FIRST LOOK: 

Fracking is Injustice: Join Physicians for Social Responsibility and Concerned Health Professionals of New York for the release of the 8th Fracking Compendium.  Live at the Colorado Capitol and on Zoom TODAY at 11:00 am MT/1:00 pm ET.

World Losing Far Too Much Tropical Old Growth Forest: Massive wildfires and widespread deforestation destroyed 27.5 million acres of tropical tree cover, including 9.3 million acres of primary forests in 2021, according to WRI's authoritative annual Global Forest Review, released this morning. Primary, also known as 'old-growth', forest destruction released 2.5 billion metric tons of CO2. That's about as much as all fossil fuel emissions from India, the world's fourth-largest emitter. More than 16 million acres of Northern boreal forests, particularly in Russia, were also lost last year, mainly due to wildfires. While year-on-year forest loss varies slightly due to wildfires, old-growth forest losses have been remarkably consistent in recent years and are far higher than the limit necessary to meet the commitment reached at COP 26 in Glasgow last year to "halt and reverse forest loss by 2030." In the time it took you to read this paragraph, approximately six soccer fields of tropical old growth forests were destroyed. (Washington Post $, Axios, New York Times $, BBC, The Guardian, CNN, Bloomberg $, Reuters, Thomson Reuters Foundation, Factbox, New Scientist, The Straits Times, AFP, EFE; Indonesia: The Straits Times)

Texas Voter Suppression Protects Fossil Fuels Out-Performed By Renewables: Renewable energy generation outpaced gas as the state's primary source of electricity in the first quarter of 2022. Wind and solar produced more than 32 gigaWatt hours in Q1, compared to the 29.7 produced by power plants burning gas primarily made up of methane. Meanwhile, elected Republicans in the state are stepping up their efforts to punish financial firms seeking to reduce or eliminate their investments in the fossil fuel industry. More than 70% of Texas support taking action to address climate change — 71% said transitioning to clean, renewable energy should be a “top” or “important” priority for the state, in a Climate Nexus poll this February — but voter suppression and gerrymandered legislative districts minimize voters' of color political power and entrench fossil fuel interests in elected offices, the Guardian reports. (Renewables > Gas: Houston Chronicle; ESG targeting: NPR, Bloomberg $; Voter suppression: The Guardian)

Biden Admin. Approves More LNG Exports As Consumers Pay High Prices And LNG Firms Rake In Profits: The Biden administration green-lit the export of an additional half a billion cubic feet of LNG to Europe, DOE announced Wednesday. The orders would allow liquified "natural gas," which is mostly methane, from the under-construction Qatar/Exxon "Golden Pass" project in Texas and another in Texas and Glenfarne's planned "Magnolia" facility in Louisiana. Gas exports are increasing U.S customers' utility costs, at the same time as LNG companies are cashing in on the high prices. Building new export terminals risks locking in fossil fuel infrastructure for decades, undermining the Biden administration's climate goals while the dire impacts of climate change are already wreaking destruction in the U.S., Europe, and around the world. (Export approvals: Bloomberg $, The Hill, Reuters; Prices: National Journal; Profits: Forbes)

(ENVIRONMENTAL) RACISM: Newark resident: Power plant ‘Not just, not right, not fair’ (AP), Report: Minneapolis police engaged in pattern of illegal racial discrimination (Minneapolis Star Tribune $)

FPIC: Free, prior and informed consent is the gold standard of Indigenous rights. Why isn’t it followed? (High Country News), FPIC is essential to Indigenous rights. What is it and why isn’t it followed? (Grist), Indigenous peoples say states must apply, enforce FPIC (Indian Country Today)

FOSSIL FUELED WAR: Europe’s economy would be hit by a wider cutoff of Russian gas. (New York Times $), TotalEnergies starts pullback from Russia with $4 billion charge (Bloomberg $), US oil production grows, but Russia’s war keeps gas[oline] prices high (The Hill)

• BLACKMAIL: Russia cuts off gas to Poland, Bulgaria, stoking tensions with EU over Ukraine (Washington Post $, NPR, E&E News), Poland and Bulgaria start life with no Russian gas (Politico EU), Russia says it halted gas exports to Poland and Bulgaria. But turning off the taps might not be so easy (Fortune), Russian gas stoppages spur Europe’s race for new energy supplies (Wall Street Journal $), You’re next: Kremlin warns anyone not paying in rubles also faces gas shutoff (Politico Pro $), Greece to pay Gazprom end-May, help Bulgaria after Russia cuts gas supply (Reuters)

DEMOCRACY: Rising authoritarianism and worsening climate change share a fossil-fueled secret (The Conversation)

CHOO CHOOOO: Major Japan railway now powered only by renewable energy (AP)

FINANCE: All the ESG investing terms, explained (Wall Street Journal $), Putting profits over people's lives': Climate activists released after protest at Wells Fargo headquarters (KQED), Robo advisers target young adults interested in ESG investing (Wall Street Journal $), TPG raises $7.3 billion for climate fund in sustainability push (Reuters)

• PROXY SEASON: Wall Street fund giants to show their cards on climate (Bloomberg $), Activist investors turning up heat on oil majors in proxy voting season (S&P Global), Investors at top US banks refuse to back climate proposals (FT $, E&E News

CLIMATE DIPLOMACY: Caribbean must speed renewable energy transition to manage oil shocks, official says (Reuters), IMF’s resilience fund ‘out of reach’ for some nations in need (Climate Home)

CLIMATE & WATERWAY LITIGATION: Norway asks human rights court to dismiss Arctic oil case (Reuters), Florida judge asked to recognize the legal rights of five waterways outside Orlando (Inside Climate News), 

DENIAL & GREENWASHING: Water bottle company accused of greenwashing claims 'environmental puffery' (MSNBC)

AGENCIES: Commerce Secretary says hands are 'very tied' on solar probe (Politico Pro $), Forest Service takes the lead in e-bike access (E&E News)

DOE: DOE finalizes rules to phase out older light bulbs, estimates consumers will save $3B annually (Utility Dive), DOE unveils $500M loan for massive ‘clean hydrogen’ project (E&E News)

DOI: Biden admin weighs offshore wind in deepwater Atlantic, Ore. (E&E News, Politico Pro $), Native American hires reflect changing Interior leadership (E&E News)

DOT: Will the $6 billion pledge to make transportation more sustainable be enough? Experts weigh in. (ABC)

WHITE HOUSE: ‘Someone is taking too many edibles’ — Despair mounts over Biden’s domestic agenda (Politico Pro $), Biden’s broken promise on climate? (High Country News), Biden restores stronger environmental review for federal projects (Utility Dive), Biden to consider canceling student loan debt, lawmakers say after meeting (The Grio, The Root)

THE HILL: Democrats launch attempt to rescue Biden’s economic agenda (Wall Street Journal $), Democrats say they will act soon to lower gas prices (The Hill)

HOUSE: Ginni Thomas texts spur House panel investigation into judicial ethics (The Root), 'Tiger of the House': DeFazio reflects on bills and brawls (E&E $)

SENATE: Will Manchin’s bipartisan energy gambit bear fruit? (E&E News)

POLITICS: Climate advocates fear that Manchin's bipartisan energy push is 'all smoke and mirrors’ (Washington Post $)

NOMINEES & CONFIRMATIONS: Senate confirms 1 Fed nominee; Republicans block another (E&E $)

TRIBES: Tribal sovereignty effort faltering, for now, in Maine (AP), Tribes await climate funding after one fixed old windmills (E&E $)

CITIES AND STATES: Appeals court nixes $1.1 billion timber award against Oregon (AP)

• CALIFORNIA: California readies regulations for zero-emission truck fleets (Utility Dive), California’s Terranova Ranch is getting ready for large electric farm equipment (Yale Climate Connections)

NEW ZEALAND: New Zealand unveils plan to tackle climate crisis by adapting cities to survive rising seas (The Guardian)

IMPACTS: There’s no scenario in which 2050 is ‘normal’ (The Atlantic), 'Eight years left to turn the ship': Scientists share how climate change could change daily life (CBS), A major ocean current is weakening. Is it climate change? (E&E $), Climate change putting 4% of global GDP at risk, new study estimates (Reuters), It’s raining harder than ever. New research says climate change is to blame. (Grist), Louisiana's coastal communities could see $5.5B in damages in worst-case climate change scenario (WWNO)

HOUSING: 17 deaths highlight tornado danger to mobile homes (E&E News)

CALIFORNIA DROUGHT: California declares historic water emergency measures amid drought (Washington Post $, AP, Wall Street Journal $, Axios)

WILDFIRES: As India swelters under extreme heat, Modi warns of fire risk (Reuters), Fire crews prepare for dry thunderstorms, erratic winds (AP)

MADLIBS OF BAD THINGS: Disease-causing parasites can hitch a ride on plastics and potentially spread through the sea, new research suggests (The Conversation), Climate change will accelerate viral spillovers, study finds (New York Times $)

LAND: UN report says humanity has altered 70 percent of the Earth’s land, putting the planet on a ‘crisis footing’ (Inside Climate News, Reuters, Grist), Here's how to reverse Africa's land degradation (Thomson Reuters Foundation) 

RENEWABLES: Meet the power plant of the future: Solar + battery hybrids are poised for explosive growth (The Conversation), Judge rules for Elon Musk in Tesla investor lawsuit over SolarCity deal (Reuters), Offshore wind could create more underwater noise. UNH researchers are measuring those impacts. (NHPR), Solar industry says 46% of US projects at risk (E&E $), TotalEnergies adds 4GW to renewable energy portfolio with US acquisition (Reuters), US identifies possible wind power areas off Oregon, Atlantic coasts (Reuters), Va. offshore wind project faces new cost, job questions (E&E $)

OIL & GAS: Global oil demand will peak within 5 years as more people buy electric vehicles, new report finds (Houston Chronicle)

HYDROGEN: Massive green hydrogen hub in Utah wins $504M federal loan guarantee (Canary Media)

UTILITIES: Could NextEra’s $55M winning bid for SPP’s transmission project be among the last of its kind? (Utility Dive), Rural electric co-ops are vying for infrastructure money to build EV stations (Politico Pro $), Xcel Energy proposes shutting Comanche 3 early, ending use of coal by 2031 (Denver Post)

EVs: Why clean power is crucial to EV scale-up (Axios), Batteries are getting cheap. So why aren’t electric vehicles? (Grist), Does a Musk-owned Twitter dim Tesla’s star? (E&E News), EV-charging startup freewire raises $125 million from investors including BlackRock (Wall Street Journal $), How can the US adapt for an all-electric vehicle future? Inside the search for charging solutions (NBC), Invesco launches electric-vehicle metals etf amid price surge (Wall Street Journal $), Is ​‘vehicle-to-everything’ charging ready for prime time? (Canary Media)

AGRICULTURE: Dairy giant decries vegan 'cancel culture,' says Gen Z is 'ashamed to order dairy in public' (Gizmodo)

CARBON PRICING: Carbon credits are the new Canadian gold rush (Wall Street Journal $)

CARBON REMOVAL: Enterprise, Oxy plan CO2 project along Texas Gulf Coast (Houston Chronicle)

GRETA: Greta Thunberg doesn’t want you to talk about her anymore (Politico Pro $)

WILDLIFE: From king cobras to geckos, 20 percent of reptiles risk extinction (New York Times $, AP, The Verge, Reuters)

INTERNATIONAL: Montenegro to invest 1 billion euros in boosting renewable energy (Reuters), 'Spain is not an energy island' - Iberdrola slams power market intervention (Reuters)

• Amid the worst drought in a generation, we must step up aid in the Horn of Africa (The New Humanitarian, Janez Lenarčič, and Jutta Urpilainen op-ed)
• Vice president Kamala Harris promised me a fracking ban (Atmos, Jessie Bluedorn op-ed)
• Keeping WV at the heart of US energy sector (Charleston Gazette-Mail, Lakiesha Lloyd op-ed)
• On climate change, engage with tribes as partners not applicants (Newsweek, Roger Fragua and Ryan Mast op-ed)
• Droughts in Somalia are partly our fault. We could at least let more migrants in (The Guardian, Sally Hayden op-ed)
• Broken climate promises (The Hill, William Becker op-ed)
• Elon Musk’s Twitter deal sullies his climate cred (Reuters, Antony Currie op-ed)

Mining Industry Desperate To Gut Environmental Protections Using Clean Energy As Excuse

There are rumors that coal baron Joe Manchin is trying to put together a bipartisan energy bill, one that might toss scraps to renewables while piling on the pork for the dirty energy industry that funds Manchin’s yacht and Maserati habits.  

Having been elected on the premise of destroying climate policy, and having done so repeatedly from his position as the crucial 50th Democratic vote in the Senate, it’s bizarre to think that anyone would at this point believe that former ALEC state chair Manchin will deliver any policy that reduces fossil fuel emissions. But that doesn’t mean he’s not apt to deliver something. 

As for what, we obviously don’t have any direct knowledge, but it looks like plenty of pipelines and fake solutions. But we are seeing a pretty propaganda push from Manchin’s comrades in the mining industry that appears perfectly aimed at securing supposedly bipartisan support for a pro-polluter policy move. 

A pair of posts on Tuesday at the RealClearEnergy propaganda hub show the strategy’s already working. “President Biden acceded to a bipartisan request from Senators Manchin, Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), James Risch (Idaho), and Bill Cassidy (Louisiana) to use the Defense Production Act to accelerate domestic production of the minerals used to manufacture lithium-ion batteries,” wrote Debra Struhsacker of the Women’s Mining Coalition.

But, her headline claims, that Biden “cannot increase critical mineral production [via the Defense Production Act] without streamlining project permitting” because “permitting obstacles are impeding clean-energy mineral projects across the country.” 

And this is probably, at least in a sense, true. Mining is an innately environmentally destructive activity, and doing it as cheaply as possible means doing it as dirty as possible, which is partially why not as much happens here in the U.S. any more. Instead, we import it from countries where it can be done cheaper, because there aren’t (enforced) child labor or environmental laws. Mining for inputs for “clean” energy isn’t, itself, inherently clean, in any way shape or form- though the energy they generate will then offset that pollution by reducing fossil fuel use. 

The permitting process here in the US could also probably be much quicker and smoother- particularly if companies didn’t try to cut corners in the first place and instead lived up to their greenwashing claims of protecting people and the environment in the first place. 

But, given the whole capitalism thing, and pending a Green New Deal that mandates the sort of local ownership and buy-in on extractive projects that would lead to actually environmentally friendly and publicly-supported instead of NIMBY-opposed mining operations, it’s true that everything from cell phones to EVs to ammunitions rely largely on mines outside the US. 

So the problem isn’t that the permitting process is too strict, it’s that companies are too cheap and lazy to meet them, when they can just go elsewhere. 

And at the same time, they’ll fearmonger about that “elsewhere,” to put the pressure on lawmakers to let them go back to the toxic and brutal glory days and devastated legacy of American mining. 

That’s the thrust of the second piece at RealClearEnergy, by a pair of authors with a book on “America’s new quest for mineral independence,” Dr. Ned Mamula and Ann Bridges. 

With the oh-so-clever headline “Wakening From the Fog of Peace,” Mamula and Bridges warn that “America has been lulled into a sense of complacency” because “commodities urgently needed” are “imported from communist China and Russia,” while US mining ramped up for WWII “lays dormant, but still has a world-class antimony resource” that could be tapped for munitions. 

They conclude that with “lives and freedom are at stake, the priority of our policymakers must be to become laser-focused on accessing America’s critical minerals for the benefit of its citizens. Otherwise, the U.S. will be enveloped by an even denser fog of war.” 

And again, there’s a spot of truth here! Policymakers absolutely should be focused on “the benefit of its citizens.” 

All of them. Not just those with a financial stake in the mineral industry, who time and again and again have sold out their neighbors to pad their wallets.

Which is why perhaps instead of rolling back the bedrock environmental law that protects people from all manner of pollution, lawmakers could perhaps update the 1872 Mining Law. Yes, the law covering mining for the sorts of minerals needed to power electric vehicles was written before the invention of gas vehicles and electric lightbulbs. 

But since advocates aren’t dressing up those calls in propaganda and placing them in dirty energy-funded websites people treat like media outlets, odds are slim Manchin will hear them. And since they would make it harder for mining companies to pollute, instead of easier, slimmer still are the odds Manchin will heed them. 

That’s no reason, though, for environmentalists to fall for whatever Manchin does cook up, and slap a climate label on. 

Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up to receive Hot News every morning!

Send updates or feedback to nkauffman@climatenexus.org
Submit events and other items for consideration for a First Look using this form
Some articles require logins or subscriptions ($)