FIRST LOOK:

The Climate Museum Pop-Up, open through December 22 in Soho, mobilizes the power of art — specifically, Someday, all this by David Opdyke — to inspire visitors to take climate action.

Small Drillers Want Exemption From Methane Rule: Oil and gas drillers are asking the EPA to exempt low-producing wells from a supplemental proposal to it's 2021 rule cracking down on methane pollution from oil and gas drilling operations. So-called "marginal wells" extracting less than 15 barrels of oil per day are responsible for nearly half of U.S. oil and gas methane pollution despite making up just 6% of oil extraction. The Independent Petroleum Association of America and a coalition of related industry groups want EPA to exempt wells producing less than 6 barrels per day — more than 80% of marginal wells — from the rule's leak detection and mitigation requirements. “The fact that [studies from DOE and EDF] show that half of the problem comes from these wells shows that you can’t leave half of the pie on the table,” Jon Goldstein, head of EDF's oil and gas regulations efforts, told Reuters. The supplemental rule, expected to be released during COP27, could also address flaring by drilling operations. (Reuters)

Rich Countries And Big Banks Are Underachieving On Climate: Rich countries are not sufficiently cutting their greenhouse gas pollution nor helping developing nations adapt to and survive the impacts of a crisis they did virtually nothing to cause, multiple analyses confirm. Almost none of the most-polluting nations have updated or strengthened their emissions reductions targets since agreeing to do so last year at COP26. According to Climate Action Tracker, just 21 of 193 countries have updated their goals, of which Australia was the only major emitter. Wealthy nations are failing to fund developing nations' climate adaptation efforts by an order of magnitude, a UN Environment Program report released this morning finds. “The idea that you can have a wall around your state and somehow protect yourself, so that you can adapt while everybody else will sink, or burn, or die in droughts, is simply unrealistic,” UNEP head Inger Andersen told the New York Times. “People are not moving because they want to when they are climate refugees. … They are moving because they have to.” Rich countries are also failing to sufficiently invest in low-carbon technologies in developing nations, with investments lower than ever in the past four years, according to a BlooombergNEF analysis released Tuesday. Relatedly, a Sierra Club report released Wednesday, found major U.S. banks — including Wells Fargo, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Goldman Sachs — are "severe laggards" in terms of both their decarbonization targets and plans to achieve them. (Pledge updates: Washington Post $; UNEP: New York Times $; BNEF: Reuters; Banks: E&E $)

Lisa Makes Landfall, One Of A Rare Two November Hurricanes: Hurricane Lisa made landfall just south of Belize City, Belize, on Wednesday, dropping as much as six inches of rain and causing flooding and power outages. The now-tropical storm has continued churning inland, causing flooding and landslides in Guatemala's Peten department. Despite being so late in the season, Lisa is not alone. For just the third time on record, two hurricanes were in the Atlantic basin on Wednesday. The other, Hurricane Martin, fueled by sea surface temperatures a full 2°C (3.6°F) above average reached hurricane status Wednesday about 790 miles south-southeast of Cape Race, Newfoundland. It is not expected to threaten land. (Lisa: AFP via Barron's, AP, USA Today; November twofor: Washington Post $, Yale Climate Connections; Climate Signals background: Hurricanes, Sea surface temperature increase)

(ENVIRONMENTAL) RACISM: Can US cities use climate plans to 'undo' racist legacies? (Context), Study: Los Angeles’ major flood risk is much higher than previously thought (Grist), Toxic metal pollution worse in racially segregated communities (E&E $)

• …AND SEXISM: How deep-seated sexism is making food insecurity worse in Nigeria (The New Humanitarian)

COP27: British-Egyptian hunger striker may die in prison, Nobel laureates warn world leaders attending COP27 (The Guardian), Big finance's hopes fade in climate of war (Reuters), Rishi Sunak U-turns on decision not to attend COP27 climate summit (The Guardian, FT $, Reuters), China, India set to snub COP27 leaders’ climate summit (Climate Home), Climate damages will dominate UN summit (Axios), Egyptian regime criticized as climate activist arrested in run-up to COP27 (The Guardian), Germany willing in principle to revive Amazon Fund -development ministry (Reuters), Italy pushes to weaken fossil fuel financing pledge - sources (Reuters), 3 things a climate scientist wants world leaders to know ahead of COP27 (The Conversation), After six years, UN climate summit returns to Africa (AP), Loss and damage: Who is responsible when climate change harms the world’s poorest countries, and what does compensation look like? (The Conversation)

• CLASSIC: Coca-Cola increased plastic use ahead of COP27 summit it is sponsoring (FT $), Greens push to oust Coke from COP 27 sponsorship (E&E News), Why is global polluter Coca-Cola sponsoring a major climate conference? (Gizmodo)

CLIMATE DIPLOMACY: Top US trade official calls on EU to introduce green energy subsidies (FT $), US, UAE ink deal to mobilize $100B in clean energy (E&E $, Reuters)

FOSSIL FUELED ENERGY CRISIS: European gas rebounds as supply risks counter muted demand (Bloomberg $), Goldman Sachs expects European natural gas prices to tumble 30% in the coming months (CNBC), Nord Stream operator finds manmade craters at pipeline blast site (Bloomberg $), Russian gas flows to Europe slide further in October, fall below 2 Bcm (S&P Global), Moldova faces energy crisis as result of Russia’s war in Ukraine (Bloomberg $), Ukraine war: Boost or setback for climate efforts? (AP)

CAPTAINS' LOGS: How centuries-old whaling logs are filling gaps in our climate knowledge (Grist)

CONGOLESE RAINFOREST: ‘Carbon timebomb’: climate crisis threatens to destroy Congo peatlands (The Guardian), The race to replace Africa’s forest-killing fuel (Bloomberg $)

VOTING: Worsening climate change could make it harder to vote (Prism Reports)

AGENCIES: Audit’s surprise finding: Fewer rich people get FEMA aid (E&E $)

EPA: Democrats pressure EPA to ease off on chemical regulation (E&E News), EPA relaunches enforcement tool jettisoned under Trump (E&E $)

WHITE HOUSE: Biden administration providing $13B to help lower Americans’ energy bills (The Hill, Politico Pro $), VP Harris to tout home upgrades, climate law in Boston (E&E $), Biden administration offering $13 billion to lower energy costs. Here's how to qualify. (CBS)

THE HILL: Bipartisan effort to aid Colorado River still in limbo (E&E $), Transmission impossible: Are Democrats punting on permitting reform? (Grist), [Ed Markey] goes after Big Oil’s massive profits with ‘windfall tax’ (MSNBC)

POLITICS: Politicians beware: Green subsidies trump fossil fuel taxes - Ipsos poll (Reuters), What’s at stake for Biden’s climate agenda in the midterms (Vox)

ELECTIONS: The oil and gas paradox threatening Biden’s party at the polls (Politico), Great Lakes concerns shaping Midwest election battles (E&E $), Nation’s fastest-warming city could decide Senate control (E&E News), One candidate for Wisconsin's Senate race wants to put the state ‘in the driver’s seat’ of the clean energy economy. The other calls climate science ‘lunacy’ (Inside Climate News), The biggest climate ghouls of the 2022 midterms (Gizmodo), Tight race in Pa. fracking country could help tilt House (E&E $), Will Democratic attacks on Big Oil pay off with voters? (E&E News)

TRIBES: Here’s where the US is testing a new response to rising seas (New York Times $), Aboriginal activists win abalone harvesting rights (Yes Magazine)

CITIES AND STATES: Groups call for probe into state's handling of 2021 winter storm bills (Tulsa World), Texas plan to stop next grid disaster could cost customers billions (Canary Media), The fossil fuel industry has worked hard opposing New York climate action (City and State NY), Wisc. rate case raises questions of who pays and profits from energy transition (Energy News Network), New York City is using more green energy. But it has a storage problem. (New York Times $)

• FLORIDA FLOOD INSURANCE: Low flood insurance uptake in Florida poses tough challenge after Hurricane Ian (Reuters, E&E $)

IMPACTS: Nearly a third of southern Sierra forests killed by drought and wildfire in last decade (LA Times $), As climate shocks loom, a race to document Namibia's rock art (Context), California’s climate crisis is intensifying quickly and taking a heavy toll on residents, new data reveals (CNN), Egypt is living in the brutal future the world wants to avoid (Bloomberg $), Most vulnerable to flooding: Long Beach north to Bell Gardens (KCRW), Glaciers in Yosemite and Africa will disappear by 2050, UN warns (Washington Post $)

• EUROPE: Europe has warmed faster than any other region in the past 30 years (CNN, CBS, Axios, Al Jazeera, Reuters, The Guardian, AFP via Barron's)

HEAT: Parched migrants gamble with lives as US-Mexico border heats up (Context)

DROUGHT: How Mississippi River's historically low levels are having a financial impact (Good Morning America), As drought drops water level in the Mississippi, shipwrecks surface and worries rise (New York Times $)

AIR POLLUTION: Reducing fossil fuel use will help make life easier for many people with asthma (Yale Climate Connections)

RENEWABLES: The great US offshore wind-power boom has begun to falter (Bloomberg $), Turbine-maker Vestas rises on futures hopes despite Q3 loss (Reuters), US clean power growth slides to lowest level in three years (Politico Pro $), US clean power hobbled by policy and supply chain hurdles (Bloomberg $), After energy efficiency upgrades, UConn turns attention to renewable energy (Energy News Network), Energy cost curbs are impeding Europe’s renewables rollout, Vestas warns (FT $), 

"RENEWABLES": A new tax credit for biogas could be a boon to factory farms (Grist)

BUILDINGS: Cool mud beats concrete for building homes in a hotter Africa (Bloomberg $), This startup seals your leaky home so you waste less energy and reduce your bill (CNBC)

METHANE: UK methane emissions could be cut by 40% by 2030, says think tank (The Guardian)

OIL & GAS: Oil jumps to three-week high as tight fuel supplies spark worry (Bloomberg $), Uganda says first oil in April 2025, eyes China for pipeline funding (Reuters)

PLASTICS: Pepsico, Nestlé, Coca-Cola, and other major brands to blunder plastic sustainability goals (Gizmodo)

NUKES: French government aims to cut red tape for new nuclear reactors (Reuters, Bloomberg $), Poland's first nuclear power plant to cost around $20 bln - PM (Reuters)

COAL: China is burning more coal, a growing climate challenge (New York Times $)

UTILITIES: California’s natural-gas bans push largest gas utility to find a new strategy (Wall Street Journal $), AES Indiana says converting 1,052 MW of coal to gas will be $381M cheaper than renewables and storage (Utility Dive), Connecticut regulators fine Avangrid’s gas, electric utilities $4.5M over COVID-19 payment program (Utility Dive), How Duke Energy controls its renewables from one room (Bloomberg $), PG&E launches dynamic export rate for commercial electric fleets to help meet peak demand (Utility Dive), Virginia deal would shield customers if wind project blows its budget (Canary Media)

GRID: Puerto Rico’s fragile grid to get boost from networked batteries (Bloomberg $, Utility Dive)

EVs: Coming soon: A $25,000 solar-powered electric SUV (Axios), Despite rhetoric, GOP-led states start to embrace EVs (E&E News), Lack of graphite could gum up American EV market (E&E News), The country’s biggest electric bus microgrid is open for business (Canary Media)

AVIATION: The weird-looking, fuel-efficient planes you could be flying in one day (Wall Street Journal $)

AGRICULTURE: Conserving farmland also benefits the air we breathe (Civil Eats)

BUSINESSES: Microsoft sees urgent need for more workers with climate skills (Axios), Companies are blaming a new culprit for earnings woes: Electricity costs (CNBC)

CARBON PRICING: Are carbon markets helping to slow climate change? Maybe. (Washington Post $)

CARBON CAPTURE: 840 CCS projects may be needed by 2030. Is that possible? (E&E $)

FINANCE: ECB warns banks of capital hit if they fail to tackle climate risk (FT $), Wall Street firm makes a $1.8 billion bet on forest carbon offset (Wall Street Journal $), Weak investment in emerging markets points to climate catastrophe (E&E $)

WILDLIFE: Trouble in (avian) paradise: Maui turns off the lights for its birds (Washington Post $)

INTERNATIONAL: Brazil has a new president. what’s next for the Amazon? (Atmos, The Hill), Delhi to compensate labourers as construction stopped over pollution (Reuters), Emissions data reporting by UK government ‘inconsistent’, say MPs (FT $), Majority of Australians back taxing fossil fuel companies’ super profits, survey shows (The Guardian), Scientists in Germany turn up heat on seagrass in climate change fight (Reuters), The cost of getting South Africa to stop using coal (FT $)

• Florida's 'insurer of last resort' expects surge in policy holders after Hurricane Ian-CEO (Reuters, Barry Gilway interview)
• If we keep abusing nature it will collapse, taking us with it. We need a new mindset (The Guardian, Christiana Figueres op-ed)
• As the world nears its tipping point, what can we expect at COP27? (The Hill, Deborah Brosnan op-ed)
• In Egypt, don’t lose sight of the despot and his political prisoners (Washington Post, Editorial Board $)
• Climate change costs are eating up the money to avert it (Bloomberg, David Fickling column $)
• Windfall taxes are all the rage. They shouldn’t be. (Bloomberg, Editorial Board $)
• Storage, demand-side innovation, neighbors and a bit of luck — reliability lessons from summer 2022 (Utility Dive, Eric Gimon and Mike O’Boyle op-ed)
• Africa deserves a fair shake at upcoming climate summit (Reuters, Gavin Maguire op-ed)
• No more drinking water, little food: our island is a field of bones (The Guardian, Katerina Teaiwa op-ed)
• Call China’s climate bluff (NY Daily News, Paul Bledsoe op-ed)
• There is no need for defeatism on climate change (FT, Pilita Clark op-ed $)
• Despite years of exposure to the climate science, I don’t believe we are headed for total societal collapse (The Guardian, Rebecca Huntley op-ed)

RealClearEnergy Report Blaming Biden For Energy Costs Promoted in Op-Eds at RealClearEnergy, RealClearEnergy, RealClearEnergy, and RealClearEnergy

One of the tactics of public relations is to ask your friends to write an op-ed about a report you want to promote. They get to be seen as a respectable expert endorsing a product, so to speak, and you get that endorsement placed in a news outlet where people will learn about it. 

If you can get just a couple different people talking about something in different outlets, it can at least give the appearance of a groundswell of public support. But if the content is too transparently (self-)promotional, then legitimate news outlets are unlikely to publish the op-ed and you'll end up with a bunch of drafts that no one with integrity would touch. 

And that's what appears to be the case with not one, not two, not even "three's a pattern," but four different op-eds published by RealClearEnergy, the propaganda hub for the Koch network. Each one is by a climate disinformation professional, because that's their talent pool, and each one promotes the recent RealClearEnergy report "Energy Inflation Was By Design" by energy industry consultant Joseph Toomey. 

The gist? That Biden's energy policies are to blame for high prices. Not record fossil fuel industry profits, not Putin's invasion of Ukraine, not even that pesky global pandemic. Just Biden! No evidence, just vibes.

On October 16th, a Marlo Lewis op-ed claimed "expensive energy is a core feature, not a bug of Biden's climate agenda," and of the group, is the piece most obviously just pulling straight from the original report, listing out it's claims in a way that makes it no surprise no other editor wanted it for any other publication not responsible for the promotion of that report, not even other disinfo outlets otherwise sympathetic to the message.  

Seven days later, on October 23rd, RealClearEnergy ran a piece by "energy analyst" Jakob Puckett that follows the same formula: introduction, reference to Toomey's report, list a bunch of the things Biden did that supposedly caused energy inflation (but not record fossil fuel industry profits…).

Then on October 26th, getting desperate, RealClearEnergy published Robert Bryce's very creative op-ed: Joe Toomey’s Searing Indictment of President Biden’s Energy Policies. Since he put Toomey's name in the headline, Bryce broke the mold, and waited all the way until the fourth paragraph to mention "RealClear Energy’s, “Energy Inflation Was by Design,” a new report by supply-chain consultant Joseph Toomey."

And finally, on October 31st, Daniel Turner waxed poetic about pencils for two paragraphs before plugging "Joseph Toomey’s exhaustive and brilliant analysis of the Biden administration’s energy agenda." 

Now, sure, a key part of public relations is repetition, because most people aren't going to see your message the first time, so you have to come at it from a lot of different angles. Which is why good PR involves tapping a diverse pool of spokespeople who can speak to all the various implications of a report, and what it means for their community or field of study. 

But this is what happens when you do it poorly, and get four functionally identical, low-effort posts shamelessly promoting obvious disinformation. The only people who praise it are those who are also paid to spread disinformation, and the only place that considered those pieces worth publishing is the one with the obvious self-interest to do so. 

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