On 3 June, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a 940-page spending bill that provides trillions of dollars in tax cuts, boosts the fossil fuel industry, and dismantles incentives for clean energy.
culture & policy
Posted inResearch & Developments
Environmental Groups Sue to Block Everglades Detention Facility
The groups assert that the facility will undermine decades’ of work and billions of dollars spent restoring and protecting the Everglades’ delicate ecosystem.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
What’s Changed—and What Hasn’t—Since the EPA’s Endangerment Finding
A scientist-authored brief played a role in the 2009 determination that greenhouse gases endanger public health. With the finding now up for reconsideration, the same scientists revisit their opinion.
Posted inResearch & Developments
EPA Proposes Removal of Carbon Dioxide Limits on Power Plants
On 11 June, the Environmental Protection Agency announced a proposal to repeal federal limits on power plant carbon emissions, including a Biden-era rule requiring power plants to control 90% of their carbon pollution and a 2015 standard limiting carbon dioxide emissions from new fossil fuel-fired power plants.
Posted inResearch & Developments
NOAA’s Climate Website May Soon Shut Down
Climate.gov, NOAA’s portal to the work of their Climate Program Office, will likely soon shut down as most of the staff charged with maintaining it were fired on 31 May.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Former Department of Energy Leader Reflects on a Changing Landscape
The first person of color and first Earth scientist to serve as director of the Department of Energy’s Office of Science reflects on her career as the new administration works to dismantle key diversity programs.
Posted inResearch & Developments
Trump Withdraws Nomination for NASA Administrator
In a move that worried politicians and space scientists alike, President Trump announced on 31 May that he will withdraw his nomination of Jared Isaacman for the position of NASA administration.
Posted inResearch & Developments
Supreme Court Rejects Tribal Appeal to Halt Planned Copper Mine
On 27 May, the United States Supreme Court declined to hear arguments from a group of Apache leaders challenging a copper mine that would damage land that tribe members consider sacred, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Posted inNews
The Wildest Ride on a Hurricane Hunter Aircraft
A 1989 flight through Hurricane Hugo tops the list for stomach-churning turbulence experienced by scientists, pilots, and crew aboard aircraft designed to fly through storms.
Posted inResearch & Developments
EPA to Rescind Rules on Four Forever Chemicals
The EPA plans to reconsider drinking water limits for four different PFAS chemicals and extend deadlines for public water systems to comply, according to The Washington Post.
PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a group of chemicals that are widely used for their water- and stain-resistant properties. Exposure to PFAS is linked to higher risks of certain cancers, reproductive health issues, developmental delays and immune system problems. The so-called “forever chemicals” are ubiquitous in the environment and widely contaminate drinking water.