Trump, Regan Appointees Strike Down Berkeley Electrification Ordinance: A panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on Monday struck down a building code ordinance passed by Berkeley, California, which, with some exceptions, banned new residential and commercial buildings from installing methane gas piping. The three-judge panel comprised of one Reagan- and two Trump-appointed judges did not completely agree on the reasoning of the decision — with Judge Diarmuid O’Scannlain explicitly admitting “I am not convinced that we have correctly followed the Supreme Court’s instructions" — but nevertheless ruled the city's ban on methane gas lines into new buildings conflicted with federal appliance efficiency regulations. Eight states, along with the federal government, sided with Berkeley, backing the ordinance which would reduce the amount of methane gas pollution in new buildings. The ruling, which is expected to be challenged, does not affect other municipalities' building electrification policies that are structured differently from Berkeley's. (AP, E&E News, Bloomberg Law, Reuters, San Francisco Chronicle, Houston Chronicle, OilPrice; Implications for other municipalities: E&E News)

UAE, Saudi Arabia Buy Russian Oil, Boost Their Profits: Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are buying Russian oil products, the Wall Street Journal reports. The countries are using the deeply-discounted Russian oil for domestic consumption and refining, thus boosting their own export profits and undermining Western efforts to clamp down on Russian revenue streams enabling it to continue its war in Ukraine. The UAE will host COP28 in November, where the CEO of its state oil company will serve as president. Russian oil exports to the UAE tripled last year, and Saudi imports went from virtually none to 100,000 barrels per day. (Wall Street Journal $)

More Research Shows EPA Underestimating US Oil & Gas Methane Pollution: The U.S. oil and gas industry emitted 70% more methane pollution than EPA estimated from 2010-2019, research published Monday in PNAS Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences reveals. The study used satellites to observe actual methane pollution, instead of relying on estimates based on assumptions on how much methane is released (through leaks, or intentionally through venting) by oil and gas operations on the ground. Methane, the main component in so-called "natural gas," traps more than 80 times as much heat in the atmosphere as CO2 over a 20-year timeframe. Cutting methane pollution from oil and gas operations (especially by fixing leaks) is essential, and the most cost-efficient way, to limit near-term global temperature increases. Monday's findings are the most recent in a growing chorus of research revealing the dramatic delta between EPA estimates and actual methane pollution in the U.S. (CNN, E&E $)

(ENVIRONMENTAL) RACISM: Chicago’s Little Village Residents fight for better city oversight of industrial corridors (Inside Climate News), Indigenous leader assassinated amid conflict over oil that divided community (Mongabay)

• RALPH YARL: Ringing the wrong doorbell nearly cost a Black teen his life (The Root, Vox, Axios, The Cut, BBC, TIME), Kansas City community protests after man who shot Black teen Ralph Yarl is released from custody (NewsOne, People), After days of outrage over the shooting of a Black teen, officials charge the gunman (NPR), White Missouri man, Andrew Lester, charged with 2 felonies in shooting of Black teen (Blavity, New York Times $, NBC, AP, Rolling Stone, Daily Beast, CNN, KCUR, TIME), ‘How do you protect a Black kid?’ Protesters demand justice in shooting of Ralph Yarl, 16 (Kansas City Star), Black teen shot after ringing wrong doorbell is a gifted chemistry student and a 'gentle soul,' former teacher says (NBC)

IF YOU SEE SOMETHING, KEEP IT TO YOURSELF?: Senator’s bill would fine Texans for multiple environmental complaints that don’t lead to enforcement (Texas Tribune and Inside Climate News)

9:37 🚂 TO THE PETROCHEMICAL DYSTOPIA: Texas to New Jersey: Tacking the toxic chemicals in the Ohio train inferno (New York Times $), Rail CEO to testify in Ohio Senate about fiery derailment (AP)

CLIMATE DIPLOMACY: Largest global gathering of Indigenous leaders at the United Nations (Indian Country Today, Grist, and High Country News), UN water conference highlights a stubborn shortage of global action (Inside Climate News), US ready to lend Poland $4 billion for nuclear energy plan (AP), US tax breaks lure European clean tech companies as EU lags (AP), Why decisive OECD action could be the death knell for fossil fuels (Energy Monitor)

• G7: The G7's uneasy support for gas (Axios), Administration backs new gas spending in G7 talks – with caveats (Washington Post $), Japan, US and EU block G7 from setting coal phase out date (Climate Home)
• BRETTON WOODS: Slow start on World Bank reform angers climate-hit countries (AP)
• EU: Environment groups sue EU over green label for gas, nuclear (AP, Reuters), Lords amendment to energy bill may stop new coalmines in England (The Guardian)

HOT NEWS-APPROVED ADVICE: Your engagement ring should be a bike (Washington Post $)

DENIAL & GREENWASHING: Asia and Australia target greenwashing as companies risk penalties (Context)

EVs: Treasury cuts list of EVs that qualify for tax credits (E&E News, Washington Post $, The Hill, Politico Pro $), US car brands will benefit most from electric car tax breaks (New York Times $, E&E $, Wall Street Journal $), Winners and losers of the EV tax credits (Heatmap $)

• SHOPPING TIPS: A car buyer’s guide to the new EV tax credit (Heatmap $, Washington Post $)

MEDIA: Fox News-Dominion trial abruptly delayed on eve of opening statements (CNN), Fox News, Dominion defamation trial delayed amid network’s push to settle (Wall Street Journal $, Washington Post $, New York Times $), The defamation trial of the century is delayed (New York Times $)

AGM SZN: LGIM, CBIS team up to demand greater transparency from ExxonMobil on net zero aims (Reuters)

INFLATION REDUCTION ACT: US manufacturing commitments double after Biden subsidies launched (FT $), US clean energy investment skyrocketing since August (Houston Chronicle)

SCOTUS: Supreme Court rejects challenge to limit state permitting authority (Politico Pro $, E&E $), Clarence Thomas to amend financial disclosure forms to reflect sale to GOP megadonor (CNN, The Hill, NPR), Fox News analyst [Juan Williams] calls for investigation of Clarence Thomas corruption claims (The Guardian), Is Clarence Thomas fit to serve with ties to a GOP donor? A law professor weighs in (NPR), The Supreme Court justice who resigned in disgrace over his finances (Washington Post $)

EPA: A decade after Texas disaster, EPA dithers on key issue (E&E $), D.C. Circuit skeptical of challenge to EPA climate finding (E&E News), Industry group seeks D.C. Circuit rehearing of smog ruling (E&E $)

DOE: DOE grid chief [Maria Robinson] on transmission funding, permit deadlines (E&E $)

EXECUTIVE BRANCH: The military could throw a big wrench in Biden's offshore wind plans (Gizmodo)

WHITE HOUSE: Biden’s ambitious climate plan for EVs faces these big hurdles (Washington Post $)

THE HILL: Alaska lawmakers call on 9th Circuit to back Willow (E&E $) 

HOUSE: McCarthy ties energy, regulatory demands to debt talks (E&E News, Politico Pro $)E&E News), Big week for ag: Hearings set on EPA rules, farm bill (E&E News), Granger eyes June floor action on fiscal 2024 spending bills (Politico Pro $), Natural Resources GOP gets chance to question Haaland (E&E $)

POLITICS: Climate rules expose surprising splits among businesses (Wall Street Journal $), Lobbying ‘frenzy’ follows Biden’s electric car push (Politico)

TRIBES: Avangrid and the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority begin a historic partnership to bring renewable power to reservation (Albuquerque Journal), Tribal colleges tap US energy funds to build ‘living labs’ (AP)

CITIES AND STATES: Texas could limit crypto miner participation in lucrative ERCOT programs (Houston Chronicle), New Jersey regulators finalize environmental justice rules protecting large swaths from pollution (Politico Pro $), Ohio Republicans target climate education at state colleges (E&E $), Why New York’s (mostly) vegan mayor wants to cut the city’s meat budget (New York Times $)

FERC: FERC rejects Southwest Power Pool plan for utility self-funding of network upgrades (Utility Dive), PJM asks FERC to help resolve LS Power, 7 other complaints about $1.8B in Winter Storm Elliott penalties (Utility Dive)

IMPACTS: ‘It Breaks My Heart’: Costa Rica’s coffee communities challenged by climate change (Yale Climate Connections), A stark warning about West and Central Africa's food crisis (Axios), The next El Niño: When is it coming and how strong might this one be for Australia? (The Guardian explainer), These cities are the allergy capitals of America, study says (The Hill), This year so far has been DC’s warmest on record (Washington Post $), Why melting ice sheets and glaciers are affecting people thousands of miles away (NPR)

HEAT: Historic Asia heat breaks hundreds of records, with extremes in thailand and China (Washington Post $)

TORNADOES: Tornado alley is expanding — and scientists don’t know why (The Hill)

WILDFIRES: Firefighters battle France’s 1st major forest blaze of 2023 (AP)

TREES: America’s most prolific logger recasts itself as environmental do-gooder (Wall Street Journal $)

RENEWABLES: The green energy factory facing a storm of China backlash (Wall Street Journal $), Burning Man win could put geothermal project on ice (E&E $)

GRID: Clogged transmission cost consumers $13B in 1 year — report (E&E News), Massive transmission line will send wind power from Wyoming to California (Grist), NERC opposes expanding physical security rules for critical substations following Duke, PSE, other attacks (Utility Dive), NYISO: Transmission security margins sufficient for the state, but NYC faces reliability risks (Utility Dive)

BATTERIES: This NASA tech might just spur a major grid battery breakthrough (Canary Media)

BUILDINGS: Can North Carolina code officials win builders over on energy conservation? (Energy News Network), Lower-cost ways to keep your home comfortable in hot weather (Yale Climate Connections), Renovations have become an essential tool for living with climate change (Heatmap $)

STEEL: ‘Green steel’ would curb carbon emissions, spur economic revival in Southwest Pennsylvania, study says (Inside Climate News)

OIL & GAS: Substantial' oil supply deficit on horizon — IEA (E&E $), Environmental advocates contend ‘green’ natural gas efforts fail to contain damaging leaks (The Hill)

COAL: Coal is too hot to handle—maybe even for Glencore (Wall Street Journal $)

NUKES: World leaders agree to boost nuclear power, while Germany shuts its plants (Gizmodo, Wall Street Journal $)

FUSION: NRC to regulate fusion energy systems as commercial interest grows despite ‘uncertain’ future (Utility Dive, E&E $)

UTILITIES: AEP, Liberty Utilities terminate $2.65B Kentucky Power deal, partly over ‘evolving macro environment’ (Utility Dive)

DEEP SEA (MINERALS): Samples from deep ocean trench contain alarming levels of industrial chemicals (Gizmodo), The main players in the push towards deep-sea mining (Reuters, Factbox)

AGRICULTURE: Cattle are a huge climate threat. Smarter ranching can help (Canary Media)

CARBON STORAGE: Why injecting CO2 underground is a legal morass (E&E News)

GEOENGINEERING: Former DOE official launches solar geoengineering group (E&E $)

FINANCE: Vanguard's Galloway: Climate group exit does not change environmental concerns (Reuters)

WILDLIFE: Report: Climate change, disease imperil North American bats (AP, The Hill, E&E $), Fears for England’s frog and toad population after drought (The Guardian), Where are the whales? Scientists find clues thousands of miles away (NPR)

INTERNATIONAL: ‘They have conned us out of our lands’: Conflict brews in Peru as Mennonite settlers clear forest (Mongabay), Britain looks to widen renewables support scheme (Reuters), Protesters urge caution over St Ives climate trial amid chemical plans for bay (The Guardian), Renewable energy growth must double to meet Australia’s emission goals, Clean Energy Council says (The Guardian), Tanzania signs $667 mln deals for rare earth and graphite projects (Reuters), Why oil is a humanitarian issue for Nigeria’s new president (The New Humanitarian), Mangrove Man' in India fights to salvage sinking shores (AP), German climate activists pledge new wave of blockades (AP)

• My continent is not your giant climate laboratory (New York Times, Chukwumerije Okereke op-ed $)
• Biden’s climate blind spot (The Hill, Jeremy Symons op-ed)
• Tapping into the power of community to make informal settlements healthier (Environmental Health News, Sabah Usmani op-ed)
• Clarence Thomas would be in trouble if he were a regular judge (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, SpearIt op-ed $)
• Why Clarence Thomas’s explanations fail the laugh test (Washington Post, Eugene Robinson column $)
• Berkshire Hathaway’s energy idea is a bad fit for Texas (Wall Street Journal, Jinjoo Lee column $)
• The wrong track to rail safety (Wall Street Journal Editorial Board $)
• Gas stoves triumph over Berkeley (Wall Street Journal Editorial Board $)

Coalition Of Gassholes Complain About Gas Stove Regulations, And Fox Took The Bait

A staple tactic that industries use to defend their dangerous products from regulation is to fund other organizations to argue on their behalf, without the appearance of having an obvious conflict of interest. Sometimes it's obvious front groups set up by a single company to fight some local policy, but for nearly a century the energy industry has funded a network of lobby groups to deny the harms of products and delay regulations. 

These days it's rarely all that effective on anyone who bothers to do some due diligence on the groups; legitimate journalists tend to do funding-and fact-checks to avoid being used as a tool and publishing a "news" story that's actually a free political advertisement. 

In contrast, propagandists posing as journalists, like Fox News’ Thomas Catenacci, conveniently overlook where organizations get their funding — except for when it's politically expedient to notice. Since they're saying what Fox considered to be politically correct, though, Catenacci either didn't know or didn't care that the groups who recently submitted comments to the Biden administration to oppose regulations on gas stoves were backed by the fossil fuel industry. 

"Biden admin receives backlash from nearly two dozen groups for move cracking down on gas stoves," Catenacci’s headline declares. Wow, "nearly two dozen groups" sounds like a pretty sizable contingent! Are these groups of chefs and cooks, perhaps? Are they coalitions of restaurateurs and home cooking influencers, or others worried about not getting some sort of unique value from gas stoves? Of course not.

For starters, it's not even "nearly two dozen groups," as the very first sentence begins by contradicting the headline, disclosing that Catenacci is reporting on "a coalition of 18 energy and consumer advocacy organizations." For the math-adverse, a dozen is 12, two dozen is 24, and 18 is exactly halfway in between the two. So it's just as "nearly" one dozen groups as it is two. That's not exactly germane to the story, but when the fourth word of a story proves the headline was either written by a useful idiot or knowing industry agent, it doesn't exactly inspire confidence. (Nor does the other, less likely third option, that he's just a regular idiot.)

Since Catenacci doesn't bother to actually include a link to the comments he's supposedly reporting on, we don't know what all 18 groups are, but he does list 11 of them. The effort was led by Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), and signers "include the Caesar Rodney Institute, Center for the American Experiment, Mackinac Center for Public Policy, Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy, Heartland Institute, Science and Environmental Policy Project, Energy & Environment Legal Institute, Consumers’ Research, Institute for Energy Research and FreedomWorks." 

Because Catenacci didn't, we'll do a little reporting on why these groups may actually be opposed to a regulation on a fossil fuel product: CEI's funders have included ExxonMobil and the Kochs. The Caesar Rodney Institute has received funding from the American Energy Alliance and American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers. The Center for the American Experiment's funders have included Donors Trust and Donors Capital Fund, the Koch-loved "dark money ATM" that allows the true donors of funds to these groups to remain confidential.

To complete the rest of the list, the Mackinac Center has taken money from Koch and ExxonMobil, as has the Institute for Energy Research. The Thomas Jefferson Institute has taken money from Koch-affiliated groups and DonorsTrust, as has Heartland, SEPP, and EELI. FreedomWorks has gotten tons of money from those sources and more, and Consumers’ Research is the group turning the anti-ESG campaign into an anti-trans hate project. 

So while Fox may describe this group of 18 as a "coalition" of "nearly two dozen groups" opposed to cleaner stoves, the reality is that nearly one dozen groups that have taken fossil fuel money were critical of proposed regulations that would impact fossil fuel sales. 

Not exactly "news" — unless, of course, you work at Fox. 

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