Tunisian Climate Migrants Stranded as Heat Climbs: The remains of five people were found Tuesday, near the border of Libya and Tunisia, where dozens of sub-Saharan migrants have been stranded for weeks without access to basic resources. Tensions between the countries have been on the rise since Tunisia forcibly relocated migrants to the border regions, then bowed to pressure to bring a portion of them back, all amid a blistering heatwave that has pushed temperatures above 120°F in parts of the country. For African migrants hoping to make the deadly Mediterranean crossing to Europe, Tunisia has become the main departure point. Last week, the country signed a $110 million deal with the EU “to address the migration issue” against the backdrop of allegations of human rights abuses, which advocacy groups fear will only worsen. Meanwhile Italy, a primary destination for many African migrants, hosted a 1-day conference on migration on Sunday that human rights groups worry is a road map for anti-migrant policies that focus responsibilities on Africa instead of Europe. This issue highlights the broader trend of increasing climate change-fueled migration. Migrants have been met with violence and immigration restrictions. For example, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is now being sued by the Department of Justice for his recent decision to install floating buoys with razor wire to “deter” migrants attempting to cross the Rio Grande, even though a record number of people died crossing the US-Mexico border in 2022. (Tunisia-Libya: Reuters, Al Jazeera; Suing Abbot: AP, NBC, CBS, Axios; Tunisia-EU: AP) 

Indigenous Brazilians Push Lula on Amazon Oil and Gas: Indigenous groups are ramping up pressure on Brazil’s President Luiz Ignacio Lula de Silva to put ending oil and gas extraction in the Amazon on the agenda of an historic summit set to take place in Brazil next month. Activists see the Amazon Summit, the first in several years to discuss a 45-year-old treaty among the South American countries within whose borders the Amazon lies, as a critical moment to pressure Lula. While Lula has positioned himself as a climate leader, he has made statements supporting oil and gas drilling, including in the Amazon, despite the warnings from climate scientists and organizations such as the International Energy Agency that the world cannot sustain any new fossil fuel projects and still limit warming to 1.5°C. The call to end fossil fuel extraction in the Amazon comes as South American countries have instead been accelerating oil and gas extraction and exploration for domestic economic benefit. In January, Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced a halt of new oil and gas exploration contracts in his country, and in an op-ed this month, called on his fellow Amazon nation leaders to follow suit, despite the substantial portion of Colombia’s economy that relies on the fossil fuel industry. He said it was essential for countries like the US who bear historical responsibility for climate change-causing pollution to fully support financial mechanisms to assist Global South countries in prioritizing environmental protection without sacrificing economic growth. “We need to convince other presidents like Lula... to step up as well and really play this leadership role,” said Ilan Zugman, Latin America managing director of 350.org, which is supporting the Indigenous-led campaign, “to not allow fossil fuel exploration in one of the most important places of the world.” (Climate Home)

The ‘Day After Tomorrow’ Might Actually Be Tomorrow: A major system of ocean currents is at risk of collapsing as soon as 2025 and likely by the end of the century, a dire harbinger of potential climate tipping points that suggest the planet is on track for severe climate impacts much sooner than scientists had previously predicted. The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, of which the Gulf Stream is a part, is a system of currents that moves warm water toward the North Pole and cold water south. The warming of the oceans and increased flows of freshwater from melting sea ice have already slowed down the circulation of the system; scientists fear an outright collapse that could wreak havoc on climate systems, increasing the incidence of extreme weather events, pushing sea levels higher, accelerating biodiversity collapse, causing northern Europe to experience colder temperatures that could significantly decrease crop yields, and worsening drought in the African Sahel and monsoon regions in Asia. A new study published Tuesday in Nature Communications from researchers at the University of Copenhagen modeled sea surface temperatures over time to extrapolate when a collapse might occur. The study looked at the current trajectory of rising greenhouse gas emissions and evidence from ice and sediment to determine how the AMOC behaved at other major periods of climate extremes. While scientists cautioned that conclusions are based on relatively short periods of detailed observed data, and precise impacts of the slowing or outright collapse of ocean currents are not yet well understood, Professor Peter Ditlevsen, one of the study’s authors, said “I think we should be very worried.vThis would be a very, very large change. The AMOC has not been shut off for 12,000 years.” (The Hill, Daily Beast, New York Times $, CNN, FT $, The Guardian, Axios, NPR)

(ENVIRONMENTAL) RACISM: Increasing power outages don’t hit everyone equally (Scientific American)

GROWING BETTER: Vital places of refuge in the Bronx, community gardens gain recognition (New York Times $), Cultivating the next generation of Black farmers in Mississippi (NPR)

FOSSIL FUELED ENERGY CRISIS: The war in Ukraine and climate change drive up food prices (CNN)

CRISIS… AVERTED: A decaying oil tanker posed a ‘catastrophic’ risk. Now, a major operation is underway to avert disaster (CNBC, The Hill)

CLIMATE LITIGATION: ‘Climate change is not a tragedy, it’s a crime’: The team taking on Big Oil (CNN)

CLIMATE DIPLOMACY: Who will be the next head of the U.N. climate science body IPCC? (Reuters, Politico Pro $)

DENIAL: Can social media platforms solve the climate denial problem? (The Ethos), Cartoon: Danger Zone (The Nib)

FOSSIL VOLATILITY: Tuesday marks biggest one-day gas price increase in a year  (The Hill)

SURE, THAT MAKES SENSE: Property insurance disappears for Louisianans – but not for gas facilities (The Guardian), Homeowners struggle to get protection from climate disasters as big insurance companies scale back (WBUR)

EPA: Appeals court strikes down EPA permit order to St. Croix refinery (Politico Pro $)

WHITE HOUSE: Biden designates new national monument to honor Emmett Till, Mamie Till-Mobley (The Hill), Offshore wind power woes threaten Biden’s climate goals (E&E $)

THE HILL:  Congressional Democrats call on Biden for workplace heat safety steps (Reuters), Dems seek DOJ probe of Big Oil for climate 'deception' (E&E $)

DRIVING THE DRIVE: Here are the lawmakers who drive EVs (E&E $)

HOUSE: House Republicans unveil broad bill to trim pipeline rules (E&E $), Committee sets vote on bills to stymie EV adoption (E&E $)

SENATE: Senate OKs farmland NDAA amendment, prepares for more (E&E $), 

Manchin, Barrasso question Forest Service climate proposal (E&E $)

POLITICS OVER PEOPLE: ‘Battle plan': How the far right would dismantle climate programs (E&E $)

PERMITTING: Permitting Plan B: Democrats lean on FERC, DOE (E&E $)

CITIES AND STATES: Phoenix mayor on how the city is coping with heat above 110 degrees every day of July (NPR), Texas heat wave could cost state economy nearly $10 billion, analysis finds (Houston Chronicle), Chicago’s downtown buildings are slowly sinking. The culprit? Underground climate change, study shows. (Chicago Tribune)

~CALIFORNIA: Climate crisis is making the California dream even less affordable (Mother Jones), Cities’ thirst nearly killed these California lakes. Not so fast, said our epic wet winter (LA Times $), What might a disaster-proof house in California look like? (New York Times $), Keeping contentious nuclear plant open could cost Californians $45B: report (The Hill)

FERC: Allco asks FERC to void Hydro-Québec, Avangrid power contracts with Massachusetts utilities (Utility Dive)

IMPACTS: Asia-Pacific needs disaster warning systems to counter rising climate change risks, report says (AP), Cases of tick-borne illnesses are on the rise. Some experts believe climate change is the cause (AP), What are cloudbursts and is climate change making them more frequent? (AP)

TIPPING POINTS: Why it’s so hard to predict a climate tipping point (Heatmap)

HEAT: Heat waves in US and Europe would have been ‘virtually impossible’ without climate change, new report finds (CNN, CBS, NBC, BBC), The "heat island effect" traps cities in domes of extreme temperatures. Experts only expect it to get worse. (CBS),  It's hot out there. a new analysis shows it's much worse if you're in a city (NPR, Axios, NBC, E&E $)

~HEAT HURTS: Why you feel grouchy on super hot days (Vox), Why extreme heat is so deadly for workers (Grist), Heat waves and cold snaps linked to more fatal heart attacks, study finds (Gizmodo), How extreme heat can affect your health (Wall Street Journal $), Extreme heat is particularly hard on older adults, and an aging population and climate change are putting ever more people at risk (The Conversation)

ON STRIKE: Texas Congressman leads thirst and hunger strike to urge heat protections for workers (CNN, The Hill)

HOT WATER: In hot water: South Florida ocean tops 100 degrees; could be world record (Washington Post $, NBC)

WILDFIRES: Wildfires bring death and destruction to sun-scorched Mediterranean (Reuters), Wildfires in Algeria kill at least 34 and injure hundreds but 80% now extinguished, officials say (AP, New York Times $)

SPORTS!: Experts warn of "massive shift" for outdoor sports as extreme heat worsens. How will your workout change? (CBS)

RIVERS: Climate change may have siphoned a Lake Mead-sized sip of water from the Colorado River Basin (The Hill), The cradle of civilization is drying up (Foreign Policy), Western lawmakers seek fix for Colorado River salinity program (E&E $)

ADAPTATION: How ‘unbuilding’ can help weather climate disasters (US News & World Report)

WHAT’S WHAT: Unraveling the heat wave: separating weather from climate change (Forbes)

RENEWABLES: NextEra Energy results beat estimates on renewables boom (Reuters), Total takes control of renewables firm for $1.66 billion (Bloomberg $)

BATTERIES: World's largest renewables developer is bullish on batteries (E&E $), DOE offers $30M for long-duration energy storage projects (E&E $)

BUILDINGS: Pouring ice into concrete: Builders adapt to extreme heat (Wall Street Journal $), What you can do at home to help stem climate change (New York Times $)

LNG: U.S. allies in Asia snub natural gas from Alaska project (Wall Street Journal $), Cheniere Energy eyes new gas pipeline to feed LNG expansion (Reuters), Delfin expects to take FID on first floating LNG producer in October (LNG Prime)

METHANE: Colo. becomes latest state to crack down on methane (E&E $, Clean Technica), 

Biden's methane clique (Politico Pro $)

LOL: Zero oil companies bid in BLM's Nevada lease sale (E&E $)

REALLY WARREN? Warren Buffett lifts fossil fuel bets (Bloomberg $)

PIPELINES: Gas pipeline explodes near interstate in rural Virginia, no injuries reported (AP), New EU law requires fast-charging stations along highways by end of 2025 (EcoWatch), Paris to make Seine swimmable again after a century (EcoWatch), Heat wave returns as Greece grapples with more wildfire evacuations (AP), NC Gov. Cooper opposes natural gas pipeline extension (WUNC), AG Morrisey joins West Virginia officials in Mountain Valley Pipeline case (Parksburg News and Sentinel)

NUKES: Russia places explosive mines near occupied nuclear reactor, watchdog says (Politico Pro $)

GRID: Why the Texas power grid is still fraught with risk (Bloomberg Law), A controversial model for America’s climate future (The Atlantic)

EVs: Chevy Bolt EV is returning to market, months after GM scrapped it (Washington Post $), Tesla and GM sold more cars. Only one made more money (Bloomberg, Liam Denning $), Chevron considers lithium production in latest EV bet by big oil (Bloomberg $)

FINANCE: The multilateral development banks the world needs (Project Syndicate)

MARKETS: Climate change is the next mega-shock coming for markets and the economy, think tank says (Business Insider), IMF increasingly worried about 'material' impact of climate change on economies (Reuters)

BEEP BOOP: Mitigating climate change and preserving biodiversity: Several ways AI can be used to help the environment (ABC)

HEALTH: Pittsburgh-area hospitals tackling climate emissions, pollution and waste (Environmental Health News)

WILDLIFE: In search of the world’s largest freshwater fish – the wonderfully weird giants lurking in Earth’s rivers (The Conversation), Toxic algae poisoning is killing wildlife along California coast (NBC), In Baltic Sea, citizen divers restore seagrass to fight climate change (Yahoo)

INTERNATIONAL: Canada releases framework to phase out inefficient fossil fuel subsidies (Reuters, Politico Pro $), Greece fires force more evacuations from Rhodes and other islands as a new heat wave bears down (CBS), India’s food security is being choked by climate change (Washington Post $), Italy’s gas is costing more than its peers amid extreme heat (Bloomberg $), Wildfires, heat and giant hail as Italy grapples with extreme weather (CNN), A warming climate could ruin this long held summer tradition in Sicily (NPR), Wind, solar and EVs offer Japan cheapest net zero climate path (Bloomberg $)

• What we’re forced to leave behind when it floods (New York Times, Dream Hampton $)
• What frightens me about the climate crisis is we don’t know how bad things really are (The Guardian)
• Anti-ESG politicians cost their states and cities billions (Bloomberg, Brian Frosh & Nancy Kopp $)
• Opinion: Don’t panic over malaria in the U.S. But do worry about mosquitoes (LA Times, Saad B. Omer $)
• In our new age of disasters, centralized responses are needed (Washington Post, Cindy Ermus $)
• How well-managed dams and smart forecasting can limit flooding as extreme storms become more common in a warming world (The Conversation, Riley Post)
• When it comes to climate change, what motivates us to act? (Phys.org, Meredith McGroarty)
• The world needs a new way to talk about heat (Washington Post $)
• Why older adults are so vulnerable to extreme heat from climate change (LA Times, Deborah Carr, Giacomo Falchetta and Ian Sue Wing $)

NY Post Covers CFACT's 8 Person, 3 Boat Offshore Wind Turbine Protest

We usually try not to cover the same issue in back-to-back posts, but while yesterday we connected some dots between industry-backed disinformation organizations and front groups opposing offshore wind, today they're connecting them for us. 

On Monday evening, the New York Post ran a story headlined "Fishermen, activists protest offshore wind farms near Montauk, cite recent whale deaths." According to the Post's Josh Christenson, "the coalition, organized by the Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow, sent out three boats to South Fork Wind Farm, roughly 20 miles from both Martha’s Vineyard and Montauk, NY, holding signs that read 'STOP WINDMILLS SAVE WHALES' while shouting through a bullhorn at machinery operators to halt construction." 

But "coalition" is certainly being generous, as the accompanying video and photos show a total of nine people, at least two of whom are Marc Morano and Craig Rucker of dark money-backed CFACT (and two more who may also be CFACT staff, although it's hard to tell). 

Eight of them appeared to be on a pretty luxurious powerboat, and on another small boat, one lone guy was just barely able to unfurl his banners as a drone whizzed by. Unlike the other boat, this one at least had fishing poles. 

It’s unclear who or where the "professional New Jersey fishermen" were that the NYPost described as participating in the protest against the South Fork Wind Farm between the shores of Martha's Vineyard and Montauk, NY (100 miles north of NJ and 20 miles off the coast of Rhode Island.) 

There does not appear to be footage of a professional fishing vessel participating in this embarrassing display. 

Maybe we're just cynical, but it sure looks like a bunch of fossil fools booked a pleasure cruise in ritzy part of Long Island, brought along a couple friends and banners calling wind turbines "windmills," and convinced the super-legitimate journalists over at Rupert Murdoch's NY Post to cover it. 

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