‘Green News Report’ – October 17, 2024

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IN TODAY’S RADIO REPORT: Destructive hurricanes could increase property insurance premiums across the nation; Small Business Administration’s disaster loan fund runs dry; PLUS: U.S. Supreme Court allows EPA to enforce new limits on power plant emissions — for now… All that and more in today’s Green News Report!

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IN ‘GREEN NEWS EXTRA’ (see links below): Global water crisis leaves half of world food production at risk in next 25 years; After hurricane, with no running water, residents organize to meet a basic need; Microplastic pollution is everywhere, even in the exhaled breath of dolphins, new research finds; Tech giants bring big bucks for small nukes; What’s causing the recent spike in global temperatures? … PLUS: La Nina could soon arrive. Here’s what that means for winter weather… and much, MUCH more! …

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

• U.S. Supreme Court allows EPA power plant emissions rule to stay – for now:
• Supreme Court allows limits on greenhouse gas emissions from coal-fired plants for now (CBS News):
  [Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar] continued: “Applicants state that they would need to capture a ‘massive amount of CO2’ to comply with the rule, but that is another way of saying that applicants will emit a ‘massive amount of CO2’ if the rule’s requirements do not take effect.”
• Supreme Court says EPA can force coal-fired power plants to cut carbon pollution 90% by 2032 (LA Times):
  The decision comes as a mild surprise because the court’s conservatives have repeatedly blocked the EPA’s more ambitious climate change plans…Justices Neil M. Gorsuch and Brett M. Kavanaugh said in a short statement that the challengers had a strong claim, but there was no need to block the regulation at this early stage.
• Biden-Harris Administration Finalizes Suite of Standards to Reduce Pollution from Fossil Fuel-Fired Power Plants (EPA)
• Phoenix finally breaks free of another record, extended heat wave:
• Phoenix shatters extreme heat records into fall (Axios):
  After having its hottest summer on record, Phoenix saw an unprecedented and sustained heat wave during parts of September through mid-October…The latest stretch prolonged heat-related health threats and pointed to the growing challenge of how to be resilient in the face of scorching temperatures.
• The summer that never ended: Phoenix gets a break after 3 weeks of record highs (Yahoo News)
• SBA disaster loan fund runs dry:
• SBA fund is out of money after Hurricanes Helene and Milton, Biden says (Washington Post/MSN):
  Biden encouraged disaster survivors to continue applying for assistance, and said the SBA would process new lending applications while the fund is empty and issue loans later. Congress is on a month-long recess until Nov. 12, after next month’s elections, and officials have said they will not call lawmakers back to Washington early to provide additional money.
• Small business disaster loan program is out of money until Congress approves new funds (AP)
• FEMA spent nearly half its disaster budget in just 8 days (Politico)
• FEMA Needs Help — Now. Mike Johnson Said No. (Mother Jones)
• North Carolina’s FEMA flood maps vastly underestimated actual flood risk:
• FEMA maps missed parts of North Carolina devastated by Hurricane Helene, Post analysis shows (Washington Post):
  In those mountainous areas, according to a Post analysis of First Street’s data, the number of properties at risk could be seven times higher than what FEMA flood maps indicate…The discrepancy shows how the agency’s maps — which rely only on floods observed in the past and don’t take into account flooding from heavy rain, small streams and tributaries, or climate change’s future impact — can fall short when assessing current risks in a wetter, hotter world.
• FEMA maps missed parts of North Carolina devastated by Hurricane Helene, Post analysis shows (Washington Post/MSN, no paywall)
• Why Helene’s floods caught North Carolina off guard (Washington Post)
• FEMA’s Antiquated Flood Maps Leave Victims of Recent Hurricane Floods Without Coverage (The Travel)
• NC Republicans and Trump weakened flood risk standards:
• North Carolina lawmakers erode building code for years before Helene hit (WBTV-Charlotte)
• How the North Carolina Legislature Left Homes Vulnerable to Helene (NY Times):
  Over the past 15 years, North Carolina lawmakers have rejected limits on construction on steep slopes, which might have reduced the number of homes lost to landslides; blocked a rule requiring homes to be elevated above the height of an expected flood; weakened protections for wetlands, increasing the risk of dangerous storm water runoff; and slowed the adoption of updated building codes, making it harder for the state to qualify for federal climate-resilience grants.
• The Flood-Protection Rule That Trump Rolled Back (NY Times):
  One policy he eradicated that day was a set of standards aimed at ensuring that anything built with taxpayer money — including hospitals, sewage treatment plants, bridges and libraries — could withstand flooding and rising seas caused by climate change…In the wake of hurricanes Helene and Milton, federal officials and flood experts say Trump’s decision to roll back those federal infrastructure standards has had financial ramifications. Those are just starting to come into view as officials continue to tally the damage from the storms.
• Destructive hurricanes could increase property insurance premiums nationwide:
• VIDEO: Ask Not Who Gets the Insurance Bill for Climate Disasters. You Do. (This Is Not Cool blog):
  Insurance companies rely on a “pooled risk” model. Customers (the majority, we hope) who live in non-disaster areas, help, with their premiums, to pay for the misfortunes of those in disaster areas. But as the disasters keep coming, the model is fraying.
• Nearly every homeowner will help pay the price of hurricanes Helene and Milton (Consumer Affairs Magazine):
  Because of the widespread devastation, property insurance rates will likely go up even more. Not just the victims’ rates — yours too….In other words, even if you haven’t made a claim in years, your homeowner’s insurance premiums could go up to help pay for the damage in North Carolina and Florida from hurricanes Helene and Milton.
• Helene, Milton losses expected to surpass “truly historic” $50 billion each (CBS News)
• Insurance ‘Nightmare’ Unfolds For Florida Homeowners After Two Hurricanes (NBC News)
• Considering getting flood insurance after Milton and Helene? Here’s what to expect (CNN)
• Shoe Drop: North Carolina Home Insurers ask for 42% Rate Hike (This Is Not Cool blog)
• Oil giant Phillips 66 to close L.A.-area refinery in 2025:
• Days after Newsom signs bill aimed at ‘big oil,’ Phillips 66 says it plans to stop operating refinery (KCRA-Sacramento):
  California Governor Gavin Newsom has called a special session of the Legislature for December 5th to consider a special windfall tax on oil industry profits. Phillips 66 reported a third quarter profit of $5.4 billion, 13 times more than the $402 million profit recorded for the same period last year….After this story first published, a spokesman for Phillips 66 told KCRA 3 the decision was not politically motivated nor was it in response to the governor’s recent bill signing.
• Oil company Phillips 66 says it will shut down Los Angeles-area refinery (AP)
• Phillips 66 to close California refinery days after Newsom signed oil law (Politico)

‘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

• Global water crisis leaves half of world food production at risk in next 25 years (Guardian)
• After hurricane, with no running water, residents organize to meet a basic need (AP)
• La Nina could soon arrive. Here’s what that means for winter weather (AP)
• Microplastic pollution is everywhere, even in the exhaled breath of dolphins – new research (The Conversation)
• Tech Giants Bring Big Bucks for Small Nukes (This Is Not Cool blog)
• Latest Dominion Energy Development Forecasts Raise Ire of Virginia Environmentalists (Inside Climate News)
• GM Energy launches ‘PowerBank’ home energy storage unit for EVs (Utility Dive)
• Supreme Court Leans Toward San Francisco in EPA Water Battle (E&E News)
• Pressure Grows For Countries To Deliver On Promised Biodiversity Targets (AP)
• San Diego County Residents Sue Over Alleged Sewage Treatment Plant Failures (The Hill)
• What’s Causing the Recent Spike in Global Temperatures? (Yale e360)
• Nuclear Power Could Solve US Electricity Needs. But At What Cost? (Floodlight)
• Who Will Care for Americans Left Behind by Climate Migration? (Pro Publica)
• America’s Climate and Economy Are on the Ballot (The American Prospect)
• 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)