‘Green News Report’ – August 20, 2024

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IN TODAY’S RADIO REPORT: Another round of rain and deadly catastrophic flooding, this time in Connecticut; Climate change dramatically increased the likelihood and severity of record wildfires last year, new study finds; PLUS: As Democratic National Convention gets underway, climate and environment groups endorse the Harris-Walz ticket… All that and more in today’s Green News Report!

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IN ‘GREEN NEWS EXTRA’ (see links below): Americans have saved billions with a law they know next to nothing about; The biggest winners of Biden’s green climate policies? Republicans; DC Appeals court tosses Biden Administration pipeline safety rules; Oil and ink mix as Chevron reports ‘the news in Texas, New Mexico; Why do so many pelicans keep dropping dead in California?; Water treaty between Mexico and U.S. faces biggest test in 80 years… PLUS: Nearly 68 million suffering from drought in Southern Africa… and much, MUCH more! …

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

• DNC in Chicago: celebrating President Biden’s landmark climate achievements:
• Democrats lean on climate during convention’s first day (E&E News):
  “We deserve leaders who acknowledge the threats – heck, the existence – of climate change,” said Lina Hidalgo, the elected executive for Harris County, Texas, after recalling Harris’ call to her in the midst of the February 2021 blackouts in the state.
• Joe Biden’s Enormous, Contradictory, and Fragile Climate Legacy (Mother Jones)
• Harris Stirs Hope for a New Chapter in Climate Action (Inside Climate News):
  Although expected to follow in Biden’s pragmatic footsteps, her record as a prosecutor and voice for justice has environmentalists looking to the future.
• VIDEO: President Joe Biden Addresses Party Delegates at DNC Convention in Chicago (C-SPAN)
• Watch and Read Joe Biden’s Full Speech at the 2024 Democratic National Convention (Time)
• Democrats unveil 2024 platform ahead of convention kickoff (Axios)
• Biden’s climate policies are bearing economic fruit:
• The Inflation Reduction Act at Two (The Prospect):
  Challenges remain, but there’s been a lot of progress on restoring an industrial base, creating union jobs, and transforming our energy economy.
• Chart: US clean energy investment is soaring thanks to climate law (Canary Media):
  Private and public investment in clean energy rose to a total of $147B in the first half of this year – a record-setting figure.
• Trump vs. Biden’s historic climate agenda (Politico)
• Biden’s big manufacturing incentives are starting to have a big impact (Fortune, 4/17/2023)
• Republicans vow to dismantle Biden’s climate legacy:
• Trump wants to unravel Biden’s landmark climate law. Here is what’s most at risk. (MIT Technology Review)
• Republican fight over climate law may be reaching a boiling point (E&E News)
• Republicans tried to repeal this climate bill 42 times. Meanwhile, it has brought $286 billion to their districts (Fast Company/MSN)
• Climate, environment groups endorse Harris-Walz ticket:
• Climate Groups Begin $55 Million Ad Campaign for Kamala Harris (NY Times)
• Harris Stirs Hope for a New Chapter in Climate Action (Inside Climate News):
  Although expected to follow in Biden’s pragmatic footsteps, her record as a prosecutor and voice for justice has environmentalists looking to the future.
• AUDIO: Climate activists rally around Harris, seeing a chance to build on Biden’s record (NPR)
• Kamala Harris’s Environmental and Climate Record, in Her Own Words (NPR’s Living On Earth, 6/27/2024):
  “I care about the environment not because I have any particular desire to hug a tree, but I have a strong desire to hug a healthy baby.”
• Connecticut, Long Island hit with catastrophic rains, floods:
• VIDEO: Connecticut Floods Fit Precipitation Pattern (This Is Not Cool blog)
• 2 women killed in Connecticut after being swept away in flooding, over 100 evacuated (ABC News)
• Flash floods in Connecticut kill at least 2, as some towns hit by ‘1,000-year’ rain events (Washington Post)
• Climate Change Indicators: Heavy Precipitation (EPA)
• Distant Hurricane Ernesto washes away homes in North Carolina:
• Ernesto high surf knocks North Carolina coastal home into the Outer Banks ocean; 7th house in 4 years swept away (WGHP-TV Greensboro)
• Outer Banks erosion: Rodanthe homeowners face the cost of changing coastline (WRAL)
• Climate change increased the likelihood of record-shattering 2023 wildfire season:
• State of Wildfires 2023-2024 (Copernicus)
• Climate change-worsened wildfires drastically increased odds, severity of 2023 wildfires (Axios)
• Parts of Canada’s boreal forest are burning faster than they regrow (NY Times)
• Biden EPA pushing I.R.A. money out the door before November election:
• EPA Solidifies Plans For $27B In Climate Funds Targeted By Republicans (The Hill):
  The move locks in this use of the money, which Republicans have indicated they would try to repeal if they take both chambers of Congress and the White House next year. That becomes much harder if the money is already in recipients’ hands.
• The climate law’s $8.8 billion in home energy rebates are starting to roll out (Canary Media)

‘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

• Americans have saved billions with a law they know next to nothing about (CNN)
• DC Appeals Court Tosses Biden Administration Pipeline Safety Rules (The Hill)
• The biggest winners of Biden’s green climate policies? Republicans. (CNN)
• Oil And Ink Mix As Chevron Reports The ‘News’ In Texas, New Mexico (Floodlight)
• Nearly 68 Million Suffering From Drought In Southern Africa, Says Bloc (Reuters)
• Why Do So Many Pelicans Keep Dropping Dead In California? (Washington Post)
• Wealthy Homeowners Nab Billions In Tax Credits For Energy Efficiency (E&E News)
• Newsom Vetoes Bill Seeking To Tighten Refinery-Adjacent Air Monitoring Rules (The Hill)
• Water Treaty Between Mexico And U.S. Faces Biggest Test In 80 Years (NPR)
• These Books Delve Into Summer’s Climate-Charged Dark Side (Yale Climate Connections)
• Watchdogs Warn Of Plutonium Contamination In Los Alamos’ Acid Canyon (AP)
• Why toilet paper keeps getting smaller and smaller (The Hustle)
• How Close Are the Planet’s Climate Tipping Points? (NY Times)
• Tropical weather brings record rainfall. Experts share how to stay safe in floods. (AP)
• How to power your home through an outage without a gas generator (Washington Post)
• VIDEO: John Oliver on Trump’s Project 2025: Blueprint for the Death of Democracy (This Is Not Cool blog)
• Is the Atlantic Overturning Circulation Approaching a Tipping Point? (The Oceanography Society)
• How Oil Companies Manipulate Journalists (Drilled)
• Abrupt reduction in shipping emission as an inadvertent geoengineering termination shock produces substantial radiative warming (Nature)
• How To Spot 5 Of The Fossil Fuel Industry’s Biggest Disinformation Tactics (Guardian)
• The Oceans We Knew Are Already Gone (The Atlantic)
• Plug-in hybrids vs. electric cars: We did the math on which is better for you (Washington Post)
• How to electrify your life when you rent (The Verge)
• Complete Series: Farmers Under Attack for Supporting Clean Energy (This Is Not Cool blog)
• Feeling Overwhelmed About Going All-Electric at Home? Here’s How to Get Started (Inside Climate News)
• Feeling Hopeless About the Climate? Try Our 30-Day Action Plan (The Revelator)
• Climate Change Will Force a New American Migration (Pro Publica)
• Exxon’s Snake Oil: 100 years of deception (Columbia Journalism Review)
• Project Drawdown: 100 Solutions to Reverse Global Warming (Drawdown.org)