National (U.S.)

"Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler is headed to Costa Rica for an official visit less than two weeks before the end of the Trump administration."

"The National Science Foundation has rejected a major proposal by a federally funded atmospheric research institute to implement a breakthrough radar technology that could advance hurricane forecasting."

"After years of slow headway, building design and industry professionals say sharp reductions in the climate impact of concrete are possible now. That is significant because cement, the critical glue that holds concrete together, is so carbon-intensive that if it were a country, it would rank fourth in the world as a climate polluter."

"Judge Merrick Garland would bring an uncommon level of environmental law expertise to the Justice Department’s top spot if confirmed as attorney general in the incoming Biden administration."

"Just five years ago, a 20 megawatt battery storage project was considered big. Now a 300 megawatt project, the largest in the world, has gone online in California, and even bigger battery projects are coming in 2021."

"A landmark decision delivered by the Trump administration late last month gives five oil and gas companies the green light to forge ahead in drilling 5,000 wells over the next decade in northeastern Wyoming. Though cheered by state officials and industry groups, leaders of several tribal nations with enduring ties to the land remain concerned the development will compromise air and water quality, violate existing treaty rights and destroy cultural resources."

"Democratic control of the U.S. Senate gives President-elect Joe Biden's efforts to achieve 100% zero-carbon electricity a powerful boost, easing his ability to seat a climate-focused Cabinet and enact legislation to increase spending on green energy."

"As the United States marked another grim milestone Thursday with more than 4,000 covid-19 deaths reported in a single day, federal disease trackers said research suggests that people without symptoms transmit more than half of all cases of the novel coronavirus."

"An upcoming audit could reveal whether FirstEnergy improperly used ratepayer money to funnel millions of dollars to an alleged unlawful conspiracy to pass and defend the state’s coal and nuclear bailout law."