Study Calls US Infrastructure Spending a “Climate Time Bomb”
An aerial view of the Interstate 4 and State Road 408 interchange in downtown Orlando.Paul Hennessy/ZUMA This story was originally published by the Guardian and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. Roads, roads, and more roads. The US is continuing to spend billions of dollars on expanding enormous highways rather than…
GAO Report Warns Climate Change Could Unearth US Nuclear Waste
U.S. military officers watch nuclear waste being dumped on Runit Island in the Marshall Islands. Department of Defense This story was originally published by Grist and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. Ariana Tibon was in college at the University of Hawaiʻi in 2017 when she saw the photo online: a black-and-white picture of a man…
Should Israel Be Held Accountable for “Ecocide”?
Palestinians are inspecting the damage caused by Israeli bombardment in Al-Zawayda, central Gaza Strip, on February 22, 2024. Majdi Fathi / AP This story was originally published by Grist and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. When reports emerged in late December that the Israeli military planned to pump seawater into the underground tunnel networks…
Producers of “Forever Chemicals” Knew They Were Toxic, Say UN Experts
Aerial views of Cape Fear River in North Carolina, which is surrounded by forests. Ken Blevins/Star News/AP This story was originally published by Inside Climate News and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. In advance of a United Nations meeting this week where pollution is on the agenda, a UN human rights team has called out…
How US Air Pollution, Ironically, Has Kept Climate Hazards in Check
Smokestacks at the Dearborn Industrial Generation facility in Dearborn, MI.Jim West / ZUMA This story was originally published by Grist and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. The past half-century has seen remarkable improvements in air quality in many parts of the world, thanks largely to legislation like the Clean Air Act. Efforts like…
Methane-Spewing Gas and Oil Drillers Owe the US Billions—in Theory
Mario Tama/Getty/Grist This story was originally published by Grist and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. The Inflation Reduction Act, the 2021 US climate law abbreviated IRA, primarily reduces emissions through financial incentives, rather than binding rules. But in addition to all its well-known carrots, lawmakers quietly included a smaller number of sticks—particularly when it comes…