‘Green News Report’ – February 22, 2022

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IN TODAY’S RADIO REPORT: Weather disasters impacted 1 in 10 homes in the U.S. last year; Biden Interior Department halts new oil and gas leases in ironic legal fight over costs of climate; Climate-changed rainfall patterns dampen economic growth; PLUS: Biden unveils historic $1 billion in funding for Great Lakes cleanup… All that and more in today’s Green News Report!

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IN ‘GREEN NEWS EXTRA’ (see links below): Germany Decertifies Russian Gas Pipeline; Sanctions against Russia come at a cost to the West; Air pollution may affect sperm quality, says study; 3 U.S. states with shuttered nuclear plants see emissions rise; China plans to feed 80 million people with ‘seawater rice’; Study shows renewable energy could help prevent blackouts like Texas; Ethiopia turns on the turbines at giant Nile hydropower plant; Conflict and climate change ravage Syria’s agricultural heartland; Chicago Mayor denies permit to scrap shredder plant on city’s South Side… PLUS: Hank the Tank: Massive bear breaks into dozens of homes near Lake Tahoe… and much, MUCH more! …

STORIES DISCUSSED ON TODAY’S ‘GREEN NEWS REPORT’…

• Weather disaster affected 1 in 10 homes in the U.S. last year:
• Weather disasters affected 1 in 10 homes in the country last year, report finds (Washington Post)>
• Catastrophe Report Warns Of The High Price Tag Of Damage From Extreme Weather Events (Forbes)
• More than 40 percent of Americans live in counties hit by climate disasters in 2021 (Washington Post)
• Retirees Squeezed by Climate-Amped Home Insurance (Climate Crocks)
• Climate Change Could Make Your Old Roof an Insurance Problem (MSN)
• Climate-changed rainfall patterns are harming economic growth:
• Heavy Rains Have Major Impact on Economies (Climate Crocks)
• Study: Climate-changed rainfall dampens economic growth (Yale Climate Communications):
  hen estimating costs that climate change will impose on societies, climate economists face a difficult barrier: They can only incorporate into models well-understood and quantified climate damages. Authors of a recent study published in Nature have identified previously unknown economic impacts associated with changes in rainfall…One significant and previously overlooked effect lies in the increase of extreme daily rainfall totals that can disrupt economies by causing local flooding.
• The effect of rainfall changes on economic production (Nature)
• Extreme rainfall slows the global economy (Nature)
• Interior Dept. halts new oil/gas leases and permits in wake of judge’s ruling:
• Biden Administration Halts New Drilling in Legal Fight Over Climate Costs (NY Times):
  The Interior Department is pausing new federal oil and gas leases and permits after a judge blocked the government from weighing the cost of climate damage in decisions.
• Judge blocks key Biden climate metric (E&E News)
• U.S. Coal Country to get historic $11 billion to clean up abandoned mines:
• US coal communities get historic $11B to clean up abandoned mines (Canary Media):
  The funds support regions and workers grappling firsthand with the transition to clean energy.
• Biden plan to spend $725M to clean up abandoned coal mines (ABC News):
  Nearly $725 million in federal funding is available this fiscal year to 22 states and the Navajo Nation for the reclamation of abandoned coal mines and cleanup of acid mine drainage, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced.
• Biden unveils historic $1 billion in funding for Great Lakes cleanup:
• Joe Biden says Great Lakes funding will allow the ‘most significant’ restoration effort in history (Cleveland Plain Dealer):
  Drawing on the words of famed author and Lorain-native Toni Morrison, President Joe Biden on Thursday said cities like Lorain and the rest of Ohio have much to look forward to in the future while announcing $1 billion in funding for restoration of the Great Lakes. “Places like Lorain have a lot of proud yesterdays,” he said. “Now, they’re going to have some greater tomorrows because of all of you.”
• Biden announces $1 billion in infrastructure funding to clean up the Great Lakes (CNN)
• VIDEO: Biden’s Lorain, Ohio speech (Yahoo News):
  Biden spoke in Lorain Feb. 17 about the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act which will accelerate clean-up of areas along the Great Lakes.M

‘GREEN NEWS EXTRA’ (Stuff we didn’t have time for in today’s audio report)…

For a comprehensive roundup of daily environmental news you can trust, see the Society of Environmental Journalists’ Daily Headlines page

• Germany Decertifies Russian Gas Pipeline (Climate Crocks)
• Ukraine crisis: sanctions against Russia come at a cost to the west (Guardian UK)
• Air pollution may affect sperm quality, says study (Guardian UK)
• 3 states with shuttered nuclear plants see emissions rise (E&E News)
• China Plans to Feed 80 Million People With ‘Seawater Rice’ (Bloomberg)
• 75 percent Of People Want Single-Use Plastics Banned, Global Survey Finds (Reuters)
• Study Shows Renewable Energy Could Help Prevent Blackouts Like Texas (Washington Post)
• Black Farmers Fear Foreclosure as Debt Relief Remains Frozen (NY Times)
• Ethiopia Turns On The Turbines At Giant Nile Hydropower Plant (Reuters)
• White House Mulls How To Stabilize Gas Prices Amid Russian Hostilities (Washington Post)
• Conflict and Climate Change Ravage Syria’s Agricultural Heartland (NY Times)
• Drought, Wildfires Pose New Threats To California Water Supply (LA Times)
• Hank the Tank: Massive Bear Breaks Into Dozens Of Homes Near Lake Tahoe (NPR)
• Chicago Mayor Denies Permit To Scrap Shredder; Company Vows To Fight On (Chicago Tribune)
• White House Releases EJ Mapping Tool Amid Rising Scrutiny (E&E News)
• Environmental Sacrifice Zones: 8 Places We’ve Given Up—Probably Forever (Environmental Health Network)
• “Rare Earths” from Coal Waste (Climate Crocks)
• How Manchin used politics to protect his coal company (E&E News)
• Feeling Hopeless About the Climate? Try Our 30-Day Action Plan (The Revelator)
• Green Upheaval: The New Geopolitics of Energy (Foreign Affairs)
• VIDEO: 2050: what happens if we ignore the climate crisis (Guardian UK)
• Guilt, grief and anxiety as young people fear for climate’s future (Reuters)
• 99.9 percent Of Scientists Agree Climate Emergency Caused By Humans (Guardian UK)
• An Empire of Dying Wells: Old oil and gas sites are a climate menace. Meet the company that owns more of America’s decaying wells than any other. (Bloomberg)
• Climate Fund Choices for Investors Are Multiplying (Bloomberg/Yahoo)
• How climate change could undo 50 years of public health gains (Grist)
• Climate Change Will Force a New American Migration (Pro Publica)
• Exxon’s Snake Oil: 100 years of deception (Columbia Journalism Review)
• What Does ’12 Years to Act on Climate Change’ (Now 9 Years) Really Mean? (Inside Climate News)
• VIDEO: A Message From the Future With Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (The Intercept)
• What genuine, no-bullshit ambition on climate change would look like: How to hit the most stringent targets, with no loopholes. (David Roberts, Vox)
• A Global Shift To Sustainability Would Save Us $26 Trillion (Vox)
• Project Drawdown: 100 Solutions to Reverse Global Warming (Drawdown.org)
• An Optimist’s Guide to Solving Climate Change and Saving the World (Vice)
• The great nutrient collapse: The atmosphere is literally changing the food we eat, for the worse. And almost nobody is paying attention. (Politico)
• The world’s bleak climate situation, in 3 charts: We’ve got a long way to go and a short time to get there. (Vox)
• The Climate Risks We Face (NY Times):
  To stabilize global temperature, net carbon dioxide emissions must be reduced to zero. The window of time is rapidly closing to reduce emissions and limit warming to no more than 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit or 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels, the goal set in the Paris climate accord. The further we push the climate system beyond historical conditions, the greater the risks of potentially unforeseen and even catastrophic changes to the climate – so every reduction in emissions helps.
• The Uninhabitable Earth: When will climate change make earth too hot for humans? (New York Magazine):
  Famine, economic collapse, a sun that cooks us: What climate change could wreak – sooner than you think.
• A beginner’s guide to the debate over 100% renewable energy (Vox):
  Clean-energy enthusiasts frequently claim that we can go bigger, that it’s possible for the whole world to run on renewables – we merely lack the “political will.” So, is it true? Do we know how get to an all-renewables system? Not yet. Not really.