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 Yosemite Wildfire Threatens Sequoias: The uncontained Washburn Fire threatens to incinerate more than 500 mature sequoias in Yosemite National Park, forcing the evacuation of park visitors and residents of Wawona, a community surrounded by the park. Sequoias were once believed to be impervious to fire damage, but in just the last two years, wildfires fueled by climate change have killed as many as one-fifth of the remaining 75,000 iconic sequoias on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. This is the second time in a month that one of the nation's most iconic national parks were closed due to climate-amplified extreme weather. Flooding washed out roads and bridges in and around Yellowstone National Park in mid-June, illuminating, the AP reports, the inadequacy of forecasting models ill-equipped to predict storms fueled by climate change. (Washburn Fire: AP, San Francisco Chronicle, Washington Post $, AP, LA Times $, The Guardian, CNN, New York Times $, CNN, Reuters, ABC, The Hill, Axios; Yellowstone floods: AP; Climate Signals background: Wildfires)

Biden Signals Support For Major Alaska Oil Project: The Biden administration, on Friday, signaled support for a major oil drilling project in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, despite Biden's campaign promise to end oil and gas leasing on federal lands. Sen. Lisa Murkowsi (R-AK), who supports the project, hailed the release of the assessment as a "major announcement." The project was initially approved by the Trump administration, then blocked by a federal court for failing to sufficiently consider climate and wildlife impacts, and supported by the Biden administration, While the assessment is not final, pending a 45 day public comment period, the administration's release of the assessment signals support, yet again, for the proposed multibillion dollar ConocoPhillips "Willow" project that, over its lifetime, would emit as much CO2 as a third of all US coal plants. “Totally furious that [@Interior] is one proforma step away from approving the ConocoPhillips Willow project," CAP senior VP for energy and environment Christy Goldfuss tweeted Friday. Dyani Chapman, Alaska Environment state director, called it "absurd … Alaska does not need any part of it," and pointed out it "is a proposal to literally re-freeze the tundra that is melting because of climate change to drill for more oil that will be burned and make climate change worse.” (Washington Post $, New York Times $, Anchorage Daily News, The Hill, CNN, Wall Street Journal $)

'Routine' Nord Stream Maintenance Shutdown Anything But This Year: Russia will close the Nord Stream methane-based gas pipeline for 10 days on Monday. The annual maintenance — routine in normal times — is ratcheting up fears the country waging war and committing horrific atrocities in Ukraine since late February will shut off gas supplies for good. A "total cut-off of Russian gas [is] the most likely scenario today," French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told reporters Sunday. Christian Kullmann, CEO of the German chemical firm Evonik Industries AG, agreed, telling Bloomberg that “It would be naive and starry-eyed not to be worried.” In some parts of Germany, hot water is being limited, traffic lights are being turned off at night, and air conditioning is being turned down to reduce energy consumption. Europe's skyrocketed demand for liquified methane-based gas, including from Africa while calling on countries there not to burn gas, has global ramifications. European countries are out-bidding nations around the world unable to pay premium prices, like in Pakistan and Bangladesh where government-imposed blackouts last for hours every day. (Nord Stream shutdown: Bloomberg $, Wall Street Journal $, New York Times $, Wall Street Journal $, AP, explainer*; French minister: Bloomberg $; German conservation measures: Fortune, FT $, The Guardian; Oil and coal: Reuters, The Guardian, Washington Examiner; Global market impacts: Wall Street Journal* $; Africa: Bloomberg $; German energy bailouts: Wall Street Journal $, New York Times $, CNBC)

FOSSIL FUELED WAR: Sanctions threaten Russia’s next huge oil field (Wall Street Journal $)

(CLIMATE) DIPLOMACY: Climate leaders paint gloomy picture on progress since COP26 (Energy Monitor), The people breaking the simplest rule of climate change: Don’t go backwards (MSNBC)

EUROPEAN (FOSSIL) ENERGY (FINANCE): The EU just decided natural gas is 'green' (???) (Gizmodo, The Hill*), Eurozone banks fail to factor in climate risks, ECB says (Wall Street Journal $, AP), Risk of ‘conflict and strife’ in Europe over energy crisis, EU deputy warns (The Guardian)

#BRANDING: Is clean energy the solution to the economy’s woes, or is it to blame? Inside the battle to brand the moment. (Boston Globe $)

CLIMATE LITIGATION: The International Criminal Court turns 20 in turbulent times. Should ‘ecocide’ be added to its list of crimes? (Inside Climate News)

SOUTH ASIA: Flooding in Pakistan kills dozens as monsoon rains lash country (Al Jazeera)

RECORD OIL PROFITS: Gas[oline] prices have fallen for 24 straight days. The relief might only be temporary. (Wall Street Journal $), Everything you're hearing about gas[oline] prices is wrong (TIME*), Higher gas[oline] prices hurt pockets, make small dent in emissions (AP*)

UNDER WATER DOWN UNDER: Hundreds rescued as Sydney suffers fourth flood in less than 18 months (Washington Post* $)

DOG BITES MAN?: Poll: More than half of Republican voters in 3 states unwilling to spend on climate change solutions (Utility Dive)

HUMAN RIGHTS AND CLIMATE JUSTICE: Lessons from Latin America (Atmos*), The nexus between the climate change and democracy crises (Yale Climate Connections*)

SCOTUS: Supreme Court’s EPA decision will have little effect on utility move away from coal-fired plants: analysts (Utility Dive), The Supreme Court handed coal power a win. But experts say that won't save it (NPR), 'Clean Air Act can’t really be used to protect clean air now,' says leading environmentalist (MSNBC*), Global dismay as Supreme Court ruling leaves Biden’s climate policy in tatters (The Guardian*), Supreme Court's EPA ruling is a step back in the fight against climate change, experts say (CBS*)

EPA: EPA describes how it will regulate power plants after Supreme Court setback (New York Times* $), Federal rebates can help school systems get on board with cleaner buses (Energy News Network), Gas instead of coal? EPA tells TVA to look again (E&E News), Oil refiners, unions press US EPA on biofuel blending costs -sources (Reuters), Top US LNG producer Cheniere asks Biden admin to drop pollution rule (Reuters), Watchdog knocks Trump EPA over transparency in changes to rule on toxic chemicals use (The Hill), Supreme Court wounded, but didn’t kill, Biden climate powers (American Prospect*)

AGENCIES: The federal office focused on health impacts of climate crisis has no permanent staff or funding (CNN), Can FEMA survive climate change? (Slate), Ecologists say federal wildfire plans are dangerously out of step with climate change (NPR*)

DOE: Energy Department announces $40M to boost electricity, weatherization in low-income communities (The Hill), Department of Energy grants $14 million to track extreme weather and climate change (The Hill)

THE HILL: GOP bill takes aim at gun tax that has funded conservation for decades (HuffPost)

POLITICS: The art of the possible: What compromise could look like on abortion, voting and climate (The 19th* News)

ELECTIONS: Utility-backed Republicans may have gerrymandered against one Democrat (Gizmodo*)

TRIBES: First climate agreement to center Indigenous voices gains international support (Indian Country Today), Indigenous tribes and the environment pay the price for California’s new reservoirs (Prism Reports*)

CITIES AND STATES: Court blocks Pennsylvania’s carbon emissions plan (AP), Hawaii poised to close the door on coal despite delays to clean energy projects (Utility Dive), New Hampshire governor signs law to expand use of 'renewable' gas (The Center Square), Quitting oil income is hard, even for states that want climate action (New York Times* $, Jalopnik), To avoid blackouts, California may tap fossil fuel plants (AP*)

FERC: FERC OK of Tennessee Gas plan keeps hands-off approach on certified gas (S&P Global)

IMPACTS: How climate change is intensifying this summer's extreme weather (The Week), China’s summer floods and heat waves fuel plans for a changing climate (Washington Post $), Preparing for extreme weather is a community concern. Here’s how to be ready. (Vox), Why disasters are getting more severe but killing fewer people (Vox), 'Jamestown will be lost': Climate change threatens to sink historic colony (CBS*), Summer in America is becoming hotter, longer and more dangerous (Washington Post* $), Tuna catch dries up for Kenya's local fishing community (AP*)

ATTRIBUTION: Researchers can now explain how climate change is affecting your weather (NPR*)

HEAT: As temperatures rise, this research could help cities stay cool  (Washington Post $), 50 million remain under a heat advisory this weekend. (New York Times $, USA Today), Texans warned to reduce electricity use amid fear of rolling blackouts (New York Times $, S&P Global), As heat rises, who will protect farmworkers? (Food and Environment Reporting Network*)

DROUGHT: Drought-stricken Lake Mead’s receding waters reveal a sunken WWII-era vessel (LA Times $), Scenes from Italy’s worst drought in 70 years (Washington Post* $)

• BOOKMARK THIS: Tracking the California drought (LA Times $)

WILDFIRES: A devastating look at the impacts of wildfires beyond the burn (Gizmodo), Portugal battles wildfires amid drought, heat; 29 injured (AP)

HURRICANES: Tropical Storm Darby forms in Pacific as Bonnie fades (AP), Hurricane season: what it's like to be displaced from your home as a teen (Teen Vogue*)

WATER: California is finally reducing water use, but it’s not enough amid severe drought (LA Times $), Property owners and officials find ways around century-old laws as the West runs out of water (CNN)

DEFORESTATION: Amazon deforestation hits six-year high in Brazil (Washington Post $, Axios)

RENEWABLES: Dead solar panels are about to become a lot more valuable (The Verge), This high-tech trailer delivers green power when climate disaster strikes (Bloomberg $)

BUILDINGS: Climate-minded homeowners are cutting themselves off from the natural gas system. Where does that leave everyone else? (Colorado Public Radio), Switching to efficient, electric HVAC appliances could save Oregon $1.1B through 2050, study finds (Utility Dive), Heat pumps can help save the planet. But can they save you money? (Grist*)

LNG: Freeport LNG updates timeline for post-blast repairs after federal order deems plant unsafe (Houston Chronicle), Russia takes control of international LNG project (Wall Street Journal $)

METHANE: The world needs to spend $110 billion a year to curb methane (Bloomberg* $)

OIL & GAS: Shell has big plans to drill in the Gulf of Mexico despite climate and political debate (Wall Street Journal* $)

PLASTICS: See plastic in a national park? Log it on this website for science (Gizmodo), Cups, straws, spoons: India starts on single-use plastic ban (AP*)

COAL: Coal makes a comeback as the world thirsts for energy (Wall Street Journal* $), The world is turning back to coal (The Atlantic*)

HYDROGEN: Shell decides to build Europe’s largest green hydrogen plant (Bloomberg $)

UTILITIES: Connecticut approves 3-year, $708M energy efficiency plan with focus on equity, affordability, decarbonization (Utility Dive), High gas prices shake up staid European utilities (Wall Street Journal $), The fossil fuel investments driving up ConEd energy bills (New York Focus*)

GRID: New England grid capacity likely to rise over 100% by 2042 amid heating, transportation electrification: ISO (Utility Dive)

EVs: US crosses the electric-car tipping point for mass adoption (Bloomberg $, Grist), EV adoption is higher where consumers see more electric vehicles, studies show (SmartCities Dive, CNN), Interest in EVs has grown substantially, survey shows (Utility Dive), Rivian cranked up production in second quarter at Illinois factory (Wall Street Journal $), Volkswagen CEO says EV outlook is ‘very good,’ expects to reduce delivery times this year (CNBC), Volvo factory to help world-leading carmaker Slovakia shift to EVs (Bloomberg $)

RICH BOYS AND THEIR TOYS: How space tourism could erase gains made in the fight against climate change (The Hill)

CRYPTO: Crypto miner will use batteries to ease strain on Texas grid (Bloomberg $)

ACTIVISM: Youth street protesters turn sights on climate 'villains' (Thomson Reuters Foundation*)

AGRICULTURE: Companies’ climate promises face a wild card: farmers (New York Times $), New Zealand wants to tax cow burps and farts (Modern Farmer)

FOOD: Hakai magazine130-year-old menus show how climate change is already affecting what we eat (Hakai Magazine*)

FINANCE: Blackstone invests $400 million in environmental commodity exchange Xpansiv (Wall Street Journal $), High-tech weathermen forecast climate risks for bond investors (Wall Street Journal $)

THE ONLY GOOD GOLF COURSE: This old golf course is now a nature preserve (Bloomberg $)

WILDLIFE: Big fish sightings are spiking. Climate change may be the cause. (Washington Post $), Wild species relied on by billions at risk, report warns (AP, New York Times $), Human activity is pushing vital species towards extinction, UN warns in call for sustainability (TIME), Threatened wild bees get help from Washington researchers (AP)

INTERNATIONAL: France to nationalize power company EDF to help it combat Europe’s energy crisis (Wall Street Journal $), Giant new power plants undermine South Africa’s emissions pledge (Bloomberg $), How to keep the lights on – UK gears up for worst-case energy scenarios (The Guardian), Soaring inflation hinders Egypt’s climate ambition in updated plan (Climate Home), South Africa plunged into darkness during power crisis (Washington Post $), UK regulator proposes reforms to cut reliance on gas imports (Reuters), Japan may ask people to cut back on natural gas next (Bloomberg $)

• The Supreme Court’s EPA ruling is a major blow for climate action. Here’s how national TV news should cover it (Media Matters, Evlando Cooper analysis*)
• Wildfires have changed. Firefighting hasn’t (LA Times, Adriana Petryna op-ed $)
• Climate communication has moved us from denial to deliberation — now we must act (The Hill, Ashley Ward op-ed)
• SEC: Step up on climate change (The Hill, Dan Reich op-ed)
• The global search for energy security (Wall Street Journal, Daniel Yergin op-ed $)
• Ensuring electric vehicle jobs are good jobs (The Hill, David Madland op-ed)
• Air pollution kills 10 million people a year. Why do we accept that as normal? (New York Times, David Wallace-Wells op-ed $)
• West Virginia vs. EPA: A political tragedy disguised as a legal farce (The Hill, Durwood Zaelke op-ed)
• The Supreme Court dealt a terrible blow to children’s health (New York Times, Frederica Perera and Kari Nadeau op-ed $)
• Is a carbon tax the only way to stop the climate activists? (Wall Street Journal, Holman W. Jenkins, Jr. op-ed $)
• The LADWP is charging outdated power rates, and there’s no easy fix (LA Times, Kerry Cavanaugh op-ed $)
• Rebuilding Ukraine for a changing climate (The Hill, Mark Stalczynski, Ismael Arciniegas Rueda, and Nihar Chhatiawala op-ed)
• Why there’s still a rational case for climate optimism (The Hill, Rick Wayman op-ed)
• America can’t allow China to keep crushing our solar energy industry (New York Times, Robert Holleyman op-ed $)
• The EU gets real about energy security (Wall Street Journal, Victoria Coates op-ed $)
• Europe's natural-gas crisis is worse than it looks (Bloomberg, Javier Blas column $)
• Pennsylvania's too dependent on natural gas. It didn't have to be (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Larry Schweiger op-ed $)
• If only John Roberts would retire (New York Times, Pamela Paul column $)
• We are political hostages (New York Times, Charles M. Blow column $)
• This photographer accompanied researchers examining climate change in Antarctica (Washington Post* $)
• The global LNG boom US exporters are chasing won’t materialise (Energy Monitor, Justin Guay op-ed*)

The Denier Roundup will be fully recovered from its overwhelming amount of freedom and liberty and will be back tomorrow.

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