On a summer night in 2023, an explosion at one of Louisiana’s biggest petrochemical complexes sent a plume of fire into the sky. More explosions followed as poison gas spewed from damaged tanks at the Dow chemical plant, triggering a shelter-in-place order for anyone within a half mile of the...
From sea monkeys to Great Salt Lake gold
The shoreline of Utah’s Great Salt Lake frames an otherworldly body of water, from pastel pink to deep marine blue. In the fall, its surface transforms with slicks of gold—made from millions of brine-shrimp eggs called cysts. These tiny golden specks play a critical role in both the local ecosystem...
Alaska just hit a climate milestone — its first-ever heat advisory
In the high glare of a summer evening in Fairbanks, Alaska, Ciara Santiago watched the mercury climb. A meteorologist at the National Weather Service office, she had the dubious honor of issuing the state’s first ever official heat advisory as temperatures were expected to hit the mid-80s. It’s the kind...
Progress and frustration mark the UN’s third Ocean Conference
Delegates from around the world convened in Nice, France, last week to discuss a range of ocean priorities, including the implementation of a recently finalized “high seas treaty” to protect the two-thirds of the oceans that lie outside countries’ control. It was the third United Nations Ocean Conference, a high-level...
Norway is all in on electric cars. What can the U.S. learn?
In January, the Norwegian Road Federation released a statistic that turned heads inside transportation and climate circles: Almost 90 percent of new cars sold in Norway the previous year were fully electric. By the end of this year, the government expects sales of new gasoline and diesel cars to fall to zero and...
Texas finalizes $1.8B to build solar, battery, and gas-powered microgrids
The Texas Legislature ended its biennial session without passing a slew of bills that could have killed the state’s booming solar and battery sector, and by extension, the ability to keep the Texas grid running amid extreme weather and surging demand for electricity. It did pass a law that could strengthen the state’s electricity reliability by encouraging...
Trump’s EPA accidentally made the case against passing the Big Beautiful Bill
On the campaign trail last year, Donald Trump frequently criticized the Biden administration for new regulations targeting what he called “clean, beautiful coal.” In April, he signed executive orders directing federal agencies to undo any regulations that “discriminate” against coal. Coal-fired power plants produce a significant but shrinking share of...
There’s only one statewide ballot this year in Georgia — and it’s important
Early voting is underway in the primary election for two seats on the Georgia Public Service Commission, the powerful panel of regulators with final say over the rates and energy plans of the state’s largest electric utility, Georgia Power — a subsidiary of one of the largest utilities in the...
This Alaska Native fishing village was trying to power their town. Then came Trump’s funding cuts.
For the fewer than a hundred people that make up the entire population of Port Heiden, Alaska, fishing provides both a paycheck and a full dinner plate. Every summer, residents of the Alutiiq village set out on commercial boats to catch salmon swimming upstream in the nearby rivers of Bristol...
Senate Republicans want to sell 3 million acres of public land
Over 3 million acres of public land could be sold in the next five years, after Senate Republicans on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee reintroduced land sales into the party’s major spending bill. Released on Wednesday night, the megabill text includes a proposal for extensive transfers of U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of...