FIRST LOOK:

Join multiple groups for "Environmental Justice: From the Grassroots to the White House," a 90 minute virtual celebration of the 30th anniversary of the first National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit. Thursday, Oct. 28 at 7:00pm ET.

'Shameful' — Wealthy Countries Say They Hope To Keep Climate Finance Promise, Three Years Late: The richest countries in the world will likely be at least three years late to make good on their promise to provide developing countries with $100 billion annually to help reduce climate pollution and adapt to (and lessen) the impact of climate-fueled disasters ravaging their countries. “The $100 billion of climate finance is not only a lifeline to poor and vulnerable communities on the frontline of a climate crisis they did not cause, it’s also the bare minimum that rich countries need to do to hold up their end of the bargain at COP26," Mohamed Adow, director the Nairobi think tank Power Shift Africa, told The Guardian. The report published Monday could only express "confidence" that the nations that built their wealth in large part by extracting resources from what is now the developing world, would be able to fulfill their pledges in 2023. "It’s utterly shameful," Adow added. "Poor nations will not be conned and the leaders of the developed world need to pull their finger out and get this money on the table if COP26 is going to be a success." (The Guardian, Thomson Reuters Foundation, Climate Home, Washington Post $, Axios, Politico Pro $, New York Times $, The Hill, Reuters) [This corrects a previous version that misstated the amount of climate financing pledged by wealthy nations.]

'Way Off Track' — Atmospheric GHG Levels Rose At Above Average Rate Even During Pandemic Slowdown: Atmospheric concentrations of heat-trapping greenhouse gasses hit a new record high last year and rose faster than the 10-year annual average despite temporary slowdowns induced by the coronavirus pandemic, a report from the UN WMO detailed Monday. The stark World Meteorological Organization 'Greenhouse Gas Bulletin' report, coming just days before world leaders meet at the COP26 climate negotiations in Glasgow, said CO2 levels hit 413.2 ppm, and levels of even more potent methane and nitrous oxide also rose. "At the current rate of increase in greenhouse gas concentrations, we will see a temperature increase by the end of this century far in excess of the Paris Agreement targets of 1.5 to 2 C above preindustrial levels," said WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas. "We are way off track." (AP, NPR, Washington Post $, Reuters, CBS, Axios, The Hill, The Guardian, Reuters, Axios, ABC)

Hertz To Buy 100,000 Teslas: Hertz will buy 100,000 Tesla Model 3s by the end of next year, the car rental company announced Monday. The major purchase, by the company that filed for bankruptcy last year in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, was broadly seen as a significant step toward the widespread adoption of electric vehicles. Hertz plans to partner with Tom Brady, the highly-successful, if controversial, NFL quarterback who was friendly with Donald Trump to promote its EV push. Once the purchase is complete, EVs will make up more than one-fifth of the Hertz fleet. The purchase also pushed up Tesla's stock price, raising its market capitalization to over $1 trillion for the first time. "Electric vehicles are now mainstream, and we've only just begun to see rising global demand and interest," said Hertz interim CEO Mark Fields. (Axios, New York Times $, USA Today, NPR, CNBC, Business Insider, Wall Street Journal $, BBC, CNBC, Bloomberg $, The Verge, ABC, Washington Examiner; Commentary: Bloomberg, Liam Denning column $)

(ENVIRONMENTAL) RACISM: Plagued by daily blackouts, Puerto Ricans are calling for an energy revolution. Will the Biden administration listen? (InsideClimate News), racial justice groups demand Mark Zuckerberg’s resignation after Facebook Papers leak (NewsOne)

BIG PICTURE: Why developing countries say net-zero is ‘against climate justice’ (Grist)

COP26: Pushing polluters out at COP26 (Atmos), COP26 gets an ambitions downgrade (Reuters), 4 key issues to watch as world leaders prepare for the Glasgow climate summit (The Conversation), key moments from decades of climate conferences (Reuters), Russia says climate change is a big priority. But its real goal at COP26 will be slowing down progress (TIME), the COP26 summit to fight climate change is about to start. Here's what to expect (NPR), what is COP26? Here's how global climate negotiations work and what's expected from the Glasgow summit (CBS), what we’re watching during the final countdown to COP26 (Axios)

CLIMATE DIPLOMACY: G20 youth demand swift climate action in UN poll powered by video games (The Hill), the UN chief’s relentless, frustrating pursuit to bring the world together on climate change (Washington Post $), UN chief Guterres doesn’t want his grandkids ‘to say that the planet is hell’ (Washington Post $)

COAST TO COAST STORMS: Massive storms hit country from coast to coast (ABC),

• EAST COAST: Powerful nor'easter prompts flash-flood advisories (CBS), bomb cyclone to blast northeast with heavy rain and howling winds (Washington Post $)
• WEST COAST: Weather whiplash in California: extreme rains pound regions under exceptional drought (Yale Climate Connections, Gizmodo), record-breaking bomb cyclone lashes West Coast (CBS), ‘bomb cyclone’ hits the West Coast (NBC), cleanup underway after 'bomb cyclone' slammed West Coast with heavy rain, wind, mudslides (NBC), powerful storm brings flooding, landslides and heavy snow in northern California (Washington Post $), atmospheric river unleashes record-setting rain, flooding in California (Washington Post $), atmospheric river slams California, but La Niña winter looms (Axios)

PUBLIC HEALTH: Natural gas leaks in Boston are vastly underreported — and could be coming from inside homes, study says (Washington Post $), tiny leaks, big impacts: new research points to urban indoor methane leaks (Yale Climate Connections), Shun fossil fuel firms by treating them like tobacco industry, EU urged (The Guardian), climate change threatens to worsen health disparities in Hawaii (Honolulu Civil Beat)

DENIAL & DISINFORMATION: Total accused of campaign to play down climate risk from fossil fuels (InsideClimate News), Facebook froze as anti-vaccine comments swarmed users (AP)

FOSSIL VOLATILITY: Rising prices, once seen as temporary, threaten Biden’s agenda (New York Times $)

IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT: Anxiety from climate change isn't going away. Here's how you can manage it (NPR)

CARBON PRICING: Carbon needs to cost at least $100/tonne now to reach net zero by 2050: Reuters poll (Reuters), economists ‘grossly undervalue young lives’, warns Stern (The Guardian)

EPA: EPA deems ‘forever chemical’ haunting N.C. toxic to humans (E&E News), EPA finally has an action plan to improve water infrastructure and sanitation for US tribes (Grist), The key for EPA rules? Inside the methane tech revolution (E&E News)

DOE: DOE study details ‘supergrid’ for high levels of renewables (E&E News)

DOI: BLM’s top cop out, accuses senior official of ethics violations (E&E News)

EXECUTIVE BRANCH: ‘Disappointing’: the US’s first climate migration report falls flat (Grist)

LAWSUITS: California district court vacates Trump water rule limiting states' rights (Politico Pro $, E&E News)

THE HILL: Democrats ready to put a wrap on dragged-out talks (The Hill), Congress eyes $235B in clean energy subsidies. Here they are (E&E $)

SENATE: 'Unaccountable and unaccessible': Sinema’s green supporters feel jilted (Mother Jones), Manchin gets closer to 'yes' on Dems' $1T-plus social spending plan (Politico), Manchin pushes for more climate cuts from the budget bill. (New York Times $)

WHITE HOUSE: White House eyes new climate change strategies in Biden bill (AP), Biden hopeful Democrats can reach spending deal before he attends climate summit (Reuters, The Hill), In advance of climate summit, tension among Biden aides on China policy (Washington Post $)

INFRASTRUCTURE BILL(S): Democrats likely to ditch U.S. methane fee amid opposition, sources say (Reuters), Democrats weigh plastic tax in budget package (Houston Chronicle), the centerpiece of Biden’s climate agenda is all but dead. So now what? (Mother Jones), What’s in and what’s out of Democrats’ $2 trillion budget reconciliation plan (Wall Street Journal $), with corporate tax off table, U.S. Democrats turn to billionaires to fund spending bill (Reuters), Biden and Democrats making progress toward deal on social spending plan (CBS), Biden and Democrats push for budget deal this week as rifts remain (New York Times $)

POLITICS: Critical week for President Biden’s multi-trillion dollar spending plans (NBC), lobbying powerhouse Facebook sidesteps reconciliation fight (E&E News), Washington Gov.: there is 'cause for optimism' on climate (CNN)

CITIES AND STATES: Amid debate over natural gas, Connecticut ratepayers are subsidizing new connections (Energy News Network), Texas is watering down federal infrastructure funds (Texas Observer)

CALIFORNIA: Unchecked oil and gas wastewater threatens California groundwater (InsideClimate News), California groups divided on inclusion of gas in 11.5 GW 'clean' procurement order (Utility Dive), can California tourism survive climate change? (New York Times $)

FERC: FERC's Glick targets divide in clean energy rules' impact on power markets (Politico Pro $)

HURRICANES: Hurricane Rick hits Mexico’s southern Pacific coast (AP), La Palma’s volcanic ash spreads across Atlantic (Gizmodo)

SOLUTIONS: ‘Natural infrastructure’ could save billions a year in climate crisis response (The Guardian)

BAD APPLES: Climate change hurt this year's harvest (E&E $)

CRISIS MULTIPLIER: 'Children are going to die', U.N. agency warns as Afghanistan verges on collapse (Reuters), climate migration predicted to rise in India as extreme weather worsens (Reuters)

ARE YOU SLEEPING TOO EASILY?: Permafrost thaw could unleash long-buried pathogens and radioactive waste (Gizmodo)

RENEWABLES: Siemens Gamesa chooses Virginia for offshore wind turbine blade factory (Virginia Mercury, Reuters, E&E $, Washington Examiner, WAVY), Colorado research farm studies benefits of pairing agriculture with solar panels (Yale Climate Connections), judge narrows Tesla shareholders' lawsuit against Musk over SolarCity deal (Reuters), why a Koch-owned refinery is joining Minnesota’s solar industry trade group (Energy News Network)

BUILDINGS: Soaring energy prices put spotlight on Europe's draughty buildings (Reuters)

OIL & GAS: Oil to geothermal: renewable game changer? (E&E News), twin peaks: whether it's supply or demand, oil era heads for crunch time (Reuters)

LNG: Cheniere to sell LNG to Glencore, keeping expansion plan on track (Reuters)

PIPELINES: To stop Line 3 across Minnesota, an Indigenous tribe is asserting the legal rights of wild rice (InsideClimate News)

COAL: Hawaii has a one-year deadline to ditch coal. Can it keep the lights on? (Canary Media)

GRID: NextEra's failure to upgrade Seabrook plant jeopardizes planned $1B transmission line, Avangrid warns (Utility Dive)

TRANSPORTATION: Paris plans to be completely cyclable by 2026 (EcoWatch)

EVs: Supply chain woes continues to crimp Tesla's vehicle, energy business (Utility Dive)

RELIGION: Most U.S. Catholic bishops silent on climate change — study (E&E $)

FINANCE: Bipartisan buy-in for ESG among voters (Axios)

SHIPPING: Shipping drifts off net-zero course without carbon levy -study (Reuters)

INTERNATIONAL: Brazil to hasten end to illegal deforestation, vice president says (Reuters, AP), new nuclear reactors can help France become carbon neutral by 2050 -RTE (Reuters), why Trudeau’s Cabinet is due for an overhaul (Politico)

• UK:Road-blocking climate protesters resume campaign in London (AP, The Guardian), UK authorities hit road-blocking climate activists with injunction (Reuters), Tories received £1.3m from fossil fuel interests and climate sceptics since 2019 (The Guardian)
• AUSTRALIA: Australia will be the rich world's weakest link at COP26 with hollow net-zero and emissions pledges (CNN), Australia's cabinet to review deal on net zero emissions target -sources (Reuters), Australia pledges ‘net zero’ emissions by 2050. Its plan makes that hard to believe. (New York Times $), Australia pivots on climate with 2050 net zero target, but won’t adopt steeper 2030 commitment (Washington Post $)
• SAUDI ARABIA: The world's top oil exporter pledged to reach net-zero emissions. here's how that's possible. (Washington Post $), Saudi Arabia to Start Investment Fund for Carbon Capture (TIME), Saudi pledges net zero by 2060, but no oil exit plan (Climate Home)

• Environmental justice is essential in the workplace and at home (The Nation, David Michaels and Robert Bullard op-ed)
• Struggling families about to take another hit: Home heating costs projected to soar (The Hill, Mark Wolfe op-ed)
• US can lead on climate action by supporting developing countries (The Hill, Michael Sheldrick and Laetitia Pettinotti op-ed)
• To ensure equality for all, Senate must end filibuster (The Hill, Rep. David Cicilline op-ed)
• This movement is taking money away from fossil fuels, and it’s working (New York Times, Bill McKibben op-ed $)
• Ahead of COP26, top Biden appointees pushing natural gas are undermining his climate credibility (DeSmog, Sal Christ op-ed)
• Carbon capture will require more than government grants and tax incentives (Houston Chronicle, Benedict Semmes op-ed)
• How New England could demonstrate what a 'clean energy RTO' looks like (Utility Dive, Caitlin Marquis op-ed)
• Fighting climate change requires changing Texas beef and oil culture (Houston Chronicle, Chris Tomlinson column)
• It’s time to pivot from war aid to climate aid (The New Humanitarian, Hugo Slim op-ed)
• Are financial regulators starting to take climate change seriously? (Canary Media, Justin Guay op-ed)
• The next chapter of Britain’s climate policy story will take place in the kitchen (The Guardian, Max Wakefield op-ed)
• Lethal ‘forever chemicals’ taint our food, water and even blood. The EPA is stalling (The Guardian, David Bond op-ed)
• Build back better has some fans in Manchin’s backyard (New York Times, Farah Stockman column $)
• The first thing we do, let’s kill all the leaf blowers (New York Times, Margaret Renkl column $)
• Affordable housing is critical infrastructure — its funding doesn't show it (The Hill, Michael McAfee op-ed)
• Tax the rich, help America’s children (New York Times, Paul Krugman column $)

Fake Meat Bans, Debunked Texas Energy Claims And False EV Attacks Provide Examples Of Disinfo To Expect At COP26

As the world gears up for the COP26 climate negotiations in Glasgow next week, deniers are already laying the groundwork for the disinformation they’ll peddle in a hopefully-vain attempt to recreate their success in using Climategate disinformation to disrupt the Copenhagen COP. 

While every year brings a new and exciting display of denial, a few recent stories stand out as top candidates for the fossil fueled opposition to latch onto when confronted with the possibility that letting polluters profit our planet to death is a bad idea. 

Though we can expect some totally-unhinged and unsubstantiated claims about banning beef, one of the biggest recurring arguments is also one of the most misleading, that the Texas blackouts offer a warning of what climate policies will make common. For example, Sean Spicer, who hasn’t quite danced his Trump-stained reputation clean yet, has a new book out, and the Koch-funded RealClear ran an excerpt. It opens with a heart-tugging story about a 12 year old who died of hypothermia, and then quickly exploits the child’s death to score cheap, and false, political points. The 80+ deaths “were caused by political decisions,” Spicer writes, and “the tragedy of the Texas blackout was partially the result of the growth of the green energy industry.” 

But the majority of the responsibility for the blackouts can be laid at the fossil fuel industry’s failure to do the one thing it claims it does best: be reliable.

That reliability claim is also at the core of another strain of disinformation we’re seeing around COP26, which is the suggestion that the Teslas parked at the Gleneagles Hotel that the VIPs will use in Glasgow are going to be charged by diesel generators. “Couldn’t make it up,” one viral tweet claimed. 

It was used as the basis for a ZeroHedge story, and the same narrative has been picked up by the UK’s Spectator magazine, and the climate denial blog Watts Up With That. 

The problem? Well, it turns out you could make it up, and they did, as it turns out it’s Jaguar-brand electric vehicles they’re using, not Teslas, and while the COP26 crew may use supplemental generators to charge the vehicles somewhere, Gleneagles Hotel has denied setting up any chargers, while conference organizers told Alastair Dalton for the Scotsman that any spare generators are going to be filled with cooking waste oil, not diesel.  

Although unreasonable for faux-populist conservatives to attack the rich elite pushing for climate action, it does seem odd that they’re apparently incapable of doing so in an honest way, despite that being so very, very easy to do. 

For example, a recent New York Post op-ed does a fine job of criticizing the billionaire boy’s club of Bezos, Musk, Gates, and Jobs('s widow), but also throws in some fakery for good measure. While Paula Froelich is correct that “the electric cars made by Musk’s Tesla are not emissions free,” she then goes on to claim that the Wall Street Journal showed that “building one of his cars actually generates more emissions because of the metals needed for its lithium-ion batteries.” 

But when you click through to the WSJ story, the subheadline notes that while “there are caveats”, “EVs produce fewer emissions overall than their gas-powered counterparts.” That’s because while the manufacturing of an electric vehicle requires more materials than a gas-powered car, the pollution from refueling soon and far outweighs that initial difference. 

Drive a Tesla for more than (at most) 20,000 miles, and you’ve broken even on emissions. Drive it for a car’s average lifespan of 150,000 miles, and not only has the EV cost you less in ownership (because electricity is cheaper than gas) but you’ve also generated less than half as much pollution. 

So if they had ordered and produced new electric cars for the COP26, and then immediately scrapped them afterwards, then yes, that would be hypocritical and wasteful. But the UK government has already said that the cars “have all been sourced from existing fleets in the UK,” so there’s not even that initial manufacturing pollution to count, dramatically improving the emissions footprint. 

But, as one local environmental campaigner, Colin Howden, told the Scotsman, what they could’ve done to reduce emissions even further (and avoid this issue all together) is have the dignitaries take advantage of the “fleet of new electric buses” in Glasgow.

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