House Passes Pro-Fossil Fuel Energy Bill: The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday passed a wide-ranging bill aimed at undoing nearly the entirety of the Biden administration's efforts to address the climate crisis. The bill, passed on a nearly-party-line vote, would increase fossil fuel production and make it easier to build pipelines, refineries, and other projects. Senate Majority leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called the bill "dead on arrival" in the Senate and President Biden has threatened to veto the bill, which the White House described as a "thinly veiled license to pollute" that would "pad oil and gas company profits." The top-ten recipients of oil and gas industry campaign contributions (nine Republicans and one Democrat) all voted for the bill. (AP, E&E News, Washington Post $, New York Times $, Bloomberg $, Politico, E&E $, The Hill; Campaign contributions: The Hill)

California Sets Snowpack Record, West Eyes Flooding Risks: California's snowpack is the highest on record, storing 235% of the normal amount of water, the California Department of Water Resources. A parade of 17 atmospheric rivers since December have dumped more than 700 inches at multiple measurement locations across the Sierra Nevada mountains. While the heavy snow has dramatically, though not completely, alleviated the state's drought, the whiplash also brings real dangers, including heightened avalanche risks and (later in the year) flooding, in California and across the Mountain West. How much flooding occurs depends on how quickly the snow melts, which could also have ramifications for the summer fire season. “A best-case scenario will be a shift to a drier pattern with a gradual transition to near-average spring temperatures,” Jim Steenburgh, a snow expert and atmospheric sciences professor at the University of Utah, told the Washington Post.. “A worst-case scenario is one in which we stay cold and snowy into May at upper elevations and then shift to a hot, dry, sunny pattern.” (Washington Post $, Axios, Washington Post $, AP, KCRA Sacramento, Courthouse News; Climate Signals background: Extreme precipitation increase, Drought, Wildfires)

Actions (Announced) Worldwide: Multiple governments and international bodies adopted or released climate and environmental measures on Thursday: 

• In the UK, a 1,000-page government plan to revamp the country's net-zero strategy was blasted by critics as insufficient — the plan itself admits its policies will not meet the country's commitment of cutting climate pollution by 68% of 1990 levels by 2030. “Half-baked, half-hearted and dangerously lacking ambition,” Mike Childs, Friends of the Earth’s head of policy, said of the plan. “These announcements will do little to boost energy security, lower bills or put us on track to meet climate goals." (The Guardian, The Guardian, The Guardian, Reuters, Bloomberg $, The Guardian, Fiona Harvey analysis)
• In Brussels, negotiators reached a deal to increase the 2030 share of EU energy from renewable sources from 32% to 42.5%. The agreement, which comes amid the continent's efforts to reduce its reliance on Russian gas also included a compromise on the accounting of hydrogen produced with nuclear power, a key sticking point for France. (AP, CNBC, Reuters, CNN, Nuclear compromise FT $)
• In France, President Emmanuel Macron announced ranging reforms to improve water conservation as climate change threatens to reduce the country's available water by as much as 40% in the next three decades. Macron's announcement comes amid widespread protests over his move to raise the retirement age without a full vote in parliament. (AP, New York Times $, Bloomberg $, Reuters)
• In Australia, parliament passed a law — its biggest climate law in more than a decade — requiring major polluters to either slash their climate pollution or pay for carbon credits. Proponents of the legislation say it is critical for Australia meeting its target of cutting climate pollution by 43% below 2005 levels in seven years. The law requires the country's 215 biggest polluters to cut their emissions 5% annually or be forced to buy carbon offsets, which themselves are controversial. Australia is the world's third-biggest exporter of fossil fuels. (AP, The Guardian, S&P Global, Energy Monitor)

CREDIT WHERE IT'S DUE: ‘Gone wrong’: Doubts on carbon-credit program in Peru forest (AP), Carbon credit industry resists vulnerable nations’ call to fund adaptation (Climate Home), Kenya banks on carbon credits - but at what cost to communities? (Context), Takeaways from AP examination of Peru carbon credit program (AP)

CLIMATE LITIGATION: Seniors sue Switzerland over deadly heat waves caused by climate crisis (Democracy Now)

CLIMATE DIPLOMACY: UN seeks rare legal opinion on climate. The US abstained. (E&E News, Democracy Now), What an International Court of Justice climate ruling could do (Axios), Powerful European court weighs landmark climate fight (E&E $)

DENIAL, DELUSION, AND WALKABILITY: ‘15-minute city’ is an urban planning concept that promotes easy access to essential amenities (Reuters fact check)

COP CITY: Battle over Atlanta’s ‘Cop City’ signals potential for more violent clashes between protesters, police (The Hill)

GOP vs. ESG: Why ESG in America may face a rough road ahead (Bloomberg $)

RULE OF LAW: Major US bike race founder indicted (Escape Collective $)

DISCOVERING DOCTRINAL DEFICIENCIES: Vatican repudiates ‘doctrine of discovery,’ used as justification for colonization (New York Times $, AP)

INFLATION REDUCTION ACT: Indonesia business presses US over green subsidies for EV minerals (FT $)

AGENCIES: Climate fund cuts would be 'devastating' to farmers — Vilsack (E&E $), NOAA chief promises 'culture changes' to address job burnout (E&E $)

EPA: EPA advisers call for stricter ozone standard in break with agency scientists (Politico Pro $), The EPA is investigating itself over its East Palestine disaster response (Gizmodo)

DOE: DOE releases strategy to reach 30 GW offshore wind by 2030, aiming to cut costs 30%, to $51/MWh (Utility Dive, E&E $), Top DOE official: Permitting mines takes 'too long' (E&E $)

DOI: Biden to open up federal land for public conservation (Politico Pro $), ‘One bad incident could really set us back’ — DOI official advises proactive transparency on offshore wind (Utility Dive), Judge orders US to resume oil lease sales in North Dakota (AP)

• ON THE HILL: 5 takeaways from Haaland's Senate hearing (E&E $), Interior leaders defend budget before skeptical Republicans (E&E $)

EXECUTIVE BRANCH: Top Biden officials detail views on critical minerals (E&E $)

WHITE HOUSE: Biden gas expansion faces environmental justice concerns (The Hill), Ghanian president Nana Akufo-Addo backtracks on cruel LGBTQ bill after Kamala Harris spoke out (The Root), In Tanzania, two history-making officials meet as Kamala Harris highlights women’s leadership (The 19th* News)

• EVs: White House touts Amazon EVs, Google EV tax credit tool (Reuters), White House touts EV progress as announcement looms (E&E $), What to watch as Biden sets tax rules for EVs (E&E News)

THE HILL: Democrats reintroduce federal Trans Bill of Rights as GOP tries to advance restrictions (The 19th* News), Progressives urge Biden to use executive powers to advance their agenda (The Hill), The next farm bill could be a historic climate law – if Congress can agree on it (Grist)

HOUSE: McCarthy says Republicans finalizing bill to address debt limit, spending (Bloomberg $), US lawmakers press Wall St regulator over coming climate rule (Reuters, E&E $), House GOP probes EPA's environmental justice 'grantmakers' (E&E $)

SENATE: Democratic senators propose new rail safety bill (E&E $, The Hill), Manchin: Biden admin might ‘try to screw me’ on EVs (E&E News), Manchin threatens to sue Biden administration if electric vehicle credit guidance ‘goes off the rails’ (The Hill, Reuters), Republicans losing patience with [Budget] committee's climate focus (E&E $),

ELECTIONS: Progressive stars square off in California Senate primary (The Hill)

TRIBES: It’s been a place of worship for centuries. Now a copper mine threatens its future. (Grist)

CITIES AND STATES: Ann Arbor voters approve 20-year tax for climate action (Yale Climate Connections), Maryland announces goals for massive offshore wind power increase (Reuters), New York identifies ‘disadvantaged communities’ that will receive extra climate funding (CNBC), North Carolina House panel votes to block new energy-efficient building code (Energy News Network), Texas bills would set state against federal oil and gas regulation, renewables (The Hill), Thousands protest at Tennessee capitol for stricter gun laws (Black Wall Street Times), Florida prepares to expand ‘Don’t Say Gay’ up to 12th grade (Prism Reports)

• CALIFORNIA: As California grid interconnection requests triple, analysts assess CAISO’s moves to handle the influx (Utility Dive), California regulator fines manufacturer for knowingly exposing workers to toxic chemical (Grist), Two weeks until California slashes rooftop solar incentives (LA Times $)

FERC: 'Make better decisions': FERC confronts EJ issues (E&E $)

PLANS: US still can hit its 2030 climate goals. But a lot has to go right. (E&E $)

IMPACTS: How climate change made the Mississippi tornadoes more likely (Grist), This once-thriving lake has all but dried up. It’s a story repeated across Europe as the drought deepens (CNN), Tornado season is here. Here is what you need to know. (Washington Post $), When climate change melts your relationship (New York Times $)

INFRASTRUCTURE: The lost levees (Heatmap $)

HEAT: 1,000 years of tree rings show just how hardcore the 2021 Pacific Northwest heat wave was (Gizmodo)

WILDFIRES: Wildfires ravage Spain's Asturias as temperatures hit record highs (Reuters)

HURRICANES: Fiona, Ian retired from list of tropical cyclone names (AP, New York Times $)

HEALTH: ‘Terrified for my future’: climate crisis takes heavy toll on young people’s mental health (The Guardian)

RENEWABLES: Brazil’s offshore wind push is at risk as global manufacturing gets squeezed (Bloomberg $), EDP CEO says Europe isn’t investing enough in renewables (Bloomberg $), Green-energy winners and casualties are becoming easier to spot (Wall Street Journal $), Philippines agrees 2,000-MW offshore wind deals with Danish investor (Reuters), Tesla has installed very few solar roofs, despite Elon Musk’s hype (Canary Media, Reuters)

BATTERIES: Ford invests in $4.5 billion Indonesia facility to secure nickel for EV batteries (Wall Street Journal $), Indonesian president pledges nickel mining clean up amid EV-led boom (Reuters)

BUILDINGS & APPLIANCES: Refrigerators have gotten really freaking good. Thanks, Jimmy Carter. (Vox)

LNG: Start of commercial operations at Calcasieu Pass delayed, Venture Global LNG tells US regulator (S&P Global, Natural Gas Intel), Financial hurdles rise for green-lighting new US LNG plants (Reuters), Freeport LNG returns to full power (OilPrice), America’s ballooning gas output needs a release valve (Bloomberg $)

OIL & GAS: Anti-LGBTQ law seen exposing firms in Uganda to blackmail risk (Bloomberg $), Gas leak repaired in downtown Raleigh, roads will be closed 4 to 5 hours (WRAL), OPEC+ to stick to its current oil production plans (OilPrice), Shell splits renewables business in CEO efficiency drive (Reuters), The real reason you’ll eventually ditch your gas stove (Heatmap $), US oil production hits slowdown, report says (E&E $)

PIPELINES: Court brings Mountain Valley pipeline closer to completion (E&E News), Federal court upholds stream crossing permit for the Mountain Valley pipeline (The Roanoke Times, Virginia Mercury, Courthouse News, Bloomberg Law, Reuters, Natural Gas Intel), Gas pipeline under repair in Siberia catches fire -Tass (Reuters)

COAL: Coal prices tumble while use of wind power, solar energy leaps ahead (Wall Street Journal $), The coal price crash isn’t over yet (OilPrice)

HYDROGEN: Cheshire villagers will not be forced to join hydrogen energy trial (The Guardian), The power used to make green hydrogen must be tracked down to the hour (Canary Media)

UTILITIES: Michigan utilities want to spend taxpayers’ ‘low carbon’ money on natural gas (Energy News Network), Utilities: Improved transformer efficiency is important, but goal could threaten grid reliability (Utility Dive), Secret ‘risk rankings’ unfairly target struggling customers for faster gas, electricity cutoffs, consumer groups say (Chicago Sun-Times)

EVs: Amazon, Google, Wells Fargo make first investments towards meeting Biden’s EV goals (The Hill), Ford raises price again on electric F-150 Lightning truck (Wall Street Journal $), Ford’s first electric vehicles for Gulf region coming next year (Bloomberg $), It's about to become harder to get a tax break for an electric car (Politico Pro $), Polestar is trying to catch Tesla, while also cutting its carbon (Bloomberg $), UK carmakers offered EV sales target loopholes (FT $), What to do while your electric car refuels (Wall Street Journal $), What’s the future of gas stations in an EV world? (Inside Climate News), Zero-emission bus fleet transition accelerated by Washington, DC, transit agency (Utility Dive)

TRAINS: Evacuations end after fiery Minnesota ethanol derailment (AP)

AVIATION: Jet planes and sugar cane: Qantas and Airbus get on board biofuel factory in Queensland (The Guardian), Shell cancels Singapore aviation biofuel project (OilPrice), UK is Europe’s worst private jet polluter, study finds (The Guardian)

BOOKS: Lily Brooks-Dalton and the luminary power of climate fiction (Atmos, interview)

BUSINESSES: Mercedes amps up renewable energy switch with Iberdrola wind deal (Reuters, OilPrice), Michelin backs big tire recycling venture in Europe (Axios)

CARBON PRICING: Japan's carbon pricing scheme being launched in April (Reuters explainer)

CARBON CAPTURE: What is carbon capture, usage and storage? (The Guardian explainer), Drax in talks with UK government for £2 billion CCS project (OilPrice)

FINANCE: Over 30,000 funds to get their ESG ratings downgraded at MSCI (Bloomberg $)

SEEDS: A shortage of native seeds is slowing land restoration across the US, which is crucial for tackling climate change and extinctions (The Conversation)

SPORT: In a land with no soccer, group hopes to use it to score climate goals (New York Times $)

IN MEMORIAM: Virginia Norwood, pioneered earth imagery as ‘mother of Landsat,’ dies at 96 (Washington Post $)

COLLEGE: Want to choose a climate-friendly college? Here are some standouts. (Washington Post $)

WILDLIFE: Can ‘rewilding’ help heal humanity’s environmental destruction? (Bloomberg $), Protecting koala and emu habitat could fuel a $91 billion market (Bloomberg $)

• How climate activists badly missed the mark on Willow drilling project (The Hill, Ethan Brown op-ed)
• He ran the NAACP. Now he’s leading the Sierra Club’s fight against climate change (LA Times, Ben Jealous interview $)
• A green-subsidy arms race helps no one (Bloomberg, Editorial Board $)
• Britain is falling short on its climate ambition (FT, Editorial Board $)
• The Guardian view on Rishi Sunak’s energy plan: playing with fire (The Guardian Editorial Board)
• This should be the year for permitting reform (The Hill, Alex Herrgott op-ed)
• The US is the world’s richest country. So why can’t I get a glass of clean drinking water? (The Guardian, Arwa Mahdawi op-ed)
• Africa expects action - and funding - for climate justice (Context, Ban Ki-moon and Patrick Verkooijen op-ed)
• Electric grids need major upgrades to aid global energy transition (Reuters, Gavin Maguire column)
• This ocean monster offers a potential climate solution (Bloomberg, Lara Williams op-ed $)
• Come to Florida for the low taxes, stay for the climate disaster (Bloomberg, Mark Gongloff op-ed $)
• Enough green platitudes — business wants action (FT, Nathalie Thomas op-ed $)
• Can this former CEO fix the World Bank and solve the world’s climate finance and debt crises as the institution’s next president? (The Conversation, Rachel Kyte commentary)
• How the bottled water industry is masking the global water crisis (The Conversation, Zeineb Bouhlel and Vladimir Smakhtin op-ed)
• How could the UK’s net zero plan involve new oil and gas? It’s mind-bogglingly stupid (The Guardian, Bill McGuire column)

Climate Deniers Get Thrown Out Of National Science Teaching Association Conference

The National Science Teaching Association (NSTA) held its National Conference in Atlanta last week, and because climate deniers jump at every opportunity to embarrass themselves, they invaded the conference and, like unruly and immature students, got thrown out within minutes.

On the first day of the conference, the CO2 Coalition, a climate change denial group, released a report criticizing the NSTA’s Position Statement on The Teaching of Climate Change for its “embrace of the hypothesis of ‘harmful man-made warming’” and “reliance on ‘consensus’ science.” The document argues that “students should be encouraged to review all facts on a subject (in this case climate change) and make up their own minds rather than be indoctrinated into an established political agenda.”

The report then goes on to indoctrinate readers about how we actually need more CO2 in the atmosphere and are also apparently experiencing “slight global cooling,” which, in case you were wondering, are absolute, total, unequivocal lies. To top it all off, the report argues that basically, no one can ever know anything for certain because “scientific consensuses have often turned out to be wrong” and “what is correct in science is not determined by consensus.”

The CO2 Coalition “attempted to exhibit” these outrageous falsehoods at the NSTA’s conference but “were asked to leave.” According to a post on Anthony Watts's boomer climate denial blog “Watts Up With That,” CO2 Coalition members “were evicted from their paid and agreed to exhibit just minutes after the show opened.”

CO2 Coalition Executive Director Gregory Wrightstone wasn't quite as eager to broadcast his shame, though, and published an article in RealClearEnergy promoting the Coalition’s report but neglecting to mention his embarrassing failure a few days earlier.

Students have long been a target for climate denial propaganda, and efforts to inject disinformation into schools are actively moving in states like Texas and Ohio. This unfortunate episode at the NSTA’s conference demonstrates once again that climate deniers are not only aggressively pushing harmful disinformation on social media but are also continuing to spread lies in person. 

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