FIRST LOOK:

Tonga Tsunami Augurs Danger For Continued Climate Impacts: The tsunami triggered by an underwater volcanic eruption left destruction across the South Pacific island nation of Tonga that illustrates even greater danger from the impacts of climate change, Reuters reports. Climate change, primarily caused by the extraction and combustion of fossil fuels, is raising sea levels and posing existential threats to Pacific Island nations responsible for a less than one-half of one-tenth of one percent (0.03%) of historic climate pollution. Acute disasters like tsunamis and storm surges are not the only climate-exacerbated threat to nations like Tonga. Sea level rise is greater near the equator than at the poles and sea water inundation can leave agricultural soils useless for years. More than 6,000 miles away, thousands of barrels of oil were dumped into an important fishing area rich in marine biodiversity when waves set off by the volcanic eruption hit Peru's main oil refinery. “There is a massacre of all the hydrobiological biodiversity,” said Roberto Espinoza, leader of the local fishermen. “In the midst of a pandemic, having the sea that feeds us, for not having a contingency plan, they have just destroyed a base of biodiversity.” Tonga: (Reuters, Earther, New York Times $; Peru oil spill: AP; Climate Signals background: Sea level rise)

Scientists, Former Employees Call On Edelman To Cut Ties With Fossil Fuels: More than 450 scientists called on public relations giant Edelman to stop working for oil and gas companies in a letter released Wednesday. "Advertising and PR efforts by fossil fuel companies … seek to obfuscate" the scientific reality of, and risks posed by, climate change," the scientists wrote. "These misinformation campaigns represent one of the biggest barriers to the government action science shows is necessary to mitigate the ongoing climate emergency." Research has shown top PR firms have played a significant role in denying and obfuscating the science of climate change while bolstering the reputations of major polluters. Edelman's work for fossil fuel companies is akin to shilling for Big Tobacco, according to a concurrent coalition of activists and former Edelman employees. “I do believe that extractive industry is going the way of tobacco, and for that same reason any [ad] agency who either claims ‘purpose’ or dabbles in sustainability will have to stop working with them,” Henk Carpenter, who quit working for Edelman over its work for API told the Washington Post. “Like CVS did — you can’t sell tobacco and medicine at the same time.” (Washington Post $, Reuters)

Rich Californians Losing Homeowners Insurance Over Wildfire Risk: Insurance companies have been pulling out of the California homeowner insurance market for years but the problem is really starting to hit home for wealthy homeowners, the Wall Street Journal reports. Climate change, primarily caused by the extraction and combustion of fossil fuels, is supercharging wildfires. California, however, prohibits insurance companies from increasing premiums based on future risk projections, something insurance companies say prevents them from accurately pricing in the risks posed by wildfires, leading them to pull their coverage, and homeowners across the state scrambling to find policies that will cover them. (Wall Street Journal $; Climate Signals background: Wildfires)

(ENVIRONMENTAL) RACISM: The dark side of paper (Atmos), DeSantis-endorsed bill banning teachings that cause white people ‘discomfort, guilt’ moves forward (NewsOne)

BREINER DAVID CUCUNAME: 14-year-old environmental activist shot dead in Colombia (AFP, Guardian)

BRONX GAS EXPLOSION: Fiery Bronx gas explosion building collapse kills elderly resident, injures 7 others: ‘the pieces just went everywhere’ (New York Daily News, NBC New York, AP, New York Post), multiple Bronx homes ordered torn down after deadly suspected gas blast and fire (NY1, Fox 5 NY), family of Bronx victim remembers matriarch killed in fiery gas explosion: ‘A God-fearing woman’ (New York Daily News, CBS2, New York Post)

CLIMATE DIPLOMACY: German leader champions new tack on climate at Davos event (AP), Germany’s Scholz calls for G-7 climate club (Politico Pro $)

(ATTACKS ON) VOTING RIGHTS: Activist ties voting rights bills, environmental justice (E&E $), abortion rights groups tie their fight to voting rights (The 19th* News), citing supply chain problems, Texas Secretary of State office places limits on voter registration forms (The Root), Florida's republican governor proposes an election police force (The Root), LGBTQ+ people of color are at risk from rising voter restrictions as federal protections falter in the Senate, advocates say (The 19th* News), Sen. Tim Scott says president Biden's voting rights speech is "misleading," ignoring his own party's role in the matter (The Root), Stevie Wonder slams lawmakers over voting rights: ‘Cut the bulls—’ (The Grio), fury over voting rights fight turns personal on Capitol Hill (The Hill)

(ATTACK ON) DEMOCRACY: Harris was inside DNC on Jan. 6 when pipe bomb was discovered outside (Politico, Black Wall Street Times), Supreme court rejects Trump’s request to withhold Jan. 6 materials from House committee investigating Capitol riot (Washington Post $, NPR, Vox, AP, ABC, New York Times $, Wall Street Journal $, NBC)

INTERCONNECTION: What do new cookstoves in Ghana and air conditioners in NYC have in common? Energy justice. (Environmental Health News)

AGENCIES: Companies worry US SEC climate rule may require broad emissions disclosures (Reuters), SEC under pressure to implement agenda in 2022, while Democrats control congress (Wall Street Journal $), USDA names key aides on conservation, environment (E&E $)

EPA: Power companies back EPA climate authority at Supreme Court (E&E News), Regan touts EPA environmental justice efforts, water loans (E&E $), survey: burnout, morale hamper EPA chemicals office (E&E News)

DOE: Energy Department not discussing LNG export ban, Deputy Secretary Turk says (Politico Pro $, The Hill)

DOI: Judge won’t order Interior to revive ND oil leases (E&E $)

EXECUTIVE BRANCH: Corps of Engineers to focus on supply chain problems, climate change with $14B in allocated spending (The Hill)

BUILD BACK BETTER ACT: ‘Build Back Better’ hit a wall but climate action could move forward (New York Times $), desperate Dems signal support for cutting Biden bill down in size (The Hill), Build Back Better plan could pass in chunks, Biden says (Reuters, Politico Pro $), White House aims to restart agenda talks with Manchin (Wall Street Journal $)

THE HILL: Democrats’ new climate target: Bitcoin (Politico, Axios), Ban on stock trading for Congress gains steam (The Hill), inside the effort to uncage a bipartisan wildlife bill (E&E News)

HOUSE: This 'super-freshman' [Rep. Melanie Ann Stansbury] is making a mark on climate policy in the house (Washington Post $)

SENATE: Senators want NPS to yank plaque honoring white supremacist (E&E $), Senate Democrats join Biden to pivot Build Back Better strategy (Axios)

WHITE HOUSE: President Joe Biden didn’t expect Republicans to obstruct his agenda (Buzzfeed), White House ‘Made in America’ council targets agency buying (E&E News), White House tees up historic $1B Everglades funding (E&E News)

• YEAR 1: Biden fails to fulfill pledge on climate lawsuits (E&E News), A for targets, D for action: Joe Biden’s first year on climate, graded (Climate Home)

POLITICS: White House to Dems: Tout the $2.4T you got passed, ignore the infighting (Politico)

ELECTIONS: Sunrise endorses Green New Deal backer in Texas House race (E&E $), meet the anti-conservation Republican vying to unseat Cheney (E&E News)

NOMINEES & CONFIRMATIONS: Biden taps Kathryn Huff for top nuclear job at DOE (Politico Pro $, E&E $)

CITIES AND STATES: States unwind FERC plans for grid expansion (E&E News), Colorado looks to expand building codes as climate change increases risk of wildfires (NPR), a clean energy future: how Hawaii is sparking the push (NPR), EPA, blue states push back on Republicans' SCOTUS bid to curb agency powers (Reuters)

• CALIFORNIA: California's rooftop solar proposal tees up conflict between agencies (Politico Pro $), California regulators blame a warehouse fire for toxic fumes that displaced thousands. Locals say there’s more to the story. (Grist)
• TEXAS: ERCOT: Texas grid 'more prepared' for winter 'than ever before' (Houston Chronicle), winter weather is set to mess with Texas (Earther)

FERC: DC Circuit calls FERC rejection of dam flooding allegations 'illogical' (Politico Pro $), FERC Commissioner Christie blasts 'false narrative' about state of US electric grid (Politico Pro $)

IMPACTS: A trove of old photos could reveal the future of these Arctic glaciers (New York Times $), Southern snowstorm likely worsened by climate change, scientists say (Yahoo), climate change will limit choice for Winter Games hosts, says study (Reuters), Florida’s red tides are getting worse and may be hard to control because of climate change (InsideClimate News), how climate change could increase deer ticks and the diseases they carry (WBUR), lumber prices are off the rails again. Blame climate change. (The Atlantic), storm chews up Jersey Shore beach that’s being widened (AP)

COSTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE: US allocates $14 bln to expand ports, shore up waterways (Reuters)

HEAT: Rising heat linked to kids’ ER visits (E&E News, New York Times $)

MARSHALL FIRE: Woman missing in wildfire was last seen trying to save dogs (AP)

RENEWABLES: Superstores can meet half their electricity needs with rooftop solar, says a new report (Washington Post $), heavy hitters form $500M joint venture to expand community solar to disadvantaged communities (Canary Media), construction to begin soon on new US offshore wind farm (AP, E&E $, Politico Pro $), companies announce largest ND wind farm in history (E&E $), Google’s ‘dragonscale’ solar-powered roof signals growing demand for sustainable workspaces (The Guardian), how solar farms could do double duty (Yale Climate Connections), predictions favored solar over wind power. What happened? (New York Times $)

BATTERIES: Lithium is essential for modern EVs: how did the US let its production falter? (Green Car Reports)

BUILDINGS: Discarded energy invention from 1990s makes a comeback (E&E News)

STORAGE: Batteries get hyped, but pumped hydro provides the vast majority of long-term energy storage essential for renewable power – here’s how it works (The Conversation)

METHANE: Methane cloud spotted near Oklahoma natural gas pipelines (Bloomberg $)

OIL & GAS: Chesapeake Energy nears $2.4 bln deal to buy Chief Oil & Gas -sources (Reuters), Exxon pledges to cut emissions — but not from its oil (Grist), IEA: oil is back and 2022 could be volatile (Axios)

LNG: European gas slumps as China readies to flood market with LNG (Bloomberg $), Woodside, Commonwealth LNG ink agreement to negotiate Louisiana plant supply deal (Reuters), China’s Sinopec floods LNG spot market with cargoes for 2022 (Bloomberg $)

COAL: Colorado coal town grapples with future as plant shuts down (AP), Court backs deal on methane cuts from major Colorado coal mine (E&E $)

HYDROGEN: Abu Dhabi's Masdar signs green hydrogen deals with Engie, TotalEnergies (Reuters), GM announces plans to make mobile power generators using hydrogen fuel cells (The Verge, Reuters)

UTILITIES: A Minnesota co-op credits clean energy transition for stabilizing wholesale rates (Energy News Network), a new recognition is coming of rate design's critical role in the energy transition (Utility Dive), winter gas bill from hell: Oklahomans face paying $1.4bn over snowstorm (The Guardian)

GRID: Court deals blow to Midwest power line touted for renewables (E&E $)

EVs: Analysts: electric vehicle sales slated for 2022 surge (Axios), Volkswagen money helps Connecticut start ‘long road’ to electric school buses (Energy News Network)

PICKET LINES: Nobody is listening to climate scientists. What if they went on strike? (Grist)

BOOKS: Milwaukee author [Mark Johnson] pens climate change disaster book (WISN-12, USA Today)

AGRICULTURE: UN report: the world’s farms stretched to ‘a breaking point’ (Yale Climate Connections)

YOU READ THAT RIGHT: How a married undercover cop having sex with activists killed a climate movement (Vice)

FINANCE: BlackRock CEO: Don't call me an environmentalist (E&E $)

BITCOIN: EU regulator wants to ban proof of work crypto mining to avoid climate disaster (Earther)

FOOD: Cultivated meat passes the taste test (TIME)

WILDLIFE: Expanding national parks not enough to protect nature, say scientists (The Guardian), To get by in a changing climate, plants need animal poop to carry them to safety (NPR)

INTERNATIONAL: EU beats 2020 renewable energy goal, France lags behind - Eurostat (Reuters), Macron calls for ‘more explicit’ environment protections in EU rights pact (Politico Pro $), what Gabriel Boric’s victory in Chile will mean for Palestine (The Real News), Europe's efforts to shield households from energy cost spike (Reuters, Factbox)

• Strong methane rules protect God's creation (Santa Fe New Mexican, Joan Brown op-ed)
• Look up! The planet-busting threat called climate change is already here (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Mark Johnson op-ed)
• Environmental justice requires a healthy democracy (Bloomberg Law, Mustafa Santiago Ali op-ed)
• Your health (and you thought climate change was not about you) (The Hill, Bill Frist op-ed)
• Logging makes forests and homes more vulnerable to wildfires (The Hill, Chad Hanson and Dominick DellaSala op-ed)
• It is not too late to Look Up (Al Jazeera, David Ho and Laurent Bopp op-ed)
• This must be the year of climate action — we've wasted so many (The Hill, James Gustave Speth op-ed)
• Rising costs of climate crisis must compel Congress to act (The Hill, Manish Bapna op-ed)
• Bitcoin mining is America's most misunderstood industry (Newsweek, Nic Carter op-ed)
• To boost economy and midterm outlook, Democrats must pass clean energy bill (The Hill, Paul Bledsoe op-ed)
• Finish the job: Congress passed infrastructure package, but BBB investments are still needed (The Hill, Sarah Ladislaw and John Larsen op-ed)

Want to Write Your Own Right-Wing Media Disinfo Stories? Well, NYTimes and CNN are Hiring! … As Is Chevron! 

Trawling through the dredges of rightwing blogs and conservative hate-bait click farms would be hell for most non-brain-poisoned people, but if you’re the type of sick and sadistic S.O.B. that read our posts about pee-drinking antivaxxers, misinfo-spreading metaverse bots, and alien conspiracy theorists and think this is a pretty plum gig: it is, and you can’t have it!

Fortunately for you though, mainstream news organizations are catching on to the importance of detecting and debunking disinformation. For example, the New York Times is hiring a political reporter to cover right wing media. They’re looking for someone “prepared to inhabit corners of the internet that popularize far-right or extremist ideas”, and “can successfully research and report on the people behind these ideas, shedding light on their motivations and sources of funding, mapping the connections and networks and analyzing how these ideas are being received and acted upon.” 

Among others, “prerequisites include the backbone to withstand aggressive blowback,” which makes sense given that there’s already blowback to a similar position, and it hasn’t even been staffed yet! 

According to a very serious news story from the conservative Washington Examiner’s Social Media Producer Luke Gentile, “CNN was ripped online Tuesday after a top editor for the left-leaning network announced the creation of a special CNN team dedicated to ‘covering misinformation.’" 

CNN Business’s managing editor Alex Koppelman tweeted that they’d be hiring an editor and two writers for a new misinformation beat, and a bunch rightwing accounts made various versions of the same “no u” response. Gentile just rounded up all his favorite reactions to Koppelman, and turned it into “news” by quoting the tweets in full and embedding them into the story, thereby giving every reader the fully immersive conservative media consumption experience of being so drunk you’re seeing double, and mad about it.

A real journalist might have tried to figure out if anything ever came of the fake news reporter CNN was recruiting back in 2017, but then again a real journalist probably wouldn’t work at the Washington Examiner! 

If you’re also not a real journalist, but still want to get in on the disinfo action, there’s also a few new programing and computer science-y jobs available at Indiana University’s social media observatory, which is a very fancy way to describe being way too extremely online.

And if you’re really, really not a real journalist, to the extent that you’re actually openly hostile to the importance of journalistic integrity, there’s one last position you might want to know about. 

As reported recently by very real (seriously!) journalists Hannah Northby and Corbin Hiar at E&E, Chevron is looking to beef up its own fake news operation, and is staffing up by trying to poach real reporters. (Interestingly, this is the second example of Hiar’s byline on a story about a Chevron PR department screw up.) The LinkedIn job postings don’t name Chevron, but the reporters did journalism and confirmed Chevron was the energy industry client for whom the business writer, creative director and Editor in Chief positions would serve. 

Interestingly, it seems to be more focused on in-house corporate content, as opposed to their corporate PR website that poses as a local news outlet calling itself the Richmond Standard to gaslight locals into thinking Chevron’s sometimes-on-fire refining facility isn’t polluting the town. 

Which is just to say that if you’d like a first-hand look at how one oil industry giant produces (dis)information, and happen to have experience and training in journalism, then consider applying–after all, Chevron can certainly afford to pay better than most real media outlets!

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