Take Effect {Denver7} May 1, 2026 -The City of Golden has declared a Stage 1 drought, joining several other Colorado cities — including Denver — in asking residents to restrict their water use. The restrictions took effect Friday. City officials said the move is proactive. Golden's reservoir levels are near full, and the restrictions are intended to protect that storage capacity amid an unseasonably warm winter. • Musk Promised His Data Center Would Reuse Water. That’s Now Stalled Elon Musk’s Artificial Intelligence Company Abruptly Stopped Work On a Water Reuse Facility Meant to Alleviate Strain on the Memphis-Area Water Supply {EE NEWS} May 4, 2026 -When Elon Musk brought xAI to Memphis, Tennessee, the company made a promise to locals worried that its data center would drain the local water supply: They would build a state-of-the-art water recycling plant, a national model for environmental best practices. Two years later, Musk’s first data center dedicated to his AI chatbot is up and running, but construction has come to a screeching halt at the promised water recycling plant, designed to clean municipal wastewater for use in cooling the superpowered computing center. • AI Boom Sparks Rare Warning of ‘Significant Risks’ to Grid The Grid Monitor Issues Its Warning As It Develops New Standards For Large Data Centers {EE NEWS} May 4, 2026 -North America’s grid watchdog is slated to issue its highest level of warning Monday about threats to the power system from large data centers, underscoring the challenges facing utilities and grid operators grappling with a surge in electricity demand. The move signals a new chapter where major technology companies like Amazon and Microsoft may face stricter rules on how they use power. The Level 3 alert from the North American Electric Reliability Corp., the grid’s not-for-profit security monitor, was developed after reports of data centers abruptly going offline in Virginia and Texas, raising concerns about blackouts. • What to Know About Hantavirus After 3 Died in Suspected Cruise Ship Outbreak The Deaths Occurred as the Ship Sailed Toward Cape Verde May 4, 2026 -The rodent-borne hantavirus is suspected in an outbreak aboard a cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean in which three passengers have died within three weeks. The World Health Organization said one case of hantavirus has been confirmed and that there are five suspected cases, two of them fatal. Oceanwide Expeditions, the operator of the Hondius expedition ship, said one passenger is in intensive care in Johannesburg and two crew members aboard the vessel have respiratory symptoms. • Chile Landfill Tops Global List of Methane Emitters in UN Report "It's a Megasource of Methane That May Have Effects Not Only On Chile, But at a Global Level" May 4, 2026 - One of the world's largest sources of climate-warming methane gas is a landfill protruding from hills on the outskirts of Chile's capital of Santiago, a recent study, opens new tab by the UN environment agency shows. The Lomas Los Colorados landfill tops a list of 50 human-made sites with the world's highest levels of methane emissions, according to data from satellite images published by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in April. "It is a megasource of methane that may have effects not only on Chile, but at a global level," said Juan Jose Garces, head of the civil engineering and environment department at the university of Santiago. • How the Rush to Mine the Metal of the Future Echoes America’s Colonial Past Companies Have Staked Claims For More Than 100 Lithium-Mine Projects. Tribes Are Among the Most Affected May 3, 2026 -Trina Lone Hill wasn’t surprised that mining companies had found lithium in South Dakota’s Black Hills. Gold and uranium had drawn drillers to the Lakota Sioux tribe’s hallowed ground in these western highlands years ago. Now, with this new mineral powering the global green-energy transition, the tribe’s historic preservation officer had one thought: “Here we go again.” About 1,000 miles away in southwest Nevada, Joe Kennedy, of the Timbisha Shoshone tribe, watched a sacred stream fade after a lithium-mining company began drilling in search of the mineral—all while his tribe fought to prevent a second company from boring into the aquifer beneath its reservation. • More Farming Co-Operatives Could ‘Unleash Growth’ in UK Greater Agricultural Collaboration Can Improve Food Security and Resilience to Global Crises May 3, 2026 -Agricultural co-operatives could “unleash growth” in the UK and improve national food security in the face of crises such as the Middle East conflict by “improving the resilience of UK farms”, according to a report. The policy paper produced by the Co-operative party, which backs influential Labour MPs including Steve Reed and Jonathan Reynolds, calls for “a shift in perspective, not a doubling down of the status quo”. It says co-ops, which enable farmers to pool resources, share risk and invest collectively, can help “reduce exposure to volatile input markets”, such as fertiliser, fuel and animal feed. • Kenya Death Toll From Floods, Landslides Rises to 18 People The Country is Experiencing Heavy Downpours, Which Have Also Damaged Infrastructure ?and Displaced Many May 3, 2026 -The death toll from flooding and landslides following heavy rains in Kenya has risen to 18 people, the national police service said on Sunday. Landslides were reported in Tharaka Nithi, Elgeyo-Marakwe and Kiambu counties in central and eastern Kenya following sustained heavy rainfall, Kenyan police said in a statement. • Emergency Repairs Sought For Damaged Stanwood Levee North of Seattle City and Tribal Officials Are Seeking Emergency Permission to Fix a Crumbling Levee Near the Coastal City of Stanwood, Washington, Before Disaster Strikes {KUOW} May 2, 2026 - The century-old earthen structure protects the city and 1,800 acres of nearby farmland from the waters of Skagit Bay. Waves and wind gouged the outer side of a half-mile stretch of the aging structure during a king tide—one of the year’s highest tides—in January. If the levee were to fail, floodwaters could displace 1,100 people in the Stanwood area and damage buildings worth $480 million, according to a 2022 Snohomish County study. • A Massive, Trump-Backed Power Plant May Be Too Big to Succeed Analysts See More Potential Pitfalls Than Promise May 2, 2026 -At the edge of Appalachia, on a site where crews have worked for decades on nuclear waste remediation, the Trump administration aims to build the largest power plant and data center in the country. It would be a logistical feat, and energy analysts warn that the whole plan could fall apart. But there was little hint of the challenges when U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick took the stage here in March to announce the project, with AC/DC’s “Back in Black” as his walk-on music. • Could Santa Marta Climate Talks Mark Ground Zero In Push to Ditch Fossil Fuels? Colombia Hosted Nearly 60 Countries At Pivotal Time On World Stage For Fight to Transition to a Clean Energy Future May 1, 2026 -Looking out to sea from the grey sandy beaches of Santa Marta, on Colombia’s Caribbean coast, it is never hard to spot evidence of the country’s thriving fossil fuel export trade. Oil tankers ride at anchor on the horizon and sometimes, locals say, lumps of coal wash up on the shore, blown off the collier ships that carry cargos from the nearby mines. It was here, on Wednesday evening, that the Colombian government took a bold step to shift its economy – and that of the rest of the world – away from dependence on coal, gas and oil and into a new era of clean energy. With the first ever conference on “transitioning away from fossil fuels”, the host joined nearly 60 countries determined to loosen of the grip of petrostates on the world’s future. • Blockbuster Oil Company Profits Revive Calls for Windfall Tax European Nations Imposed Temporary Taxes In the 2022 Energy Shock When Russia Invaded Ukraine, But Whether They Can Effectively Help Households is Up For Debate May 1, 2026 -For oil and gas companies, it has been a profitable war. The energy shock caused by the conflict in Iran, missile attacks on oil and gas facilities in the Persian Gulf and, most crucially, the halt on shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz have produced a spectacular bonanza as energy prices have soared. The British oil giant BP, citing an “exceptional” performance, more than doubled its profits in the first three months of this year over last. TotalEnergies, based in Paris, raised its dividends and doubled its share buybacks after announcing $5.4 billion in net profits for the first quarter. • With Fertilizer Pollution on the Rise, Iowa Will Invest $100 Million in Water Treatment Critics Say It’s “Too Little Too Late” May 1, 2026 -In a press conference at the state capitol on Friday, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced a “comprehensive legislative package” that will boost funding for utilities struggling to meet federal drinking water standards and combat high nitrate pollution from agriculture. The plan would have the state spend more than $100 million on water treatment infrastructure over the next decade, including a one-time $25 million investment to expand the Central Iowa Water Works nitrate removal facility, which serves more than 600,000 residents in the state’s largest metropolitan area. • Your Climate Impact Doesn’t End When You Die More People Are Considering ‘Greener’ Death Options May 1, 2026 -After Moira Cathleen Delaney was diagnosed with an aggressive form of intestinal cancer, her thoughts eventually turned to her eventual death and what she wanted done with her body. Delaney’s love of gardening, birds and the forest inspired her decision to be transformed into soil — literally — through a process known as natural organic reduction. When she died in October at age 57, her family sprinkled some of her remains under her favorite backyard tree and gave some remains to her closest friends and relatives in glass jars to keep or plant things with. • Two Months In, the Iran War has Changed the Global Energy System Forever The Conflict May Be the Beginning of the End of Fossil Fuel Dominance May 1, 2026 -For almost half a century, the vast majority of climate experts have agreed on a solution to global warming: stop burning fossil fuels like coal, oil, and natural gas. But despite the political efforts of governments across the world to promote replacing these fuels, fossil sources have remained a stubbornly large share of global energy — around 80 percent at last count. But the war in Iran, which the United States and Israel launched two months ago this week, may turn out to be the push that dislodges fossil fuels’ place atop the world’s energy system. The Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway near Iran through which 20 percent of the world’s oil and natural gas supplies flow, has been blocked since early March, with no relief in sight. This has created the biggest energy crisis in modern history. Twenty-five countries are now reporting critical road fuel, jet fuel, or heating oil shortages.		• As Energy, War and Climate Collide, a Conference in Colombia Charts a Path Beyond Fossil Fuels Participants Broke a Long-Standing Taboo By Openly Linking Oil and Gas Not Just to Emissions, But to War, Displacement and Economic Instability May 1, 2026 -While some major fossil fuel producers keep pushing for expanded oil and gas use, which is linked to warfare, economic shocks and ecological damage, more than 50 countries at the first Conference on Transitioning Away From Fossil Fuels began developing plans to shift toward renewable energy systems designed for stability and abundance rather than scarcity and conflict. At the end of the conference, France, where fossil fuels still power about 60 percent of the world’s seventh-largest economy, unveiled a pilot roadmap to phase out coal by 2030, oil by 2045 and gas by 2050, and to electrify sectors such as heating and transport. Colombia’s draft roadmap to largely ditch fossil fuels by 2050 emphasizes that transitioning to renewables could deliver $280 billion for the country in economic benefits. • Trump’s Border Wall Expansion Just Bulldozed an Ancient Tribal Site Construction in the Arizona Desert Damaged an Enormous Indigenous Ground Etching Resembling a Fish That is Thought to Be at Least 1,000 Years Old May 1, 2026 -President Donald Trump’s expansion of the wall along the southern border with Mexico has damaged a rare Native American archaeological site in the Arizona desert, area residents said Thursday, as the administration moves to rapidly build hundreds of miles of additional barriers in a $46.5 billion project. The aggressive expansion project — funded by the One Big Beautiful Bill — is erecting three miles of wall a week, introducing barriers in parts of Texas that did not previously have them, as well as a second wall in much of California, Arizona and New Mexico. • Could Santa Marta Climate Talks Mark Ground Zero In Push to Ditch Fossil Fuels? Colombia Hosted Nearly 60 Countries at Pivotal Time On World Stage For Fight to Transition to a Clean Energy Future May 1, 2026 -Looking out to sea from the grey sandy beaches of Santa Marta, on Colombia’s Caribbean coast, it is never hard to spot evidence of the country’s thriving fossil fuel export trade. Oil tankers ride at anchor on the horizon and sometimes, locals say, lumps of coal wash up on the shore, blown off the collier ships that carry cargos from the nearby mines. It was here, on Wednesday evening, that the Colombian government took a bold step to shift its economy – and that of the rest of the world – away from dependence on coal, gas and oil and into a new era of clean energy. With the first ever conference on “transitioning away from fossil fuels”, the host joined nearly 60 countries determined to loosen of the grip of petrostates on the world’s future. • Amsterdam’s Ban on Meat and Fossil Fuel Advertising Comes Into Effect Over 50 cities, Mostly European, Have Either Restricted Or Tabled Motions to Introduce Formal Limitations On the Advertisement of Polluting Products and Services {EARTH.ORG } May 1, 2026 -A ban on advertising of fossil fuels and meat products in public spaces came into effect on Friday in Amsterdam, marking the first capital city in the world to introduce such a policy. The city’s council passed a legally binding ban on ads for fossil fuels and meat products in a 27-17 vote in January. The ban spans high-carbon products and services like flights, petrol and diesel vehicles, gas heating contracts as well as meat products like fast-food burgers across all public spaces in the city, including on billdboards, public transport and in transit environments. • Around 3,000 Residents Evacuated in Tuscany as Winds Fan Forest Fire "The ?Fire is Still Very Much Active," the Deputy Mayor of Lucca, ?Fabio Barsanti, Said in a Facebook Video May 1, 2026 -Italian firefighters were on Friday battling to put out a large forest fire in Tuscany that has burned fordays fanned by strong winds, forcing the evacuation of around 3,000 people. The fire, active since Tuesday, has spread over 800 hectares on Mount Faeta, straddling the provinces of Lucca and Pisa, ?the mayor of a neighbouring town, San Giuliano Terme, said. It was likely provoked by the burning of olive tree prunings that got out of hand, Matteo Cecchelli told public broadcaster RAI. • Scientists Just Discovered What is Fueling Cows’ Potent Burps The “Hydrogenobody,” a Newly Discovered Structure Inside Microbial Cells In Cows’ Gut, May Play a Key Role In Methane Production April 30, 2026 -Between the 17th to early 20th century, thousands of ships sailed the waters of the Arctic. They were hunting bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus), chasing the gentle giants through the chilly seas. Whaling ships chased down bowheads to sell their blubber to illuminate factories and to lubricate machinery. They sold their baleen—the stiff brushes that filter the whale’s food in their mouths—to stiffen corsets. Whaling vessels slaughtered more than 250,000 animals between 1530 and 1914, and the animals were hunted to near extinction. • The Invisible Force Making Food Less Nutritious For the World’s Poorest and Most Vulnerable, the Consequences Could Be Devastating April 30, 2026 -Chickpeas and rice are not the only foods steadily growing less nutritious. Many of humanity’s most important crops — including wheat, potatoes, beans — contain fewer vitamins and minerals than they did a generation ago. The invisible culprit behind this damaging phenomenon? Carbon dioxide pollution. • Colorado Faces “Significantly Increased Risk” of Wildfire This Summer The Growing Number of People Moving Into Wildfire-Prone Areas, Makes Colorado Particularly Susceptible {The Colorado Sun} April 30, 2026 -Gov. Jared Polis warned Coloradans on Thursday that there is a “significantly increased risk” of wildfire along the Front Range and in western Colorado this summer, particularly in June and July. “We need to prepare,” Polis, flanked by the state’s top firefighters, said at a news conference in Broomfield where he unveiled the state’s annual wildfire forecast. • As Wildfire Risks Rise, Forest Service Shutters Labs That Study Them A Research lab in Washington State is One of 57 Such Facilities Being Shuttered April 30, 2026 -Inside a low-slung building on the outskirts of this town in north-central Washington State, federal scientists are examining how tree seedlings are responding to a drier, hotter climate, collecting important data as officials brace for what is expected to be an intense wildfire season. But this federal research station and 56 others in 31 states are slated to close in the next few months, part of a shake-up of the U.S. Forest Service by the Trump administration. • Trump Fires All 22 Independent Board Members of National Science Foundation The 22 Members of the Board Were Informed in an Email On Friday That They Had Been “Terminated, Effective Immediately” {EARTH.ORG} Apr. 30, 2026 -The Trump administration has fired all board members of the National Science Foundation (NSF) without providing an explanation for the decision. All 22 members, who are appointed by the US president and serve staggered six-year terms, received an email from the Presidential Personnel Office “on behalf of President Donald J Trump” on Friday informing them of their dismissal, according to media reports. They were told that their position had been “terminated, effective immediately,” but were not provided a reason. The NSF is an independent federal agency founded by Congress in 1950. It supports academic research in fields like biology, computer science, math, and social sciences. The NSF board is tasked with publishing reports that help to guide the president and Congress on science and engineering policy. A report about the US ceding scientific ground to China was due to be released following a board meeting set for 5 May, Nature reported. It is unclear whether the report will be published. • Iran War is Supercharging The Clean Energy Transition This, Accoding to the UN Climate Chief Apr. 30, 2026 -The Iran war is "supercharging" the world's shift to renewable energy, as countries scramble to reduce their exposure to volatile oil and ?gas markets, the U.N. climate secretary said on Thursday. The U.S.-Israeli war with Iran has upended oil and gas supplies, prompting some countries to ration fuel and others to roll out subsidies and tax cuts to shield consumers from surging prices. Early signs indicate the ?war, which began two months ago, is speeding up some countries' low-carbon ?transition. • Smog in Phoenix and Salt Lake City? The E.P.A. Is Blaming Asia Apr. 30, 2026 -For decades, Phoenix has struggled with smog that gets trapped in its bowl-like topography and is detrimental to human health. In 2024, when the city failed to meet a federal air pollution standard, it risked being hit with stricter rules designed to force more aggressive pollution limits. Then, President Trump returned to the White House. And now the Phoenix-Mesa region has gotten off the hook for an unusual reason: The Trump administration is blaming foreign countries for the pollution. • Global Deforestation Slows, Analysis Finds But Fires Remain a Major Threat April 29, 2026 -Global tree loss fell 14 percent in 2025 from the year before, according to a report published on Wednesday by World Resources Institute, with the decline largely driven by progress in protecting tropical forests. The total area destroyed worldwide was roughly 63 million acres, or 25.5 million hectares, the institute’s annual analysis found. But less tree cover was razed intentionally last year than any other year in the past decade, and losses in primary tropical forests were 36 percent lower than last year’s record highs. • Plan to Expand Colorado Mountain Reservoir Could Double Water Storage Near Alma The Reservoir, Built In 1957, is Part of the Continental-Hoosier System {CBS News} April 29, 2026 -A plan is moving forward to expand Montgomery Reservoir in Colorado's mountains, potentially doubling its capacity as water providers look to shore up supplies in the increasingly dry West. Officials with Colorado Springs Utilities say the project is part of a broader effort to modernize aging infrastructure and better capture water that is currently going unused. "It is nearly 70 years old," Water Resource Planner Maria Pastore said. "So, it will also help meet our water management needs by addressing current storage capacity constraints that we have." • NOAA Defends Cuts to Research and Climate Monitoring at Budget Hearing Democrats and Republicans Pushed Back Against the Administration’s Proposal to Eliminate NOAA’s Research Office and More April 29, 2026 -A key Republican joined Democrats in pushing back against the Trump administration’s proposal to slash the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s research and data collection programs at a House environment subcommittee hearing Tuesday. NOAA requested a 26 percent reduction in its proposed budget for fiscal year 2027, with plans to terminate 35 projects and institutes. • California Will Soon Have More Than 300 Data Centers Where Will They Get Their Water? April 29, 2026 -The new data center proposed for a quiet city about 115 miles east of San Diego came across people’s radars in different ways. For patrons of the deli on West Aten Road, it was the white “Not In My Backyard” signs jutting out of lawns. For local irrigation district workers, it was something called an “electric service application.” • How Many Rats Are in New York City? Scientists Find New Clues in the East River April 29, 2026 -With just a plastic bucket—the kind you’d get from the hardware store—environmental geneticist Mark Stoeckle hauled a treasure trove of information out of New York City's East River. His water samples painted a surprisingly detailed picture of New York City, revealing when fish visit, foreshadowing pest problems, and even showing signs of what people were eating. • War in Iran Spotlights the Risk to Drinking Water For Millions in the Persian Gulf Direct Attacks, Oil Spills and the Threat of Nuclear Waste Are Putting the Gulf Region’s Desalination Plants At Risk April 28, 2026 -Iran has a drinking water crisis. And the war with the U.S. is making matters worse for Iran—and the entire Gulf region. That’s in part because of threats not only to water infrastructure, including dams and reservoirs, but also to desalination facilities, which millions in the broader region depend on for their drinking water. For years, Iran’s reserves of potable water have been dwindling, thanks to a combination of climate change, mismanagement and infrastructure problems. But the war has also put desalination—something that most of Iran isn’t reliant on—in the spotlight. • What Happened When Gorillas Got Bank Accounts Enabling Wild Species to Pay For Their Own Conservation Can Align the Interests of People and Ecosystems Apr. 28, 2026 -The greatest market failure of our time may be how little we’re willing to pay for the ecosystems and nonhuman life that sustain us: effectively zero. Now the bill is coming due. Species are vanishing at rates of tens to hundreds of times faster than before modern humans arrived on the scene, a crisis some scientists call the sixth mass extinction. Fixing this has become the mission of former war correspondent and novelist Jonathan Ledgard. He now works as a financier opening bank accounts in the name of nonhumans. • Coalition of ‘High Ambition’ States Calls For Legal International Instrument on Fair Fossil Fuel Phase Out The Call Came At the End of a Three-Day Meeting of the Highest Ambition Coalition Pushing For an Equitable Global Fossil Fuel Phase Out In the Coal Port City of Santa Marta, Colombia {EARTH.ORG} April 28, 2026 -It is time for world leaders to “chart a journey away from fossil fuel production,” according to a coalition of “highest ambition” countries currently participating in the world’s first conference to speed up the transition to cleaner energy in the Colombian city of Santa Marta. At COP30 in Brazil last November, Colombia announced “the first international conference on phasing out fossil fuels,” with the initial support of 24 other nations. The UN climate summit culminated in an agreement that did not contain any mention of fossil fuels, the primary cause of climate change, despite 82 countries calling for a phase out fossil fuels and despite countries pledging to “transition away from fossil fuels” at COP28 two years earlier. • WA's Latest Emissions Report Shows Small Decline Major Polluters, Must Calculate and Disclose Their Climate-Altering Emissions {KUOW} April 29, 2026 -State officials and environmentalists point to a new report on Washington’s greenhouse gas emissions as an indicator that the state’s climate policies are working. Others look at the same data and say it raises doubts about whether those policies significantly reduce carbon emissions at all. The Department of Ecology report shows emissions in the state shrank by half a percentage point from 2021 to 2022. • The MAHA Movement is Mad About the Weedkiller Glyphosate and Trump's EPA The Trump Administration's Decision to Back The Pesticide Maker {NPR NEWS} April 28, 2026 -In a sign of the simmering discontent within the Make America Healthy Again coalition, some of its most visible figures rallied outside the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday, lobbing criticism at the Trump administration for siding with a pesticide-maker. Inside, the justices were hearing arguments in a highly-anticipated case involving the glyphosate-based herbicide, Roundup. • Disaster Declarations Ripple Through South Texas Amid Water Crisis Small towns around Corpus Christi worry where they’ll fall on the pecking order if the region’s water runs out. Apr. 28, 2026 -At least six small cities and towns in the Coastal Bend region of Texas issued disaster declarations in the last two weeks, begging not to be forgotten amid a spiraling water crisis. All attention lies on the city of Corpus Christi as it grapples with the growing likelihood of an unprecedented disaster. But Corpus Christi, the eighth-largest city in Texas, doesn’t just provide water to its own industries and residents. It supplies the entire seven-county region, including 20 other municipalities. • New York Keeps Getting Hotter. Utilities Can Still Cut Off the Power A New Statewide Policy Detailing When Utilities Can Stop Service For Unpaid Bills During Heat Waves has Resulted in Weaker Rules for New York City April 27, 2026 -Last month, at a luxury hotel near Miami, bill collectors from energy companies around the country gathered to talk shop. The three-day conference included headshot sessions and cocktail receptions sponsored by credit reporting and debt recovery agencies. During one seminar, representatives from utilities in New York spoke about how they had banded together to influence a forthcoming state policy that would limit when the energy companies can turn off customers’ power during heat waves because of unpaid bills. • Geologists Have Some Good and Bad News About the Terrifying Fault Zone Sitting Right Underneath Seattle Smaller Quakes From Secondary Faults—Which Are Not Included in National Seismic Hazard Modeling—Occur More Frequently Than Previously Thought {ZME SCIENCE} April 27, 2026 -In the winter of 923, a magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck the heart of Puget Sound. Shorelines slid into the water, the seafloor rose up, and a tsunami swept through the region. The Seattle fault zone, actually a mesh of faults that runs right under its eponymous city, was responsible for this quake. The fault continues to pose one of the deadliest threats to the Pacific Northwest; if a similar quake were to hit today, it would threaten millions of lives and cause billions of dollars in damage. Two new papers dig into recurrence intervals, or the quiescent periods between earthquakes, for the Seattle fault zone • Why 2 Oil States Are Slow to Embrace Wastewater Recycling Texas and New Mexico Are Reviewing Plans That Could Send Cleaned Water Into Rivers and Fields {E&E NEWS} April 27, 2026 -The two biggest oil-producing states are at a crossroads as they try to solve one of the industry’s thorniest problems — getting rid of billions of gallons of salty, oily wastewater that’s produced alongside crude. Academic researchers in Texas and New Mexico say technology developed in recent years allows companies to clean up the waste, known as produced water, so it can be released into surface water like rivers or diverted for uses such as crop irrigation. But state regulators are still cautious about the idea. • Lightning Strikes Kill 14 As Bangladesh Lashed By Seasonal Storms Lightning Kills ?Hundreds of People Every Year in ?Bangladesh Apr. 27, 2026 -At least 14 people were killed after lightning strikes hit several ?parts of Bangladesh, officials said on Monday, as seasonal thunderstorms swept across the country. The deaths were reported from several districts after sudden storms brought heavy rain and intense lightning. Most of the victims were ?farmers working in open fields and labourers caught in exposed areas, local authorities said. Several other people were injured and taken to nearby hospitals, with some in critical condition. • Microsoft AI Demands More Power Can a WA Fusion Company Supply It? Apr. 27, 2026 -On the banks of the Columbia River, two companies are rushing to build two technologies they say will power the future. Microsoft is constructing a sprawling data center campus that could cover more than 24 football fields, part of the company’s rapid build-out in a global arms race to control artificial intelligence. But this one site could demand as much electricity as a medium-sized city — at a time when power is increasingly scarce. A couple of miles away, on another dusty construction site, is a potential solution. • CDC Delay of Infant Hepatitis B Shot Likely to Raise Infections Federal Vaccine Advisers Voted in December to Recommend Delaying the First Shot Until At Least Two Months of Age For Infants Born to Mothers Who Test Negative For the Virus Apr. 27, 2026 -The Trump administration’s decision to drop the long-standing recommendation that newborns receive a hepatitis B vaccine within 24 hours of birth will likely lead to hundreds of additional infections among children, along with more cases of liver cancer, deaths and millions in added health care costs, according to studies published Monday in JAMA Pediatrics. Federal vaccine advisers to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. voted in December to replace the universal birth dose with a recommendation to delay the first shot until at least two months of age for infants born to mothers who test negative for the virus. The change was later approved by the then-acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a political appointee and top deputy to Kennedy who did not have a public health background. • Millions Under Threat of Strong Tornadoes Monday Intense Twisters Are Likeliest in Eastern Missouri, Southern Illinois and western Kentucky Apr. 27, 2026 -An outbreak of severe weather, including the potential for a few significant and strong tornadoes, looms for Monday afternoon and evening. Rotating thunderstorms, known as supercells, will be most numerous in eastern Missouri, southern Illinois and western Kentucky, with St. Louis in the bull’s eye of severe weather risk and Chicago not out of harm’s way. Additional storms are likely Tuesday as the instigating cold front sags south. Every day since Thursday has featured tornadoes, including a set of twins Sunday night in Osage County, Oklahoma. • Nearly One-Fifth of Americans Are Consuming Water With High Levels of Nitrates Nitrates, Largely From Agricultural Runoff, Are Linked to Cancers and Birth Defects April 27, 2026 -Close to 20 percent of Americans are exposed to water polluted with high levels of potentially cancer-causing nitrates, known to come mostly from agricultural runoff, according to new research published this month. In a first-ever review of nitrate levels in public water systems across the country, the Environmental Working Group found that 6,114 of them—from heavily agricultural rural areas to major cities, including Los Angeles, Phoenix and Philadelphia—have elevated levels of nitrates, affecting 18 percent of the country’s population, or roughly one in five people, between 2021 and 2023. • Company Claims Cloud-Seeding Breakthrough Could Help the Parched West Eefforts to Battle Drought in Utah and Idaho Apr. 27, 2026 -Scientists have been shooting particles into clouds since the 1940s, praying it will bring more rain and snow. While researchers agree that “cloud seeding” can work in a laboratory setting, many have doubted how much precipitation it can generate in the real world. But that hasn’t stopped Western states from blasting silver iodide into the sky for decades, hoping it will relieve harsh droughts. • Nearly One-Fifth of Americans Are Consuming Water With High Levels of Nitrates Nitrates, Largely From Agricultural Runoff, Are Linked to Cancers and Birth Defects April 27, 2026 -Close to 20 percent of Americans are exposed to water polluted with high levels of potentially cancer-causing nitrates, known to come mostly from agricultural runoff, according to new research published this month. In a first-ever review of nitrate levels in public water systems across the country, the Environmental Working Group found that 6,114 of them—from heavily agricultural rural areas to major cities, including Los Angeles, Phoenix and Philadelphia—have elevated levels of nitrates, affecting 18 percent of the country’s population, or roughly one in five people, between 2021 and 2023. • Climate Disaster Victims Are Rebuilding Using Prefab Homes From Boxy to Bespoke After Disaster Strikes Again {BBC NEWS} April 27, 2026 -When the Station Fire roared through the Angeles National Forest in 2009, Colleen and Jason Warnesky could see it from the front porch of their Altadena, Calif., home. Eleven years later, the family witnessed the Bobcat Fire from the same spot as it became one of the largest fires in Los Angeles County history. Their house remained standing after both close calls. So when the Eaton Fire struck more than 3 miles away in January 2025, they were certain they'd again remain unscathed. • Sewage Is Threatening Coral Reefs Around the World Even in Marine Protected Areas April 26, 2026 -Marine protected areas are designed to conserve coral reefs and other ocean ecosystems by restricting human activity within their boundaries. But most don’t account for one of the most severe and widespread threats to marine life that originates on land: sewage. A new study by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the University of Queensland in Australia found that more than 70 percent of marine protected areas worldwide are contaminated by untreated, or poorly treated, wastewater. • Toxins Plus Climate Harms Likely Cause of Reduced Fertility Researchers Find ‘Alarming’ Effect On Fertility Across Global Species From Simultaneous Exposures April 26, 2026 -Simultaneous exposure to toxic chemicals and climate change’s impacts likely generates an additive or synergistic effect that increases reproductive harm, and may contribute to the broad global drop in fertility, new peer-reviewed research finds. The review of scientific literature considers how endocrine-disrupting chemicals, often found in plastic, coupled with climate change’s effects, such as heat stress, are each linked to reductions in fertility and fecundity across global species – including in humans, wildlife and invertebrates. • Japan Deploys Hundreds of Firefighters As Wildfires Rage in North Dry, windy weather fans flames, but some rain is Forecast Apr. 26, 2026 -Japan has deployed 1,400 firefighters and dozens of Self-Defense Force personnel to battle mountain blazes that have been raging in the north for five days and threaten to reach homes in the picturesque coastal town of Otsuchi, officials said on Sunday. Fanned by dry, windy weather, two more wildfires broke out elsewhere in the north on Sunday - one in Kitakata city and the other in Nagaoka, potentially stretching firefighting resources thin as local authorities send personnel ?to neighbouring areas. • A Town of 7,000 Planned So Many Data Centers, It’s Like Adding 51 Walmarts Residents Are Fighting Back Apr. 26, 2026 -Tim Bachak would look out to his backyard most evenings to see wildlife emerging from the forest of birch, maple and oak trees hugging his property. He regularly spotted black bears, deer and coyotes. Owls would hoot and turkeys would scurry. Bachak, a 43-year-old public school teacher, saw the activity as a sign this former coal town had recharged from its polluting past. Then last month, Bachak woke up to the sound of chainsaws. Workers were cutting down the forest, about 180 acres of trees, to make way for a massive data center. • More Americans Are Exposed to Polluted Air in the United States See Where Apr. 25, 2026 -More than 150 million people across the United States, including nearly half the nation’s children, live in areas affected by harmful levels of air pollution, according to a new report published Wednesday. The American Lung Association’s annual “state of the air report” warns that despite remarkable progress in the decades since Congress mandated national air quality standards, the combination of a warming atmosphere and the Trump administration’s aggressive regulatory rollbacks are posing new threats to communities. • A Huge Sewage Spill Is Over, But Contamination Lingers in the Potomac Though River Monitoring Shows Bacteria Levels Have Declined, Scientists And Environmentalists Said A Full Recovery Isn’t Yet Assured Apr. 23, 2026 -As public health officials declared the end of a sewage contamination emergency in the Potomac River last month, scientists feared the waterway was still in distress. More than 240 million gallons of human waste had poured into the river from a broken sewer main. Researchers went out in early March to sample the water, trying to see what damage had been done. • Africa Could Split Apart Sooner Than Scientists Thought Earth’s Crust is Just a Few Million Years Away From Splitting the Continent of Africa Into Two—and Creating a New Ocean April 24, 2026 -A segment of eastern Africa is “primed” to peel away from the rest of the continent far sooner than scientists had previously realized, according to new research. The spot in question is the Turkana Rift, which spans 500 kilometers across Kenya and Ethiopia. The rift is just one segment of the East African Rift System, where three tectonic plates meet. Two of these plates are drifting apart at the Turkana Rift, a process that will eventually lead the continent to divide into two, creating a new ocean between the separated lands. These same forces may have made the Turkana Rift a rich site for ancient human fossil discoveries, such as the famous Turkana boy. • Billie Eilish On Inventing a Greener Kind of Concert ‘I Have to Try to Make a Change’ Apr. 24, 2026 -More than eight years ago, when she was only 16, Billie Eilish set out on her first headlining tour. She was already on her way to becoming one of the world’s biggest pop stars, and the scale and impact of staging major shows were impossible to ignore. The idling tour buses, the generators running at all hours, the innumerable single-use plastic water bottles. Raised by an especially eco-conscious mother, Eilish was accustomed to climate-friendly habits, like using cloth napkins and eating a vegan diet. She was startled in a new way by the ramifications of shows like hers. “I didn't know how bad it could be,” Eilish says now. “The waste involved in live music is really hard to take in.” • The World is Searching For Oil This Summit is Looking to Get Rid of It {POLITICO} Apr. 24, 2026 -A new climate world order is taking shape — without the Earth’s biggest emitters. A group of some 60 countries is meeting this week on the Colombian coast to figure out how to phase out fossil fuels, after three decades of United Nations-led talks have struggled to produce a clear path for battling climate change. A lot of big emitters — the European Union, the United Kingdom and Brazil — will be there, as will fossil fuel producers like Canada and Nigeria. Also attending: import-dependent nations like the Philippines and Pakistan, which have been roiled by the Iran war’s effects on oil markets • The Global Wildlife Trade May Be Spreading Diseases Faster than Ever The Global Wildlife Trade is Rapidly Accelerating the Spread of Animal Pathogens That Can Jump to Humans April 24, 2026 -What comes to mind when you think about wildlife trade and diseases like COVID-19? If you live in the U.S., you probably picture so-called wet markets in Asia, where people buy and sell animal meat in an open-air setting, or perhaps foreign-sounding 'bushmeat.' > But in reality the wildlife trade is everywhere—including at your local suburban shopping center. And new research suggests that pathogens are spreading through this global trade network far faster than anyone realized. • Strong Tornado Hits Northern Oklahoma More Storms Expected In Days Ahead April 24, 2026 -A powerful tornado hit the city of Enid in Oklahoma late Thursday, striking near Vance Air Force Base, about 65 miles northwest of Oklahoma City. Local officials were assessing the extent of the damage and impact — as the region braces for more possible tornadoes in the days ahead. First responders were “actively performing emergency response efforts,” the city of Enid shared in a statement, while Vance Air Force Base was “conducting accountability procedures to ensure all personnel are safe and accounted for.” • Here’s What Stops Huge Earthquakes in Their Tracks When an Earthquake Rupturing Along a Fault Hits a Barrier, It Creates a Seismic Signature Called the “Stopping Phase.” April 23, 2026 - On Monday residents of northeastern Japan were rattled by a massive magnitude 7.7 earthquake off the coast and warned of possible tsunamis, as well as a slim chance of a magnitude 8 or higher “megaquake” in the coming days. A new study, published Thursday in Science, investigates how such “megaquakes” evolve, what can eventually stop them and how we can predict their destructive power. An earthquake starts deep underground when huge tectonic forces cause stress to build up along a fault line, a massive fracture in Earth’s crust where blocks of rock have shifted and moved past each other. Once this accumulated stress overcomes the friction holding the rocks together at a specific point called the hypocenter, the fault slips, and a rupture rapidly spreads along it, generating powerful seismic waves that cause the ground to shake. This process continues until the spreading rupture reaches an area of low stress and slowly loses momentum, or until it hits a physical barrier underground that makes it stop instantly, like a speeding train crashing into a concrete wall. • States Where You’re Most Likely to Be Killed By Lightning Revealed And One Leads the Way With 97 Fatalities {NEW YORK POST} April 23, 2026 -Last week, the United States recorded its first lightning fatality of the year, and as seasonal summer storms loom on the horizon, experts say death by bolt is highly likely in this Southern state. According to the National Lightning Safety Council (NLSC), which recorded 21 lightning strike fatalities last year, the pattern of where and why lightning strikes is somewhat foreseeable. And it appears the Sunshine State is the lightning capital of America.Using data from the National Weather Service and the NLCS, Play Casino tracked lightning deaths by state over the past two decades • Wildfires Across Georgia and Florida Destroy More Than 50 Homes and Force Evacuations The Fires Spread So Quickly in That Area That Residents Received No Warnings Or Alerts Apr. 23, 2026 -Huge plumes of smoke blanketed swaths of the Southeast on Wednesday as crews battled rapidly growing wildfires that destroyed more than 50 homes in Georgia and forced hundreds to flee the drought- and wind-fueled flames. Some of the biggest blazes were near Georgia’s coast, while others were popping up in northern Florida, a state facing one of its worst fire seasons in decades. It was not yet clear how the wildfires started, but the bottom half of Georgia is perilously dry and the conditions prompted the state’s forestry commission to issue a burn ban for the first time in its history. Southeastern Georgia has seen just 11 inches (28 centimeters) of rain since the beginning of September — almost 15 inches (38 centimeters) below normal, the National Weather Service said. • Corpus Christi Plans to Declare a ‘Water Emergency What Does That Mean? Apr. 23, 2026 -No modern American city has ever run out of water. But chances are rising that Corpus Christi, Texas, could be the first. Absent a biblical rainfall event, its reservoirs are on track to completely dry up by next year. That raises baffling questions for the future of Texas’ eighth-largest city and one of the nation’s major petrochemical hubs. “We have no precedent to follow. There’s no manual, there’s no video,” Corpus Christi City Manager Peter Zanoni told the City Council in March, when local leaders first acknowledged that disaster could be imminent. • An Oilfield Leak Springs Under a Permian Basin Baptist Church Salty Water is Spewing Out of the Ground in the Town of Grandfalls Apr. 23, 2026 -Salty water is gurgling up from underground in the middle of the small Permian Basin town of Grandfalls, Texas. The liquid began pooling in the parking lot of the First Baptist Church on Tuesday. State inspectors from the Railroad Commission arrived soon after and remained on-site on Wednesday. Nearby landowners suspect oilfield wastewater is pushing up through the wellbore of an old plugged oil well. • Almost Half of America’s Kids Are Breathing Toxic Air The American Lung Association’s Annual Report Finds That Climate Change is Making Dirty Air Worse, Especially For Communities of Color Apr. 22, 2026 -Nearly half the nation’s children live in places with dangerous levels of air pollution, according to a report released Wednesday by the American Lung Association. That’s 33.5 million children—46 percent of the country’s kids—living in areas with failing grades for at least one measure of air pollution that is particularly harmful to developing lungs. • Major Livestock and Animal Agriculture Companies Are Making Climate Promises They Aren’t Keeping The Vast Majority of Climate-Related Claims Made By the Meat and Dairy Industry Don’t Hold Up to Scholarly Scrutiny Apr. 22, 2026 -Five years ago, the world’s largest meat company took out a full-page ad in The New York Times, making a bold claim: “Bacon, chicken wings, and steak with net zero emissions. It’s possible.” But according to new research, that assertion by JBS and hundreds of other promises made by meat industry giants amount to hollow attempts to woo consumers and investors with unsubstantiated claims. • How the Environment Has Changed Since the First Earth Day 50 Years Ago These Charts Show That While Progress has Been Made in Some Areas, Humanity Still has a Major Impact On the Planet April 22, 2026 -On April 22, 1970, millions of Americans took part in demonstrations, cleanups and other activities to make the first Earth Day. The event was the brainchild of then Democratic Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin, and it was a watershed moment for the growing U.S. environmental movement: Americans had become increasingly aware that the same industrialization that had made the country wealthy was having an impact on the environment and their own health. As famed anchorman Walter Cronkite put it in a special CBS News broadcast, Earth Day participants had a “common cause of saving life from the deadly by-products of that bounty: the fouled skies, the filthy waters, the littered earth.” • More Americans Are Exposed to Polluted Air in the United States See Where It Could Happen April 22, 2026 -More than 150 million people across the United States, including nearly half the nation’s children, live in areas affected by harmful levels of air pollution, according to a new report published Wednesday. The American Lung Association’s annual “state of the air report” warns that despite remarkable progress in the decades since Congress mandated national air quality standards, the combination of a warming atmosphere and the Trump administration’s aggressive regulatory rollbacks are posing new threats to communities. • Could Genetically Modified Pigs Are About to End the Organ Shortage Forever? Animal-to-Human Organ Transplants Promise a Future Where Survival No Longer Depends On Another Person’s Death {ZME SCIENCE} April 21, 2026, by Joshua D. Mezrich -My phone rang at 2 am. I was mostly awake; I never really sleep on call. As I rubbed my eyes, I tried to focus on the voice coming through the phone. One of our coordinators was telling me about a kidney offer, and she launched right into it: “68-year-old donor, diabetes and high blood pressure, died of a stroke, kidney function normal, biopsy with some scarring and inflammation. Do you want to hear more?” We evaluate offers like this all the time. The transplant waiting list is so long, with so many patients who will never receive an offer for a healthier organ. Do we take a risk and transplant a kidney like this? How long could it possibly last? It seems likely my patient might get a few years, but then return to dialysis for what might be the rest of their life. Perhaps that is worth it to them, just to get some respite from the horrible experience of getting plugged into a machine three days a week to filter their blood. Maybe during the years that the kidney works, they will be able to travel, spend time with family, and enjoy normal meals before they return to the dreaded machine. • Rainforests Can Bounce Back Much Faster Than Thought, Researchers Say Scientists Long Believed it Would Take More Than a Century For Animals to Return to Deforested Land, But... Apr. 21, 2026 -Scientists once thought it would take a century or more for animals to return to deforested land in the tropics. Now, new research has found ecosystems can recover in mere decades. “It’s been a huge surprise for all of us,” said Timo Metz, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Los Angeles, and first author of the study, published in the journal Nature. “None of us expected it to be so impressive and so quick.” • In a Previously Unaired Interview, Jane Goodall Delivers a Call to Action She Advised Followers to “Act Locally First” in the Face of Intractable Global Problems Apr. 21, 2026 -Three months before her death at 91, Jane Goodall was in Tanzania. Goodall famously kept up a relentless travel schedule into her 80s and 90s, giving lectures about the importance of protecting wildlife. She was on a speaking tour in the United States when she died in October. “She would do a lecture at the drop of a hat, spreading the message to people, which is why she didn’t stop,” said philanthropist and conservationist Dax Dasilva, who was with Goodall in Tanzania last year and interviewed her there. “She lectured multiple times a day to anybody who would hear it because it was so impactful to people.” • Independent Testing Where Tesla’s Lithium Refinery Discharges Wastewater Found Toxic Metals The Drainage District That Commissioned the Test has Now Sent a Cease-And-Desist Letter to Tesla’s Operations, Near Corpus Christi. Apr. 21, 2026 -After Texas regulators said Tesla’s lithium refinery near Corpus Christi wasn’t violating its permits by discharging what local officials reported as black wastewater into a drainage ditch, independent water testing there this month found two toxic metals and other contaminants. Eurofins Environment Testing, an accredited lab with locations across the globe, reported traces of hexavalent chromium, a well-known carcinogen, and arsenic, an environmental poison. Nueces County Drainage District No. 2, which manages the ditch, commissioned the test. • 5 Ways to Go Green in the Kitchen Eat Less Meat, Use Smaller Appliances, Repurpose Leftovers and More Ways to Be a Climate-Friendly Cook Apr. 21, 2026 -The scale of what we have learned about what’s happening to the environment and our planet can be overwhelming, making it hard to feel like you alone can make a difference. But you can, and being a thoughtful cook is one of the easiest, most practical ways to get started. With Earth Day around the corner, here are some tips for how to do just that. (Need more suggestions? Check out our list of 20 actions you can take right now.) • Transco Pipeline Project Faces Legal Challenge Transco Received a Federal Permit to Install a Natural Gas Pipeline Using an “Open-Cut” Method That Can Harm Rivers and Streams in Virginia and North Carolina Apr. 21, 2026 -Five environmental groups are petitioning a federal appeals court to invalidate a water quality permit issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for a controversial Transco pipeline. The $1.5 billion Southeast Supply Enhancement Project (SSEP) would run through five states, including North Carolina, where it would extend for 28 miles in Rockingham, Guilford, Forsyth and Davidson counties. • Wildlife and Humans Thriving in Unesco-Protected Sites While Wildlife Populations Crash Globally, Research Finds Designated Areas Enable Recovery of Threatened Species April 21, 2026 -Wildlife and humans are thriving within sites recognised by Unesco, research has found, allowing for the recovery of threatened species and habitats around the world. While wildlife populations have crashed globally by nearly three-quarters since 1970, those within Unesco-protected areas have remained largely stable. • ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Workout Wear? What You Need to Know April 21, 2026 -The U.S. activewear market generated $137.4 million in revenue last year, and it can seem like everyone in the country now wears workout clothes for both exercise and everyday activities, such as housework or running errands. So recent news that leading activewear brand Lululemon is being investigated by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over the potential presence of “forever chemicals” may concern anyone who puts on leggings multiple times a week. • Rainforests Can Bounce Back Much Faster Than Thought, Researchers Say Scientists Long Believed It Would Take More Than a Century For Animals to Return to Deforested Land. New Research Shows That’s Not Always the Case April 21, 2026 -Scientists once thought it would take a century or more for animals to return to deforested land in the tropics. Now, new research has found ecosystems can recover in mere decades. “It’s been a huge surprise for all of us,” said Timo Metz, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Los Angeles, and first author of the study, published in the journal Nature. “None of us expected it to be so impressive and so quick.” • For Earth Day, a Few Signs of Hope for Our Planet In a Year of Grim Climate and Environment News, We’ve Compiled Several Hopeful Signs About Earth’s Future Apr. 21, 2026 -As astronaut Victor Glover made his way to the moon earlier this month on NASA’s Artemis II mission, he reflected on the incredible miracle that is planet Earth. “You are special,” Glover told an interviewer. Space, he said, “is a whole bunch of nothing.” But in the midst all that nothing, Glover could see a bright blue dot out the window of his spaceship. “You have this oasis,” he said, “this beautiful place that we get to exist together.” • Feds Want to Cut Back Water Releases From Lake Powell in Response to Colorado River Drought Officials Rush to Figure Out How to Move Water Between Reservoir Savings Accounts to Stabilize the Supply for 40 Million People in a Parched River Basin THE COLORADO SUN} April 20, 2026 -Federal and state officials have proposed severe drought response actions, like drastically cutting water releases from Lake Powell, in face of a historically dry year and worsening conditions in the Colorado River Basin. The Bureau of Reclamation announced Friday it will likely reduce Lake Powell water releases to 6 million acre-feet, the lowest amount in decades. It also intends to release additional water from Flaming Gorge, an upstream reservoir, to help elevate the water level in Lake Powell. The decisions could raise the specter of forced water cuts in states including Colorado, impact endangered fish populations and affect communities and economies. • Facing Drought and Low Snowpack, Rio Grande States Expect a ‘Challenging’ Year River Flows This Year to Be Among the Lowest Recorded Apr. 20, 2026 -Officials at the Rio Grande Compact Commission annual meeting Friday worked through the thesaurus to describe the conditions on the river that flows out of southwestern Colorado. Compact signatory states—Colorado, New Mexico and Texas—along with federal agencies that operate along the river presented their 2026 outlooks at the New Mexico Capitol in Santa Fe. • As a Plastic Waste Plant Violates Pollution Rules, Its Owner Makes the Case for a Second Location Freepoint Eco-Systems Seeks to Become a Major Player in So-Called “Chemical Recycling” Apr. 20, 2026 -Belching smoke from a new plastic waste processing plant in central Ohio has stirred opposition to an even larger “chemical recycling” factory planned for Arizona by the same company. The Freepoint Eco-Systems plant near Hebron, Ohio, fired up its processing kilns for the first time in 2024. Since then, it’s faced multiple citizen complaints about sooty emissions, from black clouds of smoke to flames. Dozens of times, plant operators have bypassed normal pollution controls to vent gases through a flare after upsets in their manufacturing processes, including emergency shutdowns, according to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. • Cocaine Pollution in Rivers and Lakes May Disrupt Behaviour of Salmon Fish Swam Further and Dispersed More Widely After Exposure to Environmental Levels of Drug and Main Metabolite April 20, 2026 -Traces of cocaine that pollute rivers and lakes may accumulate in the brains of salmon and disrupt their behaviour, according to researchers who warn of unknown consequences for fish populations. Juvenile Atlantic salmon that were artificially exposed to the drug and its main breakdown product swam further and dispersed more widely across a lake, suggesting the substances can affect where the fish go, what they eat and how vulnerable they are to predators. • Rivian’s Factory Damaged by Tornado Amid Crucial R2 EV Launch The Tornado Hit a New Area of the Plant Being Used For Parts Storage and Logistics of Its Upcoming R2 {CNBC} April 20, 2026 -A tornado damaged part of Rivian Automotive’s factory in central Illinois over the weekend, according to a message sent to employees Sunday night by CEO RJ Scaringe that was viewed by CNBC. The tornado touched down on the plant, Scarigne said. The affected area was being used for parts storage and logistics for Rivian’s upcoming R2, which is a crucial product for the company that’s expected to be on sale this spring. • Indonesia’s Waste-to-Energy Strategy Risks Human Rights and the Environment President Prabowo Subianto’s Waste-To-Energy Initiative Aims to Solve Indonesia’s Plastic Crisis By Converting Landfill Waste into Electricity {EARTH.ORG} April 20, 2026 -Shortly after Prabowo Subianto’s victory in the 2024 presidential election, the leader of the world’s third-largest contributor of plastic waste was immediately faced with demands to address a crisis that has long plagued the daily lives of Indonesians. Less than a year after taking office, he offered a solution built around the narrative of clean energy and the modernization of waste management. Presidential Regulation 109/2025 contains Prabowo’s ambitious vision to build waste-to-energy (WtE) power plants across the country as a solution to the increasingly disproportionate burden faced by landfills in several major Indonesian cities. This program, the government says, reflects the principles of a circular economy by transforming the plastic pollution curse into fuel for power plants for economic gain. • Vampire Bats Are Moving Into the US Scientists Worry They Could Spread a Fatal Zombie Deer Disease to Humans {ZME SCIENCE} April 20, 2026 -In 2022, Peter Larsen awoke in the Guyanese rainforest with a strange sensation on his feet. Sleeping in an open-air house, the University of Minnesota researcher flicked on his headlamp and found a vampire bat—the exact animal he had traveled to South America to study—feeding on his blood. The encounter was intriguing and also concerning. What if he’d get sick, Dr. Larsen thought? After all, bats are natural reservoirs for several high-consequence viruses and pathogens, including rabies, Ebola, Marburg, and SARS-like coronaviruses, largely due to their unique immune system. • Risk of ‘Megaquake’ in Japan Higher After Powerful Earthquake Strikes After a Magnitude 7.7 Earthquake Struck Off the Coast of Japan and Set Off Tsunami Warnings, There’s an Elevated Risk of a “Megaquake” Following in Its Wake April 20, 2026 -On Monday, at 4:53 P.M. local time, a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck off the northeastern shores of Japan’s largest island, Honshu, where the Pacific tectonic plate plunges beneath the North American plate at the deep-sea Japan Trench. Immediately, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) sent out a tsunami warning alert. Although small tsunami waves did soon reach various sections of the coast, no reports of injuries, deaths, or significant damage to homes or infrastructure were reported. The danger, however, has not necessarily passed. Following the temblor, a JMA spokesperson told the media and those along the affected shoreline that “the likelihood of a new, huge earthquake occurring is relatively higher than during normal times.” Specifically, there is an elevated risk of a “megaquake”—one of magnitude 8.0 or greater—in the coming days. • UW Prof in Political Storm as Trump Targets National Weather Lab The Trump Administration Announced Plans in December to Dismantle the Longstanding Research Hub Based in Colorado April 20, 2026 -Shuyi Chen has flown into Category 5 hurricanes to conduct meteorological experiments, so she knows about turbulence. But those missions didn’t wholly prepare the University of Washington professor for her latest challenge: navigating an intense political storm. An expert on extreme weather, Chen currently chairs the academic nonprofit that manages the National Center for Atmospheric Research. That means she and like-minded scientists are now in a battle with President Donald Trump. • Environmental Groups Sue to Block BP’s Plan to Drill in Deep Gulf Waters Opponents of the Project, Known as Kaskida, Say an Accident Could Be Even Worse Than the Deepwater Horizon Spill April 20, 2026 -Environmental groups sued the Trump administration on Monday to stop the British oil giant BP, which operated the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform that exploded in 2010, from starting a new $5 billion drilling project in ultra-deep waters in the Gulf of Mexico. Last month, the Interior Department’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management approved the project, which is known as Kaskida, about 250 miles off the coast of Louisiana at a depth of nearly 6,000 feet. BP projects it will produce 80,000 barrels of oil per day from six wells starting in 2029 in a section of the seafloor that is estimated to hold 10 billion barrels of crude. • Japan Warns of Slightly Increased Risk of Mega-Quake After a 7.7-Magnitude One Are You Quaking, Yet? April 20, 2026 -An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.7 off northern Japan on Monday sparked a short-lived tsunami alert and prompted authorities to advise of a slightly higher risk of a possible mega-quake for coastal areas there. The Cabinet Office and the Japan Meteorological Agency said there was a 1% chance for a mega-quake, compared to a 0.1% chance during normal times, in the next week or so following the powerful quake near the Chishima and Japan trenches. • Burning Wood For Power Worse For Climate Than Gas Equivalent Research Casts Doubt On Plans By UK Government to Offer Subsidies For Carbon Capture Attached to the Power Source April 20, 2026 -Burning wood for power generation can be worse for the climate than burning gas, even when the resulting carbon dioxide emissions are captured and stored, new research has shown. The findings cast doubt on plans by several governments, including the UK, to offer subsidies or other financial support for carbon capture attached to wood-burning power. • Low-Producing Oil Wells in Texas Cause Headaches for Landowners Jackie Chesnutt, Who Lives Outside San Angelo, is Tired of Pollution From Wells She Says Should Have Been Plugged Years Ago April 19, 2026 -Some Texas oil wells gush hundreds of barrels of oil a day. But many are like the wells on Jackie Chesnutt’s ranch in West Texas that only trickle out a couple barrels a month. Chesnutt, a retired engineer, claims the five wells operating on her ranch are out of compliance with state rules and should be shut down. The company, CORE Petro, says that it’s struggling to break even, let alone pay to plug the wells. But it says that all its wells are in compliance. • Japan Eases Back Tsunami Warning After Magnitude 7.7 Quake No Immediate Reports of Casualties, Damage April 19, 2026 -A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck off the northeastern coast of Japan on Monday, prompting authorities to urge residents to stay away from coastal areas where tsunami waves of up to 3 metres (10 ft) were expected. Two hours after the tremor, which struck at 4:53 p.m. (0753 GMT), tsunami waves as ?high as 80 cm had been detected. A tsunami warning was later downgraded to a tsunami advisory. There were ?no immediate reports of casualties or major damage, Japan's top government spokesperson Minoru Kihara ?told a news conference as night fell in the capital Tokyo. • Fire in Malaysia's Sabah Destroys 1,000 Homes Thousands Displaced April 19, 2026 -Thousands of people have been displaced ?after a fire destroyed around 1,000 homes in a coastal village in Malaysia's Sabah state on Borneo island on Sunday, the fire department said. Authorities were notified of the fire in Sandakan district at around 1.32 a.m. (1732 GMT), the district's fire ?and rescue chief Jimmy Lagung said in a statement. “Strong winds and the close proximity of the houses caused the fire to spread rapidly, while low tide conditions also made it difficult to obtain an open water source,” Lagung said.

The Issues: What We Need to Know
Lead Poisoning Details Help End Food Wast Global Sand Mining Carbon Offset Credits Air Pollution and PM2.5 Breaking Down Toxic PFAS Ethylene Oxide Exposure Chicago Urban Agriculture Clean Up Your Cleaning Act Arsenic In Our Babies’ Cereal Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) Paying Back Koch Industries Radon's Impact on Our Lungs The Guardian Climate Pledge About Those Toxic Chemicals A Cleaner Way to Remove CO2 Dos and Don’ts of Pesticide Use Danger: Seismic Airgun Blasting Confronting Ocean Acidification What Our Agencies Don’t Tell Us Avoid Hurricane Surge Flooding Map Showing the Lost Rainforests Toxic Release Inventory Program Fossil Fuel Facts You Should Know Pesticides and Farm Worker Safety What to Know About Ground Water The Mushroom That Can Eat Plastic Bali Fights For its Beautiful Beaches Your Car Needs a Professional Wash Can We Restore the Gulf of Mexico? The Fossil Fuels Behind Forest Fires The PFAs in Clark's Marsh, Michigan Know The Clean Drinking Water Facts Wipes Are Tearing Up Our Sewer Systems Green Ammonia fo a Sustainable Future Companies Reducing Their CO2 Footprint Derailed Train Ordered Pay Cleanup Costs Lifestyle Changes to Shrink Carbon Footprint	• What Will Power the A.I. Revolution? It Could End Up Increasing Emissions, at Least in the Short Term Jan. 7, 2025 - Last week, Microsoft announced that it would spend approximately $80 billion during this fiscal year to build data centers for its booming artificial intelligence business. That gargantuan sum is a testament to the opportunity that Microsoft and other tech giants see in A.I. It also has the makings of a climate conundrum. • ‘Forever Chemicals’ Reach Tap Water via Treated Sewage Wastewater, Even After Treatment to Make it Drinkable, Contains High PFAS Levels Jan. 6, 2025 - As the world grapples with climate change, population growth and dwindling supplies of fresh water, more people are set to rely on treated wastewater to sustain their daily lives. But wastewater, even after treatment, contains high levels of harmful “forever chemicals” that are already contaminating the drinking water of millions of Americans, researchers said in a study published on Monday that analyzed wastewater samples nationwide. • Heavy Snow and Ice Move From Midwest to Mid-Atlantic Hundreds of Thousands of Customers from Missouri to Virginia were Suffering Power Outages... Jan. 6, 2025 - A wide-reaching winter storm dropped more than a foot of snow and closed major highways in parts of the Midwest as it continued its trek eastward Monday. In parts of the Great Plains, snow totals exceeded anything that had been seen in decades. At least three fatalities were reported in two traffic incidents in the Midwest. Click now for more of the story. • Biden to Block Oil Drilling Across 625 Million Acres of U.S. Waters Affecting Future Oil and Gas Leasing Across Parts of the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, the Eastern Gulf of Mexico and the Northern Bering Sea Jan. 4, 2025 - President Joe Biden will move Monday to block all future oil and gas drilling across more than 625 million acres of federal waters — equivalent to nearly a quarter of the total land area of the United States, according to two people briefed on the decision who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the announcement is not yet public. Click now for additional information. • ‘A Place For Kids to Play and a Place to Store Water’ The Stormwater Capture Zone that is Also a Playground Jan. 3, 2025 - For a city that is almost small enough to fit inside Manhattan’s Central Park just a few miles away, a lot of history has played out within the narrow borders of Hoboken, New Jersey. It was the site of the first organized baseball game in 1846, home of one of the US’s first breweries in the 17th century and the place where Oreo cookies were first sold in 1912. And, as any Hobokenite will tell you, the Mile Square City, as it is called, is also known for something else. • How an Antacid For the Ocean Could Cool the Earth A New Technology Promises to Remove Carbon From the Atmosphere and Prevent Ocean Acidification Jan. 3, 2025 - The world’s oceans stow vast amounts of carbon dioxide. Now, a growing group of scientists and companies say they’ve found a way to increase that storage capacity by tweaking ocean water chemistry. The technique, known as ocean alkalinity enhancement, usually involves dissolving acid-neutralizing rocks in the ocean, allowing it to absorb more carbon dioxide. • This Hidden Mineral is Crumbling Thousands of Home Foundations Across New England Pyrrhotite Causes Cracks in Concrete. But Research on How Widespread the Issue Might Be Has Only Scratched the Surface Jan. 3, 2025 - In 2020, Karen Bilotti and her husband, Sam, started to notice fine lines in their basement’s concrete walls. Ordinarily, they might not have given them a second thought. But the Bilottis had recently heard about a growing group of nearby homeowners in Massachusetts with larger cracks in their foundations, and Sam began to worry. “‘With our luck, our house is probably affected,’” Karen recalled him saying. “And I’m like, ‘You’re crazy. You’re absolutely ridiculous. There’s no way.’” Through core testing, scientists and engineers had determined the culprit behind fissures like those in their neighbors’ homes was pyrrhotite, a mineral made up of sulfur and iron found in some concrete aggregates. • Not a Happy New Years Eve For Puerto Rico Power is Restored to Nearly All of Puerto Rico After a Major Blackout Jan. 2, 2025 - Power was restored to nearly all electrical customers across Puerto Rico on Wednesday after a sweeping blackout plunged the U.S. territory into darkness on New Year’s Eve. By Wednesday afternoon, power was back up for 98% of Puerto Rico’s 1.47 million utility customers, said Luma Energy, the private company overseeing transmission and distribution of power in the archipelago. Lights returned to households as well as to Puerto Rico’s hospitals, water plants and sewage facilities after the massive outage that exposed the persistent electricity problems plaguing the island. • Underwater Volcano Off Oregon Coast Scientists Anticipate the Submarine Volcano Will Erupt Before the End of 2025 Jan. 2, 2025 - In the depths of the Pacific Ocean, 470 kilometers off the Oregon coast, a drama is unfolding. Axial Seamount, one of the most active underwater volcanoes in the world, is swelling with magma. Scientists believe it will erupt before the end of 2025—a bold prediction, but one based on decades of monitoring and a unique volcanic rhythm. Bill Chadwick, a geophysicist at Oregon State University, likens the situation to a pressure cooker nearing its limit... • Detecting Hidden Moisture in Your Walls This Radar System Can Do Just That Jan. 2, 2025 - Mold is one of the most significant challenges for homeowners, and once it takes hold, it can be incredibly difficult to eliminate. Preventing mold is the best approach, and the cornerstone of mold prevention is managing humidity. Now, researchers from Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have developed a method using microwave radar to monitor the moisture content in wood inside walls. “We know microwave radar shows great promise for this, because it’s well known that it can measure the moisture in wood samples,” ORNL’s Philip Boudreaux said. “But can it measure moisture in wood that is inside a wall to detect high-moisture issues before they become a big problem? That’s the challenge.” • Bird Flu Strikes Again Severe Case Confirmed in the US Jan. 2, 2025 - A patient in Louisiana has been hospitalized with a severe case of bird flu (H5N1). This is the first instance of serious illness from this virus in the United States. Although health officials emphasize that the risk to the general public remains low and the virus still isn’t transmitted from human to human, this as a stark reminder that avian influenza remains a persistent and pervase threat, especially to those in close contact with birds and other animals. Click now to read all about it. Louisiana Plastics Plant Put On Pause is a Win For Activists Parisians: Recovering a River Now Buried Under the City Cities Take Action to Limit Loud and Polluting Lawn Care Air Pollution Causes Over 1 Million Stillbirths Each Year Plastic Pellets Flow From the Mississippi Into the Gulf How About a Little Radio-activity in Your Fertilizer? Sustainable Concrete: Do What the Romans Did NY Fracked Gas Plant Rejections Set Precedent To Clear City Smog, Chile Pushes Electric Taxis • Moving Stockholm Toward an Emissions-Free Future Slaughterhouses Pollute Our Waterways Amazon and Others Destroy Unsold Products Plastic Pollution is in All Areas of the U.S. Tropicana Sued Over Malic Acid Presence Drinking Water With ‘Forever Chemicals’ Did We Really Need a Clean Water Rule? Solving the Global Cooling Problem Uranium Mining in the Grand Canyon Insects Could Vanish Within a Century Declining: The Dirt Beneath Our Feet Wiping Out the Boreal Forest - Literally Coal Ash: Hazardous to Human Health NRDC Warns of Up to 40% Food Waste Mangroves May Store More Much CO2 How Do I Reduce My CO2 Footprint? C’mon Congress - Get the Lead Out	Reinvent Cement World Oceans Day The Global Safety Net Tropical Deforestation NOAA Carbon Tracker Ocean Plastics Pollution Dirty Water = Dirty Fish The Real Cost of Carbon 16 Must-See Documentaries Going Green When You Go Your Car's Carbon Footprint Interactive Power Grid Maps Minimizing Pesticide Usage Asbestos Exposure Treatment Micro-plastics Raining Down Diesel School Buses & Health Singapore's Marina Barrage Drinking Water Report Card The Toll s Single-Use Plastics Compare Your City's Pollution What Is Amphibious Architecture? Costa Rica Reversed Deforestation Headed for the Last Roundup®? The Great Pacific Garbage Patch Head & Shoulders Above the Rest How Your State Makes Electricity Australia’s Ecosystems Collapsing The Goldman Environmental Prize Transportation Emissions in the U.S. How Fracking Threatens Our Water Air Pollution and Its Health Impacts Keeping Plastics Out of Our Oceans The World's Most Controversial Tree A Plant in Florida Emits Nitrous Oxide Who's Sueing Who Over Gulf Oil Spill? Coffee With a Side of Microplastics Affect of Abandoned Oil and Gas Wells Cancer Causing Radon in Your Home

India: Source of the Worst Pollution

The World Air Quality Report 2024 by AQI aims to highlight the global air quality trends in 2024 to support the progress on environmental actions globally. Thus, the report focuses on the PM2.5 concentrations and AQI (Air Quality Index) across countries and cities. To offer a comprehensive air pollution view, both real-time and historical data from AQI.in have been collected and utilized.

The report analyzes the AQI and PM2.5 levels in the air across 5,750 cities in 140 countries and regions. The data for this report was collected from more than 15,432 air quality monitoring stations operated by governmental bodies, research institutions, universities, and other organizations.

The data used in the following report was sourced from AQI.in, which monitors and collects real-time air quality. This report categorizes the data by countries, regions and cities and also includes city-wise and country-wise rankings. The Asia region has more extensive data coverage because of a higher number of air quality monitoring stations in the area. The report utilizes AQI and PM2.5 metrics to understand the air pollution risk globally. • AQI: Calculated based on the U.S. standardized measurement system. • PM2.5 Data: Reported in µg/m³ (micrograms per cubic meter), adhering to the latest World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for PM2.5 levels. • Cigarette data is based on PM2.5 levels using Berkeley’s rule: 1 cigarette = 22 µg/m³ PM2.5.

x s

Oil Spill History

"Birds and Oil Don't Mix"
• The Oilspill That Never Quite Goes Away Signs of BP's Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Persist Over a Decade Later Aug. 10, 2022, -Though the leak was eventually capped (temporarily in July 2010 and permanently in September 2010), the spill damage and lingering effects didn’t end there. Even more than a decade later, some signs of the environmental catastrophe remain, according to a new study published in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science. • Massive Spill Hits Southern California’s Beaches About 3,000 Barrels of Oil Leaked from a Broken Pipeline Off the California Coast Oct. 3, 2021, (Bloomberg Green)-California beaches in Northern Orange County were closed and wetlands contaminated by a huge oil spill caused by a broken pipeline off the coast. About 3,000 barrels of oil leaked from the pipeline and washed up on beaches and wetlands in Huntington Beach, a popular spot for Southern California surfers and beach goers. The beach’s ocean and shoreline have been closed indefinitely, the city said in a statement Sunday. • Mystery: Origin of the Oil Killing Brazilian Sea Turtles? Oil Is Killing Brazil’s Turtles Where Is It From? Oct. 12, 2019 (TIME)- More than a month since oil started washing up on some of Brazil’s most touristic beaches, dotting sand with b lack patches, killing sea turtles and scaring off fishermen, the origin of the crude is still a mystery. “We don’t know the oil’s origin, where it came from or how it got here,” Energy Minister Bento Albuquerque said at an offshore exploration auction in Rio de Janeiro on Thursday Click now for more details • One Dead in Gulf of Mexico Rig Accident One dead in Gulf of Mexico Rig Accident - But No Pollution July 21, 2019 (UPI) -There is no pollution associated with an explosion on a drilling platform about 12 miles off the coast of New Orleans in the Gulf of Mexico, a regulator said. The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said it was notified by oil and gas operator Fieldwood Energy of an explosion on its Echo Platform. Fieldwood said one contract worker was killed and three other employees were treated for injuries at an onshore medical facility. Click now for the whole story. • 14-Year-old Oil Leak in Gulf: Far Worse Than Taylor Energy Says New Estimate for an Oil Leak: 1,000x Worse Than Rig Owner Says June 25, 2020 (NY Times Climate Forward) -A new federal study has found that an oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico that began 14 years ago has been releasing as much as 4,500 gallons a day, not three or four gallons a day as the rig owner has claimed. The leak, about 12 miles off the Louisiana coast, began in 2004 when a Taylor Energy Company oil platform sank during Hurricane Ivan and a bundle of undersea pipes ruptured. Oil and gas have been seeping from the site ever since. Click now to read all about it. • It’s Been Nine Years Since the Deepwater Horizon Incident Nine Years After Deepwater Horizon April 16, 2017 (National Wildlife Federation) - It has been nine years since BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded off the coast of Louisiana, killing eleven men and unleashing an 87 day-long torrent of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico. National Wildlife Federation has taken an active role in Gulf recovery, advocating for science-based decision-making to benefit wildlife and their habitats as Gulf leaders invest recovery funds into restoration. While there are still decades of recovery ahead, significant strides have been made over the last eight years to restore the Gulf for coastal communities and wildlife. As we reflect on the lives lost and the damage wrought, we should also consider how we can prevent a similar disaster from happening in the future. Click now for the complete story • Torrey Canyon Oil Spill - Learning From History Torrey Canyon Disaster – the UK's Worst-Ever Oil Spill 50 Years On Mar. 18, 2017 (The Guardian) - “I saw this huge ship sailing and I thought he’s in rather close, I hope he knows what he’s doing,” recalled Gladys Perkins of the day 50 years ago, when Britain experienced its worst ever environmental disaster. The ship was the Torrey Canyon, one of the first generation of supertankers, and it was nearing the end of a journey from Kuwait to a refinery at Milford Haven in Wales. The BP-chartered vessel ran aground on a rock between the Isles of Scilly and Land’s End in Cornwall, splitting several of the tanks holding its vast cargo of crude oil. Click now for the complete story	• The Prospect of Cuba Drilling In The Gulf Concerns Tampa Bay Advocates of Gulf Oil-Drilling Ban Worried By Talks With Cuba Aug. 18, 2016 (Tampa Bay Times) - Progress in international talks over who owns a piece of the Gulf of Mexico has raised the specter of a Deepwater Horizon tragedy along local shores. A few hundred miles from the west coast of Florida is a 7,700-square-mile area of the Gulf of Mexico known as the Eastern Gap, thought to be rich with oil but with no clear owner. The U.S., Cuban and Mexican governments are now negotiating how to split the area among the three nations. Once that happens, each country can drill for oil in its allotted portion. • Shell Oil Mimics BP With 90,000 Gal. of Crude Shell Oil Spill Dumps Nearly 90,000 Gallons of Crude Into Gulf May 13, 2016 (EcoWatch) -An oil spill from Royal Dutch Shell’s offshore Brutus platform has released 2,100 barrels of crude into the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. The leak—roughly 88,200 gallons—created a visible 2 mile by 13 mile oil slick in the sea about 97 miles south of Port Fourchon, Louisiana, according to the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement. Officials said that the accident occurred near Shell’s Glider field, an underwater pipe system that connects four subsea oil wells to the Brutus platform, which floats on top of the water with a depth of 2,900 feet. Click now for more (if you can bear it). • Blowout Highlights Gulf Drilling Dangers Blowout Highlights Gulf Drilling Dangers July 25, 2013 (Mother Nature Network) -Flames erupted from an offshore drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico, torching a natural gas plume that had been leaking since a blowout earlier in the day. All 44 rig workers were evacuated before the fire began, according to the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, but the rig continued spewing gas until Thursday morning, when its scorched frame finally collapsed enough to cut off the leak. Click now for the whole story. • Obama White House Lifts Deepwater Drilling Ban Obama White House Lifts Deepwater Drilling Ban Oct. 12, 2010 (CBS News) -The Obama administration on Tuesday lifted the deep water oil drilling moratorium that the government imposed in the Gulf of Mexico in the wake of the disastrous BP oil spill. The administration has been under heavy pressure from the industry and others in the region to lift the six-month ban on grounds it has cost jobs and damaged the economy. A federal report said the moratorium likely caused a temporary loss of 8,000 to 12,000 jobs in the Gulf region. While the temporary ban on exploratory oil and gas drilling is lifted immediately, drilling is unlikely to resume immediately. Drilling companies must meet a host of new safety regulations before they can resume operations, officials said. Click now for more if you can bear it. • Enter the No-Spin Zone of the Deep: the BP Live Feed The No-Spin Zone of the Deep June 5, 2010 (Christian Science Monitor) - It was the last thing BP wanted: An open, high-definition live video feed – a "spillcam," if you will – showing in excruciating detail the massive oil geyser fouling the Gulf of Mexico, a situation admittedly caused by the giant extractive firm. But after a series of PR disasters – waffling, obfuscating, misplaced optimism, a gaffe-prone CEO – the decision by BP, under pressure from Congress, to put the live feed on the air reaped some unexpected plaudits for the company. Click now for the complete story from the archives. • Can We Restore the Gulf of Mexico? Gulf Oil Spill: Dispersants Have Potential to Cause More Harm Than Good May 11, 2010 (CISTON PR Newswire) -The chemical dispersants being used to break up the oil leaking into the gulf following the explosion of British Petroleum's Deepwater Horizon offshore oil rig have the potential to cause just as much, if not more, harm to the environment and the humans coming into contact with it than the oil possibly would if left untreated. That is the warning of toxicology experts, led by Dr. William Sawyer, addressing the Gulf Oil Disaster Recovery Group, a group of lawyers working to protect the rights and interests of environmental groups and persons affected by the Deepwater Horizon disaster. The group represents the United Fishermen's Association and the Louisiana Environmental Action Network (LEAN), among others. Click now to learn more. • Exxon Valdez: The Story That Never Goes Away 20 Years After Exxon Valdez Oil Spill, Alaskan Coastline Remains Contaminated Mar. 24, 2009 (Democracy Now) - Today marks the twentieth anniversary of the Exxon Valdez oil spill, one of the worst environmental disasters in history. The Exxon Valdez spilled between 11 and 38 million gallons of crude oil into the fishing waters of Prince William Sound. The spill contaminated more than 1,200 miles of Alaska’s shoreline and killed hundreds of thousands of seabirds and marine animals. It also dealt a staggering blow to the residents of local fishing towns, and the effects of the disaster are still being felt today. We speak with Riki Ott, a community activist, marine toxicologist, former commercial salmon fisherma’am and author of two books on the spill. Her latest is Not One Drop: Betrayal and Courage in the Wake of the Exxon Valdez Spill. Click now for the story deep in the archives.

America's Greenest Cities

Provided by Mother Nature Network
# 1 - Portland, Ore The city of microbrewery mania and home to megastore Powell's Books — one of the few remaining independent booksellers in the country — is No. 1 in sustainability. Declared the most bikeable city in the United States for its 200 miles of dedicated bike lanes, Portland certainly makes forgoing gas-powered travel easy. And for lessons in DIY sustainable food sources, classes are available for container gardening and cheese making, or beekeeping and chicken keeping.	# 2 - San Francisco, Cal. Declared by Mayor Gavin Newsom to be America's solar energy leader, this vibrant city of cultural tolerance was a 1960s icon and epicenter for the Summer of Love. But in addition to peace, love and solar power, there's also an innovative recycling program with an artist-in-residence at the recycling facility. The artist uses his work to inspire residents to recycle and conserve. San Francisco is also the first U.S. city to ban plastic grocery bags, a concept that supports its effort to divert 75 percent of landfill waste by 2010.
# 3 - Boston, Mass. It's hard to think of this city without also thinking of tea — as a commodity, not a drink. Boston ranks high among the urban green elite. Sustainability efforts include a "Green by 2015" goal to replace traditional taxi cabs with hybrid vehicles, recycle trash to power homes, use more solar panels, and use more electric motorbikes for transportation. The city's first annual Down2Earth conference was held in 2008. It's designed to educate residents about how to live the most sustainable lifestyle.	# 4 - Oakland, Calif. Residents of this port city have access to an abundance of fresh, organic food, much of which is locally sourced. It's also home to the nation's cleanest tap water, hydrogen-powered public transit and the country's oldest wildlife refuge. Oakland also plans to have zero waste and be oil-independent by 2020, and already gets 17 percent of its energy from renewable sources.
# 5 - Eugene, Ore. Known as the Emerald City for its natural green beauty, this baby boomer haven and second largest city in the state has been doing the "green" thing since the 1960s. In 2008, after only one year of service, the Emerald Express, a hybrid public transit system, won a Sustainable Transport award. Cycling is the preferred mode of transportation, made possible by the 30 miles of off-street bike paths and 29 dedicated bike routes, which total a whopping 150 miles of smog-free travel throughout the metro area.	# 6 - Cambridge, Mass. In 2008, Prevention Magazine named Cambridge "the best walking city." Thoreau's Walden Pond can be found in nearby Concord, and education powerhouses Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University are located here. In 2002, city officials implemented a major climate protection plan and today most city vehicles are fueled by B20 biodiesel or electricity. All new construction or major renovations must meet LEED standards. And a project called "Compost that Stuff" collects and processes organic waste from residents, restaurants, bars and hotels.
# 7 - Berkeley, Calif. A great place to find an abundance of organic and vegetarian restaurants is also on the cutting edge of sustainability. Berkeley is recognized as aleader in the incubation of clean technology for wind power, solar power, biofuels and hydropower.	# 8 - Seattle, Wash. The unofficial coffee klatch capitol of the country is also sustainable-living savvy. More than 20 public buildings in Seattle are LEED-certified or under construction for LEED certification. Through an incentive program, residents are encouraged to install solar panels on their homes for energy conservation. Sustainable Ballard, a green neighborhood group and sustainability festival host, offers ongoing workshops about how to live in harmony with the environment.
# 9 - Chicago, Ill. The Windy City has embraced land sustainability far longer than you may think. In 1909, pioneering city planner Daniel Hudson Burnham created a long-range plan for the lakefront that balanced urban growth, and created a permanent greenbelt around the metropolitan area. This greening of the city continues through the Chicago Green Roof Program. More than 2.5 million SQF city roofs support plant life — including Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) and the city hall building. Also, about 500,000 new trees have been planted.	# 10 - Austin Tex. Carbon neutral by 2020 — it's an ambitious goal, but Austin Energy is the nation's top seller of renewable energy among 850 utility-sponsored programs, which makes its goal to power the city solely on clean energy within reach. As the gateway to the scenic Texas Hill Country, acreage in Austin devoted to green space includes 206 parks, 12 preserves, 26 greenbelts and more than 50 miles of trails.

Safer Habitats Table of Contents
(Click on a link below to get the full picture.)
Clean Air Council	Climate Emergency Network	Common Dreams	Earthworks
Env. Impact Assessment	Environmental Working Group	Florida Black Bears	Fly California
Gold Rush vs Salmon Habitat	Guardian Sustainable Business	Los Angeles Mass Transit	Mass.gov
Sierra Club	UNLV Recycling	Virginia Dept of Env. Quality	Your Cities, Yourselves

Organizations for Safer Habitats

(Click on an image for more of the story)
The Guardian Sustainable Business Read articles like "Famers Turn Tobacco into Airplane Fuel," Infographics on Air Pollution and Your Health, Cardboard Boxes You Sleep In, and much, much more. Florida Black Bears are in trouble, and they can't hire their own lawyers. -but we can help.	Gold Rush vs Salmon Habitat Five major mining projects have been proposed for the transboundary watershed – the waters shared by British Columbia and southeast Alaska. The region is home to important salmon producing rivers that originate in British Columbia and run through Alaska to the sea. A number of environmental groups, Alaskan Natives and commercial fishermen strongly oppose some of these mining developments across the border. They argue mining could have negative impacts on the salmon and water quality, and irrevocably alter the region's economy, environment and way of life
Environmental Working Group Two-thirds of produce samples in recent government tests had pesticide residues. Don't want to eat bug- and weed-killers? EWG's Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce helps you shop smart. We highlight the cleanest and dirtiest conventionally-raised fruits and vegetables. If a conventionally grown food you want tests high for pesticides, go for the organic version instead. And remember - the health benefits of a diet rich in fruits and vegetables outweigh risks of pesticide exposure. Dirty Dozen™ Plus highlights hot peppers and leafy greens - kale and collard greens - often tainted with unusually hazardous pesticides.	Hydraulic Fracturing (AKA Fracking). Another assault to the environment for which we can thank Haliburton and others. Read all about this extreme method of natural gas extraction , and its impact on water quality and other serious health issues (human and other species). Click the Earthworks icon to learn more.
100 Coal Plants Unplugged. This Sierra Club milestone, 100 coal plants defeated, marks a significant shift in the way Americans are looking at our energy choices. Read on and/or view video.	What Massachusetts is doing about Climate Change?
Flooded Village Files Suit, Citing Corporate Link to Climate Change. The eroding village of Kivalina in the Northwest Arctic is suing Exxon Mobil and 23 other energy companies for damage related to global warming. Read all about it.	This is the web page for Climate Emergency Network news. Click now to get there.
Impact reports for the high speed rail system. You can fly California without leaving the ground, or the carbon footprint associated with air travel. Includes maps of the extensive rail system. ALL ABOARD! The Cape Wind Project will bring clean energy to Nantucket Sound. The project has been delayed by NIMBY (not in my back yard) issues by some who claim to be environmentalists.	An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is an assessment of the likely positive and/or negative influence a project may have on the environment. “Environmental Impact Assessment can be defined as: The process of identifying, predicting, evaluating and mitigating the biophysical, social, and other relevant effects of development proposals prior to major decisions being taken and commitments made.”[1] The purpose of the assessment is to ensure that decision-makers consider environmental impacts before deciding whether to proceed with new projects.
EIR + Facts about the Los Angeles Metro - yes, L.A. has a mass transit system. Also read about the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)	Your Cities, Yourselves Smart-growth advocates offer tips for changing your neck of the woods.
Virginia Dept. of Environmental Quality The Office of Environmental Impact Review coordinates the Commonwealth's response to environmental documents for proposed state and federal projects. The environmental impact review staff distributes documents to appropriate state agencies, planning districts and localities for their review and comment. Upon consideration of all comments, the staff prepares a single state response.	Discover how Networkfleet can help lower fleet fuel costs and greenhouse emissions with technology that combines GPS vehicle tracking with onboard engine diagnostics.
Monitoring the environmental impact of Pennsylvania's energy generation. A steward in validating the state's compliance with the Clean Air Act. What happens in Pennsylvania doesn't necessarily stay in Pennsylvania.	Between 2003 and 2006, the UNLV Rebel Recycling Program recycled 2,144.5 tons of materials. Paper/Fiber (cardboard, paper, books) recycled was 1,641.6 tons. The diversion of these materials from the Apex landfill to the manufacturing process resulted in a positive impact on the global environment. Click on the logo for more.

Companies Producing Cleaner Power

(More companies will be
added to this page shortly)

1366 One Step Closer to
Opening US Solar PV Wafer Facility

Solar silicon wafer innovator 1366 Technologies has landed new funding led by newest partner Tokayama, and is ready to scale up to a 250-MW production line ahead of an anticipated upswing in demand.

Ten months ago 1366 moved into a new 25-MW pilot facility in Bedford, Massachusetts, to nail down process and tweak equipment for its solar silicon wafering technology to take the next step toward commercialization. In June of 2013 the firm inked a R&D deal with Japanese silicon producer Tokuyama with hints that it could expand to an equity investment.

What if a cost-effective air pollution control technology could actually increase energy efficiency? What if it were possible to prevent harmful emissions from the combustion of any fuel, including gas, biomass, coal — even tire-derived fuel and municipal solid waste — in the flame, before those pollutants were ever formed?

The executives at Fulton-based Redox Power Systems are making a bold bet: The homes and businesses of the future will be powered by an extraterrestrial-looking apparatus loaded with fuel cells that convert natural gas and air into electricity.

The technology promises to be more efficient and environmentally friendly than the systems that power many buildings today, but the company has to first overcome the economic and social barriers that often beset renewable energy ventures.

Mesothelioma is a Disease Brought
On By Exposure to Asbestos

Disclaimer: There are many sites that focus on treatment, but we lack the credentials to recommend the best ones*. We've provded a short list:

• Mesothelioma Justice Network • MesotheliomaLawyerCenter.org
• Mesothelioma Staging System • Treat Mesothelioma.org
• Mesothelioma Help Now

*Always consult with a professional
before making your choice.