Global Methane Emissions Break Record For 2nd Year Running: Global methane emissions increased by more than ever last year, breaking a record that stood for exactly one year, NOAA said Thursday. A massive portion of human-caused methane pollution comes from oil and gas operations, everywhere from wellheads to pipelines to kitchen stoves. Atmospheric methane traps more than 80 times more heat than carbon dioxide over a 20 year period, and its potency combined with its shorter atmospheric lifespan make cutting methane pollution the most efficient way to limit near-term warming. The Biden administration helped lead an effort to sign more than 100 countries onto a Global Methane Pledge to cut methane emissions by 30% by 2030. (Washington Post $, AP, E&E $, New York Times $, Reuters, Axios, Politico Pro $, CNN, The Hill, USA Today, CNBC, NBC, CBS, USA Today, The Guardian)
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson Will Be First Black Woman To Serve On Supreme Court: Ketanji Brown Jackson will serve as the 116th Justice and the first Black woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court following her 53-47 confirmation Thursday. She will be sworn in after Justice Stephen Breyer retires at the end of the Court's current term and will be on the Court in time to hear Sackett v. EPA in the fall. Jackson, a daughter of public school teachers, Harvard grad, and former public defender, endured a confirmation process rife with racism, misogyny, and personal attacks from Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee. "If I have to be [the] second [Black woman Supreme Court Justice], I’m fine being second to K.B.J.," 23-year-old Harvard Law student Abigail Hall told the New York Times. "She’s had to meet every single mark and she hasn’t been able to drop the ball … and that’s something that’s ingrained in us, in terms of checking every box, in order to be a Black woman and to get to a place like Harvard Law School.” Gwendolyn Gissendanner, also studying at Harvard Law, agreed. “I think of the Supreme Court as such an inaccessible beacon," she said, "and the idea that someone who reflects my own identity is going to be in that space is kind of — I don’t even know if I’ve fully processed that yet.” Jackson is unlikely to significantly alter the ideological makeup of a Court dominated by conservative justices, five of whom were nominated by presidents who lost the popular vote when first elected to office, who are seeking ways to drastically curtail the administrative state. The Roberts Court — despite being more demographically diverse than ever before — is more hostile to racial and gender equity than any Court since before Brown v. Board of Education. Republicans' misogynoir behavior continued through her confirmation vote with many walking out immediately following the vote and two Senators actually disrupting the voting process by refusing to wear proper attire for the Senate floor. Many first-generation law students have told Rutgers Law dean Kimberly Mutcherson they had never met a lawyer who looked like them until attending law school. “To see soon-to-be Justice Jackson sitting in her robe — the image of it is so powerful and meaningful,” said Mutcherson. “That can plant a little seed where a girl thinks, ‘Hmm, I wonder how you get there?’” (Confirmation: The Root, The Grio, NewsOne, Ebony, Prism Reports, Blavity, SCOTUSblog, AP, Washington Post $, New York Times $, NPR, Politico, USA Today, Wall Street Journal $, USA Today, MarketWatch, Al Jazeera, Variety, The Conversation, FT $, Slate, The Week, CBS, TIME, The Guardian, BBC, CBC, Deseret News, LA Times $, ABC, Deadline, New York Post, CNN, Yahoo, NBC, CNBC, NY Mag, The Hill, Texas Tribune, Economist, Dallas Morning News, Above the Law; Sackett and administrative state: E&E News, Gizmodo, E&E News; Representation: New York Times $, Reuters, CNN, USA Today, CNN; Misogynoir: NewsOne, CNN, FiveThirtyEight, Washington Post, Anita Hill op-ed $; State of the Court and impact: Vox, Washington Post $, New York Times $, The 19th* News, CNN; Commentary: Black Wall Street Times, Tanesha Peeples op-ed, Washington Post, Mary Ann Sieghart op-ed $, Politico, Brakkton Booker commentary, The Grio, Christina Greer op-ed, Washington Post, Robin Givhan commentary $, CNN, Tomiko Brown-Nagin op-ed)
Puerto Rico Hit By Massive Power Outage: Puerto Ricans remain without power (both electrical and in Congress) after an island-wide power outage plunged the disenfranchised colonial territory into darkness Wednesday evening. Every customer on the main island lost electricity when "all the generating units went offline," Josue Colon, Puerto Rico's lead telecommunications and infrastructure engineer, told reporters, and more than one-third of Puerto Rican power customers were still in the dark Friday morning. The initial failure was caused by a fire at the Costa Sur power plant outside Guayanilla. Puerto Rico's grid was decimated by Hurricane Maria and has been plagued by unreliability as efforts to modernize the grid have struggled under the private U.S.-Canadian company that took over Puerto Rico's grid last year. Despite poor service, residents of Puerto Rico pay almost twice as much for electricity as customers on the U.S. mainland. "This is horrible," Luisa Rosado, a San Juan mother of two told NBC. "To increase bills when you don’t provide a perfect service...the level of impunity is absurd." (CNN, E&E $, Wall Street Journal $, Bloomberg $, New York Times $; Grid modernization failures: NBC; Climate Signals background: Hurricane Maria) |
(ENVIRONMENTAL) RACISM: Fossil fuel ‘philosopher’ wrote about ‘superiority’ of western culture, and blamed Martin Luther King Jr. for increase in ‘Black crime’ (DeSmog)
FOSSIL FUELED WAR: War in Ukraine is scrambling the world's ability to fight climate change (CNN), Polar science threatens to crack under strain of Russia's war in Ukraine (Axios), US shale gas, LNG firms meet European countries over supply crisis (Reuters), As Russia attacks Ukraine, experts weigh European ‘renaissance’ for nuclear energy (Grist)
- RUSSIAN ENERGY BAN: Pressure mounts on Europe for total Russian energy embargo (Axios), EU backs Russian coal ban in first punch at energy revenue (Bloomberg $, Politico Pro $, Washington Examiner), EU not expected to fully ban Russian coal imports until August, sources say (CNBC), European, Asian coal users scramble for new sources ahead of EU Russia ban (Reuters), Why a ban on Russian energy is hard for Germany (E&E News)
- US POLITICS: Senate, house vote to strip Russia of favored trade status, back Biden oil ban (Wall Street Journal $, Reuters)
- OIL'S RUSSIAN WITHDRAWAL: Shell says Russia exit has already cost $5 billion (AP, Axios, CNBC, Bloomberg $, Wall Street Journal $), Oil majors have cash for a good clearout in Russia (Wall Street Journal $)
DENIAL, GREENWASHING, AND COST OF INACTION: True costs: how the oil industry cast climate policy as an economic burden (Grist), The future cost of climate inaction? $2 trillion a year, says the government (NPR), Bill Nye, the sellout guy (Gizmodo)
OOP$: Energy executive was inadvertently listed as author of GOP witness's testimony (Washington Post $)
IPCC: Yes, colonialism caused climate change, IPCC reports (Atmos), IPCC looks at neglected element of climate action: People (E&E $), We have the technology to solve climate change. What we need is political will. (TIME)
UK: More oil, nuclear power and wind: How the UK plans to tackle the energy crisis (CNN, Reuters, New York Times $, Bloomberg $, FT $, FT $, AP, CNBC), What is Boris Johnson’s energy plan, and what is it missing? (The Guardian), PM criticised for failing to push onshore wind or subsidise home insulation (The Guardian), Energy strategy: UK plans eight new nuclear reactors to boost production (BBC), Boris Johnson’s bold nuclear bet has echoes of Thatcher failure (Bloomberg $), UK finance regulators should pay heed to energy security policy, says Sunak (Reuters), The UK’s energy strategy flunks the key tests (FT $), UK’s new energy security strategy branded ‘missed opportunity’ (FT $)
VISUAL MEDIA: Mothers Out Front Newton has a message: ‘Gas: not safe, not clean, not green.’ (Boston Globe $), ‘Coal and Ice’ exhibit won’t help you understand climate change (Washington Post $)
SCOTUS: Thomas’ Monsanto years offer window into justice’s enviro roots (E&E News)
AGENCIES: ‘People are dying’: Becerra defends [HHS] climate health office (E&E News), FEMA’s new insurance system aims to make premiums fairer as climate change raises flooding risks (Philadelphia Inquirer)
EPA: 5 takeaways from Regan's Senate appearance (E&E $), EPA denies requests for biofuel blending exemptions (The Hill)
DOI: US agency to review oil, gas leases near Chaco in New Mexico (AP)
EXECUTIVE BRANCH: San Diego’s Miramar Marine Corps Air Station invests in renewable energy, microgrid (Yale Climate Connections)
THE HILL: Progressive bill seeks to expand emergency climate spending (E&E $)
HOUSE: What we learned from the Big Oil hearing (E&E News), Ro Khanna had some BBB advice for the president. Biden called it ‘homicide.’ (Politico)
SENATE: Kigali climate deal glides through committee hearing (E&E $), Lawmakers OK Russia energy bill (E&E News), Senators question drought response, Army Corps' budget cuts (E&E $)
CITIES AND STATES: Policy setbacks slow Virginia’s momentum on shared solar (Energy News Network), [Mass.] Senate unveils sweeping climate bill (Boston Globe $, AP)
- CALIFORNIA: Ballot initiative would tax Calif. millionaires to fund ZEVs (E&E $)
- TEXAS: Climate change ravaged America’s oil capital. Can it lead on clean energy? (LA Times $)
IMPACTS: One-third of Americans faced extreme weather in recent years, survey finds (New York Times $), Early heat wave, ongoing drought prompts concerns of long summer ahead for California’s power grid (KPIX), Climate graphic of the week: Polar regions experience extremes as world warms (FT $), The world is 'perilously close' to tipping points of irreversible climate change. These are 5 that keep scientists up at night. (USA Today)
HURRICANES: Forecasters predict above-average 2022 Atlantic hurricane season (Yale Climate Connections, Bloomberg $, NPR, Washington Post $)
SEA-LEVEL RISE: ‘It’s happening now’: how rising sea levels are causing a US migration crisis (The Guardian), As sea levels rise, can Chesapeake Bay's Tangier Island survive? (Thomson Reuters Foundation), Homebuyers ignore sea-level rise, Freddie Mac finds (E&E $)
ATMOSPHERIC CO2: Earth's CO2 levels to hit alarming milestone (Axios)
HEAT: 100-degree temps on tap as heat wave comes to SoCal (LA Times $)
WILDFIRES: Fire crews fight wildfire fueled by strong winds near Custer [South Dakota] (AP)
FLOODING DOWN UNDER: Sydney asks thousands to evacuate as heavy rains cause flash floods (Reuters)
SALMON: California salmon are at risk of extinction. A plan to save them stirs hope and controversy (LA Times $, LA Times $)
WATER: Two areas in rural Arizona might finally gain protection of their groundwater this year (Inside Climate News)
WINE: Another variable in the winemaking process: climate change (New York Times $), What it takes for a winery to earn a climate neutral certification (Washington Post $)
DEFORESTATION: How to halt deforestation? Trust indigenous groups, funders say (Thomson Reuters Foundation)
LIKE 'BEING UGLY TO YOUR MAMA': What Dolly Parton wants us to know about the Smoky Mountains (National Geographic, People)
FAMILY PLANNING: Some women are 2nd-guessing their family-planning choices because of environmental concerns (Insider)
RENEWABLES: Indian singer sparks surge in solar panel interest on Twitter (Thomson Reuters Foundation), Solar panels that can generate electricity at night have been developed at Stanford (NPR), US solar expansion stalled by rural land-use protests (Reuters), Wind giant reports turbine parts falling into the sea (E&E $)
BATTERIES: Green energy's hidden costs spark opposition (Indian Country Today and Underscore), New lithium technology can help the world go green -- if it works (Reuters)
BUILDINGS: It’s time for a net zero building boom (Bloomberg $), A super building for fragile times (New York Times $)
OIL & GAS: Boom or Bust: Oil industry hits North Dakota (Indian Country Today), Oil leases on federal land: what you need to know (Wall Street Journal $)
PIPELINES: US Chamber urges court to preserve pipeline permit program (E&E $)
COAL: China energy goals a problem as U.N. report calls for deeper coal cuts (Reuters)
GRID: Cities step up to save $2.5B Midwest power line (E&E News), MISO finds broad benefits to building $10.4B of transmission projects to support 53 GW of clean energy (Utility Dive)
EVs: After rough start, electric buses are back on the road in Minneapolis-St. Paul (Energy News Network), Biden administration, auto leaders want 'seamless' EV charging station use (Reuters), Chase bank partners with EVgo to add electric vehicle charging stations at 50 US branches (CNBC), Surge in car-crash deaths could be magnified by new breed of EVs (Bloomberg $), As gas prices went up, so did web searches for electric vehicles (New York Times $), The [Australian] electric car market heats up (New York Times $)
- TESLA: White House brings Elon Musk in for EV meeting (E&E $), Tesla-backed startup made cheap power a debt burden for the world’s poorest (Bloomberg $)
TRUCKS FOR EXTREMELY SECURE MANLY MEN: GM hopes all-electric Hummer 'super truck' will sway electric vehicle critics: 'Huge turning point' (CBS), I test-drove the all-electric Hummer. Can it win over America’s EV skeptics? (The Guardian)
CRYPTO: The biggest crypto effort to end useless carbon offsets is backfiring (Bloomberg $), The bitcoin mining showdown in New York’s wine country (TIME)
COOL: Meta’s former chief technology officer Mike Schroepfer to focus on climate change (CNBC)
RESEARCH: Texas A&M shut down a major climate change modeling center in February after a ‘default’ by its Chinese partner (Inside Climate News)
CARBON REMOVAL: Canada offers carbon capture tax credit to help cut emissions (Bloomberg $), Visualizing the scale of the carbon removal problem (The Verge)
FINANCE: Wells Fargo names its first chief sustainability officer (Utility Dive), They may be attracting big money, but these ETFs may not be as eco-friendly as you think (CNBC)
WILDLIFE: These birds aren’t lost. They’re adapting. (New York Times $) |
Because Washington Post Only Covered Some Of His Racism, Not All Of It, Alex Epstein Declares Victory
Last Friday, we documented Alex Epstein’s melt-down when the Washington Post’s Maxine Joselow reached out with questions about a story she was working on, regarding some content Epstein wrote while in college that disparaged Martin Luther King Jr., and used white nationalist rhetoric about the “inferiority” of non-Western cultures. Epstein rallied his oil-selling and/or racist friends to say he wasn’t racist, and when the piece didn’t run when initially scheduled, he believed he had successfully intimidated the Washington Post.
But a week later, Joselow’s Washington Post story ran, focused on his bloviating undergraduate drivel, and it was just as devastating for any potential credibility Epstein might’ve tricked anyone into thinking that he had.
In case you missed it, we encourage you to go check it out. Joselow’s reporting shows that while Epstein likes to earn fossil fuel funding by pretending he cares deeply about developing countries, the reality is that he thinks these places are inherently inferior and deserve to be in that position because of their non-(white)Western culture.
There’s plenty more though, as documented by Documented and covered by Nick Cunnigham at DeSmog, for instance that Epstein wrote that “Locke, Aristotle, and Newton have had no equivalents in Africa or Asia.” Which is as racist as it is wrong, because all three relied on African metallurgy, two of those white men used Arabic numerals not Roman when writing on Chinese-invented paper, and the third is no more unique than Confucius, the Dalai Lama(s), Siddharta Guatama (Buddha), or any other well-published early philosopher known to anyone not fetishizing white Western canon for the express purpose of denigrating others.
And Epstein was explicit about Africans, Latin Americans, Indian, and Native Americans being inferior to Europeans, as he took issue with the fact that “African and African American studies department has 23 classes” and what’s worse, “in many of these classes, African culture is presented, not as inferior to Western culture, but on equal footing with it.”
The horror!
Then there’s the Martin Luther King Jr. pieces, because Epstein twice wrote about how angry he was that MLK Day is a holiday Duke students get time off for, in 1999 and again in 2000 after his fellow students expressed outrage and disbelief that anyone could be so intentionally stupid. In 2000, Alex wrote “that because of the bad ideas he promoted, Dr. King is responsible for a great part of the destruction that has occurred in America today, especially among black Americans, the group he supposedly saved.”
Yes, young Alex quite literally blamed MLK for the problems caused by the white supremacy MLK (nonviolently) fought against.
But since the Post story didn’t include the MLK content, and just that he considers non-Western cultures (that just so happen to be non-white) to be inherently inferior, Epstein’s response was to declare victory!
Yes, because the Post only ran a whole story and newsletter post about his Western Civ chauvinism but not including his attacks on Martin Luther King Jr. and the idea that Duke students deserve time off for his holiday, Epstein is trying to spin what any human with a shred of decency or shame would consider a career-ending embarrassment into a point in his favor.
To be fair, it did get Alex onto Fox News’s website, which is a huge win for him, in that a bunch of Fox fans will now know him as the guy who DIDN'T get canceled for being racist in college. What an inspiration for that audience!
That makes sense though, because Epstein lives on turning failure into success. Fossil fuels are causing climate change? Alex says they’re good, and makes money doing it! Martin Luther King Jr. fought racism? Alex says MLK’s bad, and gets a ton of attention from fellow I’m-not-racist-but… friends that elevates his brand and grows his audience!
Washington Post’s Maxine Joselow proves that Alex’s fossil fuel lobbying purportedly on behalf of developing nations is purely in his fossil fuel funders interests, because Alex thinks those cultures are inherently inferior to white Western ones, but doesn’t flat-out label him “racist”? Success!
Given his career though, Epstein's response — spinning a story in the Post proving he’s a career liar who exploits developing nations he looks down on as a tool to sell fossil fuels as a victory — well, it actually makes a lot of sense!
Can’t be shamed into shutting up if you’re shameless! |
|
