Report Warns LNG Assets Will Be Stranded By 2030: European nations' frantic rush to build infrastructure to import methane gas in the wake of the Russian war in Ukraine could leave them with stranded assets as planned import capacity is on pace to far outstrip LNG demand in just seven years, a new Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis report warns. According to the IEEFA analysis, expanding renewable energy generation means EU LNG demand could be as low as 150 billion cubic meters by 2030 — well under half of the more than 400 bcm of import capacity scheduled to be online by then. The need to supply LNG to Europe has also been cited as justification for building new U.S. LNG export facilities, like Sempra's Port Arthur LNG project in Jefferson County, Texas, which announced a positive final investment decision on Monday but will not even be partially operational until at least 2027. (EU: Politico EU; Port Arthur: E&E $, Politico Pro $, Houston Chronicle)

St. James Residents Sue Over Environmental Racism: St. James Parish residents are suing the Louisiana parish over its approval of multiple polluting petrochemical facilities in two Black districts there. "There is no better example of the afterlife of enslavement than what is happening right now in St. James Parish," Vince Warren, head of the Center for Constitutional Rights, told reporters Tuesday. The Cancer Alley plaintiffs, citing a Reconstruction-era civil rights law, allege a parish land use plan directs heavy industrial development into predominantly Black areas. They also claim those factories were built upon (and destroyed) the burial grounds of the enslaved ancestors of those people now affected by the toxic pollution. “We stand here today to say we will not be ignored," Shamyra Lavine of Rise St. James, told reporters outside the federal courthouse in New Orleans on Tuesday. "You will not sacrifice our lives. And we will not take any more industry in the fourth or fifth district of St. James. Enough is enough.” (AP, NOLA.com, The Guardian, E&E $, Inside Climate News, 4WWL-TV, Bloomberg Law, DeSmog)

Biden Designates New Monuments: The Biden administration on Tuesday announced the designation of two national monuments, putting more than 500,000 acres off-limits to all energy production. The announcements, along with a direction to initiate the designation of a marine sanctuary across 777,000 square miles around the Pacific Remote Islands, are part of the administration's effort to protect 30% of U.S. lands and waters by 2030. In what is now southern Nevada, a new national monument will cover about 507,000 acres including Avi Kwa Ame (ah-VEE-kwah-may), a mountain sacred to 12 Native tribes. Located on Fort Bliss, the far smaller Castner Range monument near what is now El Paso, Texas, is the ancestral homeland of the Comanche and Apache people and is sacred to numerous other Indigenous communities — it is now off-limits to people because the U.S. military used it as a firing range during the mid-20th century. The announcements came just days after the administration's approval of the ConocoPhillips Willow project — protesters outside the announcement at DOI condemned Biden's "climate hypocrisy." They also follow IPCC's release of its Synthesis Report warning the world's nations must slash fossil fuel use quickly and dramatically to avoid the worst impacts of climate change — a report of which top administrations appear to have been unaware. Protesters angry over the Willow project approval also prevented White House climate advisor Ali Zaidi from addressing an event Center for Strategic and International Studies, which has accepted donations from ConocoPhillips. (Washington Post $, E&E News, NPR, New York Times $, The Hill, HuffPost, Axios; DOI protesters: AP; CSIS protesters: Reuters)

(ENVIRONMENTAL) RACISM: Surveillance video shows deputies pile on top of Irvo Otieno, who died in police custody (CBS, NPR, NBC, The Root, HuffPost, Washington Post $, New York Times $, USA Today), 7 deputies charged with murder in the death of Irvo Otieno (AP), Irvo Otieno, who died while restrained in a hospital, was ‘brilliant and creative and bright,’ his mother says (CNN)

IPCC AR6 SYR: 5 key takeaways from the dire IPCC climate report (HuffPost), What the IPCC really says about 1.5 C (E&E News), Earth is on the verge of reaching catastrophic warming, UN climate report finds (WBUR), Scientists called for a 60% carbon cut. The US is years away. (E&E $), World hurtling toward critical global warming benchmark, but IPCC report highlights clean energy potential (Utility Dive), The scariest part of the new UN climate report? What scientists can’t predict (TIME), UN warns 'climate time bomb is ticking' as Cyclone Freddy death toll tops 560 in Malawi & Mozambique (Democracy Now), UN chief’s call for ambition on climate gets muted response (AP)

COP28: Nations seek compromise on fossil fuel phase-out ahead of COP28 (Climate Home)

FOSSIL FUELED ENERGY CRISIS: Russian oil finds 'wide open' back door to Europe, critics say (Politico Pro $)

CLIMATE LITIGATION: Blue states: Biden SCOTUS brief boosts climate lawsuits (E&E $), Swedish court OKs activists to sue state over climate policy (AP, Reuters)

CLIMATE DIPLOMACY: African nations consider swapping debt for climate funding (AP), Climate ministers support reform of World Bank (Reuters), 

POLLUTION IN YOUR KITCHEN: The gas stove wars are far from over (Vox)

WATER: UN: 26% of world lacks clean drinking water, 46% sanitation (AP, BBC, AP PHOTOS)

ACTIVISM: Why seniors are blocking entrances to the four largest US banks (Washington Post $, Inside Climate News, New York Times $), Revel and rebel: Partying as environmental protest (Atmos)

INFLATION REDUCTION ACT: Biden’s made-in-USA mandate for tax credit sparks solar dispute (Bloomberg $)

EPA: US regulator vows ‘aggressive’ crackdown on oil and gas methane leaks (FT $)

DOE: DOE says private sector spending needs to ramp up to hit emission reduction targets (Politico Pro $), Energy Department to fund projects that aim to lower cost of wind energy production (Utility Dive), Sunnova seeks $3.3B DOE loan guarantee to expand virtual power plants (Canary Media)

DOI: Democrats press Interior secretary to direct more money to BOEM to reach US offshore wind goals (Utility Dive), Advocates praise new monuments, but work remains on access (E&E News)

TREASURY: Yellen pushes for World Bank reform and climate action plan by April (FT $)

WHITE HOUSE: Biden admin readies plans to boost 'energy communities' (E&E $), Biden administration announces nearly $200 million for wildfire resilience (The Hill), A new White House plan prioritizes using the ocean’s power to fight climate change (Inside Climate News)

THE HILL: Regan, Granholm and Buttigieg will headline budget hearings (E&E $), Grijalva, Duckworth to revive landmark EJ bill (E&E $), Republicans plot path on energy, permitting package (E&E News)

HOUSE: 4 energy takeaways from the House Republican retreat (E&E News), House GOP introduces more bills targeting gas stove rules (E&E $)

SENATE: Markey lays down progressive marker on permitting reform(E&E $, Politico Pro $), Committee to question regulator, railroad on Ohio derailment (E&E $), Whitehouse plans climate hearing in wake of UN report (E&E $)

POLITICS: The natural gas pushback (High Country News)

CITIES AND STATES: In Puerto Rico, a small town takes climate action into its own hands (TIME), Builder opposition prompts N.C. officials to reconsider energy code overhaul (Energy News Network), Burleigh County will require permits for CO2 pipelines (AP), North Dakota Senate advances tax breaks for fracking (AP), How a state analysis derailed a green amendment in new Mexico (Washington Post $), Calif. lawmakers announce support for Newsom oil-profits bill (E&E $), Gov. Newsom promotes California's 'Lithium Valley' (E&E $)

FERC: FERC approves canceling NextEra transmission project blocked by Texas right-of-first-refusal law (Utility Dive), Q&A: Former FERC lawyer on pipelines, EJ, staffing (E&E $), Republicans ask FERC how it will implement climate guidance (E&E $)

IMPACTS: Earth’s oceans are showing early and surprising record warming (Washington Post $), Intense storm with heavy rain, snow and high winds slamming California (Washington Post $), China's Mekong dams turn Thai fishing villages into 'ghost towns' (Context), No telling how much more snow coming for Sierra Nevada (AP), Sea level rise looms, even for the best-prepared country on Earth (Mongabay), This visual shows how climate change will affect generations (Washington Post $), This winter, haunting signs of climate change were everywhere (Boston Globe $), In Duluth, real estate collides with climate (New York Times $), The surfer, the scientist and the big-wave beach at a breaking point (Washington Post $), Flood-prone communities in Virginia may lose a lifeline if governor pulls state out of Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (Inside Climate News)

• CALIFORNIA: More than 200,000 without power as deadly storm slams California (Washington Post $), Latest storm brings more rain to already flooded Central Valley (FOX26 News), Threats of arrest force hard decisions on Poso Creek, which could swamp two towns (SJV Water), Storm-weary California lashed with 12th 'atmospheric river' cloudbursts (Reuters)
• KENTUCKY: Kentucky floodwaters receded six months ago. for many, the crisis goes on. (Washington Post $)
• ARMADILLOS: Armadillos are showing up farther north as the climate warms (Yale Climate Connections)

HURRICANES: 'Depleted' by Ian, Fla. state insurer faces $14B shortfall (E&E $)

DROUGHT: Drought in Spain’s northeast empties reservoirs (AP)

GREAT SALT LAKE: Baby steps or real progress? Debate swirls on saving Great Salt Lake. (E&E News), What we lose if the Great Salt Lake dries up (NPR)

(DE)FORESTATION: Colombia sharply raises reforestation target to more than 1.8 mln acres (Reuters)

RENEWABLES: Global renewables capacity grew by 10% last year-IRENA (Reuters)

BATTERIES: US can shift to EVs without widespread, destructive mining, report finds (Yale Climate Connections), US scientists make breakthrough for long-range EV batteries (Energy Monitor)

BUILDINGS: Heat pumps are already ubiquitous in Asia. When will the US catch up? (Canary Media), This new NYC hospital is designed to be hurricane-proof (Gizmodo)

STORAGE: Eversource, United Illuminating, Connecticut Green Bank launch next phase of energy storage program (Utility Dive)

OIL & GAS: TotalEnergies' bet on gas means no big emissions cut by 2030 (Reuters)

PLASTICS: A new research review describes plastics, ‘from cradle to grave,’ as a toxics crisis and says the UN must act to limit production (Inside Climate News, Environmental Health News)

COAL: Why the longest coal strike in Alabama history ended with no new contract (Grist), Zimbabwe's new 300 MW coal-fired plant starts feeding into grid (Reuters)

HYDROGEN: Connecticut needs a plan — and a definition — for ‘clean hydrogen,’ stakeholders say (Energy News Network)

UTILITIES: Utility regulators approve $649m purchase of Wisconsin's largest renewable energy plant (WPR), NERC CEO criticizes power generators for resisting winter storm reliability standards (Politico Pro $)

EVs: 8 things we learned on an EV road trip (E&E News), EV charger makers brace for slowdown as new Made In America rules kick in (Reuters), One-third of Americans would consider EV purchase - Reuters/Ipsos poll (Reuters)

ART: Austrian museum skews paintings to reflect climate change (AP)

LEGUMES: Lentils are just waiting for their ‘hummus moment’ (Washington Post $)

CARBON CAPTURE: The Petra Nova carbon capture plant is being revived. Can it live up to its promise? (Houston Chronicle)

SOLUTIONS: ‘A living pantry’: how an urban food forest in Arizona became a model for climate action (The Guardian), Methane to food waste: Eight ways to attempt to stay within 1.5C (The Guardian, explainer)

FINANCE: 'Stop dirty banks': Bill McKibben & Ben Jealous on ending big bank funding for fossil fuel expansion (Democracy Now)

WILDLIFE: Last wild Atlantic salmon can survive Maine dams, feds say (AP, E&E $)

INTERNATIONAL: Bill C-34: Canada seeks to protect critical minerals from foreign ‘threats’ (Politico Pro $), Campaigners fear loophole will let new homes in England be fitted with gas boilers (The Guardian), EU warns Spain over expanding irrigation near prized wetland (AP), France steps up push for nuclear-based fuels in EU renewables law (Reuters), French minister warns against ‘risky’ e-fuels loophole (E&E $), Lauded as green model, Costa Rica faces unrest in its forests (Yale Environment 360), South Korea cuts 2030 emissions reductions targets for industry (Reuters)

• Estufas a gas, un peligro potencial dentro del hogar (La Opinión, Editorial)
• It’s Time for the Health Sector to Stop Bankrolling the Fossil Fuel Industry (New England Journal of Medicine, Linda Rudolph, Naomi Beyeler, and Bill McKibben commentary)
• The IPCC’s climate scientists have done their job – now we must do ours (Climate Home, Robin Webster op-ed)
• Biden’s first veto spent on anti-market resolution (The Hill, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse and Rep. Sean Casten op-ed)
• The IPCC’s climate report has drawn the battle lines for COP28: oil profits or a livable future (The Guardian, Simon Lewis op-ed)
• Lessons from the new UN climate report on how to course correct (TIME, Simon Stiell op-ed)
• The right is wrong: ESG investing did not create the banking crisis (The Hill, Suart Mackintosh op-ed)
• Years of climate scepticism have done untold damage (FT, Pilita Clark column $)
• The latest IPCC report makes it clear no new fossil fuel projects can be opened. That includes us, Australia (The Guardian, Adam Morton op-ed)
• Why Americans should eat lentils every day (Washington Post, advice column $)
• Six months in, the Inflation Reduction Act is already unleashing clean energy’s potential (The Hill, Bob Keefe op-ed)
• Capturing carbon in the ocean fights climate change, creates Texas jobs (Houston Chronicle, Chris Tomlinson column)
• NuScale Power, the canary in the small modular reactor market (Utility Dive, David Schlissel op-ed)
• Emerging economies can phase out oil and gas fairly – here’s how (Context, David Waskow op-ed)
• Biden’s first veto preserves an ESG rule (Wall Street Journal, Editorial Board $)

IPCC Report Reactions From Fox, Wash Times, Daily Caller: Lazy, Or Lazy And Racist 

The UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released a major Synthesis Report this week, explaining as patently as possible, for one last time before it's too late to take action, that we can't build any more fossil fuel infrastructure if we want any hope of meeting the Paris Agreement goal of limiting warming to under 1.5° C. 

Initial reactions from deniers span from lazy partisan gossip coverage at Fox and the Washington Times, to lazy and racist coverage at The Daily Caller. 

We'll start with Fox, which ran at least three pieces about the IPCC’s report on its website. The first was a straightforward write-up of the UN press release, published on Monday afternoon. Then on Monday evening, Fox ran a second piece, this time dressing up a bunch of right-wing tweets as a story with the headline "UN report predicting climate catastrophe in 2030 met with mockery: 'Every single prediction' has been 'wrong.'" Why do your own reporting when you can just crowdsource old disinfo from your right-wing propaganda-filled Twitter feed? 

To complete the lazy trifecta, Fox ran a third piece on Tuesday morning, which just extensively quoted an interview that climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe gave to PBS, in which she debunks the disinformation Fox ran the day prior. Hayhoe explains, "The previous predictions were not wrong. The uncertainty is us. The predictions were for what will happen depending on the choices we make." 

That's a nice summary of how disinfo outlets initially "report" on these kinds of releases. They mostly just quote other people paid by conservative billionaires to spread conservative propaganda, or lazily lift the work real journalists did elsewhere, knowing that their audience won’t treat the woman climate scientist with the respect and deference her expertise deserves.

Over at The Washington Times, we can see what the opinion side of these "news" rooms puts out to inform their readers about the fate of the planet's ability to sustain human civilization: column-length versions of the sort of stupid tweets that Fox quoted. 

According to columnist Cheryl Chumley, the "good news" is that UN Secretary-GeneralAntónio Guterres is "a socialist-slash-Marxist" and therefore like all socialist/Marxists, is "an inherent liar," so you can "yawn and go back to the PlayStation. Or to the mulching. It is spring, after all." 

Yes, Chumley draws on the century-old industry propaganda tactic (recently documented in Naomi Oreskes’ and Eric Conway's new book "The Big Myth") of calling anyone who stands in the way of unchecked profits a socialist and communist, because if it's worked for 100 years, why change it up now? 

Well, apparently there are also new ways to be terrible these days, as evidenced by Chumley's comrade in denial Michael Bastasch, a Koch-trained political operative disguised as a journalist working as the Koch-funded Daily Caller's managing editor. 

Bastasch's column on Tuesday ramped up the propaganda, because that's what you do when you have no facts. "The UN's newest climate report is a woke dumpster fire masquerading as science," reads the headline, informed by Bastasch's very scientific analysis. "Variations of the words 'equity' and 'inequity' appear 31 times in the 36-page document," according to Bastasch, putting the whole of all his "Ctrl+F" reporting skills on display. 

"Variations of 'inclusive' and 'inclusion' appear 17 times," he continues, and "the document even mentions 'colonialism' and repeatedly refers to climate and social 'justice' for 'marginalized' groups." If you read that and thought, 'well, good!' then you are not in Bastasch's target audience. 

"'Equity,' if you remember," he explains for those who are a little slow on the manufactured outrage uptake, "is that word then-candidate Kamala Harris famously described as a system where 'we all end up in the same place.' Sounds a lot like socialism, doesn't it?" 

No, but that's only because we actually know what equity and socialism mean, and aren't just running racist propaganda to cover for our polluting funders. 

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