
www.weeklystandard.com
19 May 2018
Scott Pruitt should resign from the EPA
The conservative Weekly Standard "like(s) what he'd done" at EPA. But they still want him gone.
We like what he’s done. But the time has come.
The conservative Weekly Standard "like(s) what he'd done" at EPA. But they still want him gone.
Even as the climate crisis intensifies, China and the U.S. are charting wildly different energy paths — one doubling down on clean tech, the other on fossil fuels.
In short:
Key quote:
“When the federal government of the United States decides to go out of the race, it doesn’t stop the race. Other countries keep moving.”
— Rafael Dubeux, a senior official in Brazil’s Finance Ministry
Why this matters:
America — once a solar and wind innovator — is now backpedaling. The Trump administration is tossing lifelines to oil and gas companies, lobbying countries to buy U.S. crude, and rolling back policies that helped launch renewables in the first place. The U.S. is bet on short-term profits. China is playing the long game.
Read more:
The company behind the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) convinced a North Dakota jury to blame Greenpeace for protests led by Indigenous activists — and now the nonprofit faces a $666 million penalty.
Episode one of SLAPP’d, a multipart podcast focusing on the Greenpeace/DAPL trial.
In short:
Key quote:
“Greenpeace wasn’t running anything… They were merely an organization that was there as allies.”
— Cody Hall, former Red Warrior Camp spokesperson
Why this matters:
The verdict against Greenpeace in the Energy Transfer lawsuit is a landmark moment in how corporate power rewrites protest history. If a major energy company can bankrupt a nonprofit for supporting Indigenous-led protest, it chills dissent everywhere. And it distracts from the health and environmental harms these protests were trying to stop — namely, oil infrastructure that threatens water and cultural resources.
Read more:
A Senate-approved Republican budget bill would gut core parts of the 2022 climate law, stalling clean energy growth and likely raising Americans’ utility bills. The bill now goes to the House for final approval.
In short:
Key quote:
“If the bill becomes law, families will face higher electric bills, factories will shut down, Americans will lose their jobs, and our electric grid will grow weaker.”
— Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO, Solar Energy Industries Association
Why this matters:
The Republican-led budget bill, by fast-tracking the expiration of tax credits that have been driving wind and solar projects from coast to coast and slashing incentives for electric vehicles, effectively steps on the brakes just as the U.S. clean energy economy was beginning to hit its stride.
Read more: The real scam — rail against renewables, run away with factories
With just four months until the United Nations climate summit in Brazil, most countries have yet to submit updated emissions plans, threatening the world’s ability to stay below the 1.5C warming threshold.
In short:
Key quote:
“Climate is our biggest war. Climate is here for the next 100 years. We need to focus and … not allow those [other] wars to take our attention away from the bigger fight that we need to have.”
— Ana Toni, chief executive of Cop30
Why this matters:
Climate summits like Cop30 are designed to hold governments accountable, but their success depends on political will — and right now, that’s faltering. The 1.5C threshold isn’t just symbolic; passing it risks triggering irreversible changes, from melting glaciers to collapsing ecosystems. Scientists warn the world has just two years left at current emissions rates before this boundary becomes locked in. Yet most nations haven’t updated their short-term targets, and fossil fuel expansion continues, especially in countries like China and the U.S. Meanwhile, poorer nations, facing mounting climate disasters, wait for promised funds that often don’t arrive.
Learn more: Cop30 faces challenges as Trump’s climate retreat and global tensions complicate negotiations
A longtime Saudi Aramco employee’s nomination to help lead a major United Nations climate report has sparked fresh questions about fossil fuel influence inside the world’s top climate science body.
In short:
Key quote:
The nomination is “one of the most blatant examples of political capture by the oil industry of climate policy that I have ever seen.”
— Tzeporah Berman, founder of the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty NGO
Why this matters:
The IPCC plays a central role in shaping global understanding of climate science and guiding policy decisions on reducing emissions. When individuals with deep ties to fossil fuel interests help lead the body’s reports, it raises serious concerns about objectivity and integrity. Oil-rich countries like Saudi Arabia have long pushed to downplay or redirect climate science findings that could threaten their economic model. With the U.S. stepping back and fossil fuel exporters gaining influence, the balance of power within the IPCC is shifting.
Related: UN climate talks face growing backlash over corporate influence and stalled action
Rising salt levels near Antarctica are altering ocean dynamics, drawing up warm water and accelerating sea ice loss, new satellite data reveal.
In short:
Key quote:
“We are entering a new system, a new world.”
— Alessandro Silvano, senior scientist at the University of Southampton
Why this matters:
Sea ice acts as the planet’s reflective shield, bouncing solar radiation back into space and helping to regulate Earth’s temperature. The loss of Antarctic sea ice not only exposes darker ocean water that absorbs more heat but also disrupts global ocean currents and weather systems. Rising salinity near Antarctica hints at a larger, destabilizing feedback loop: Warmer waters melt more ice, which then reinforces ocean mixing and heat absorption. This shift threatens to reshape sea level patterns and intensify extreme weather across the globe. As the climate warms, monitoring Antarctic changes becomes increasingly urgent, but recent U.S. cuts to satellite data programs could leave scientists with fewer tools to track these tipping points.
Read more: Melting ice and microplastics signal deepening disruption in Antarctica’s climate system
In Burlington, Vermont, a scrappy amateur soccer team is drawing crowds and taking climate action one game at a time.
In short:
Key quote:
“It infuses everyone’s awareness in a way that’s much more joyful, much more connected, much more community oriented. When people experience climate action and environmental focus in that way, they see that joy can be a part of the work.”
— Eli Scheer, Vermont Green fan
Why this matters:
This semi-pro team has quickly become a cult favorite not just for its play, but for its unapologetically bold mission: to use the beautiful game to champion environmental justice. As extreme weather intensifies and air quality declines, Vermont Green offers a playbook for climate action that’s local, joyful, and infectious. It shows how sports — often carbon-heavy enterprises — can flip the script and become platforms for public engagement, behavior change, and community resilience. For fans disillusioned with corporate sports greenwashing, it's climate action in cleats.
One facility has emitted cancer-causing chemicals into waterways at levels up to 520% higher than legal limits.
“They're terrorizing these scientists because they want to keep them silent.”
"The reality is, we are not exposed to one chemical at a time.”
A new report assesses the administration’s progress and makes new recommendations
“We cannot stand by and allow this to happen. We need to hold this administration accountable.”
“The chemical black box” that blankets wildfire-impacted areas is increasingly under scrutiny.