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Climate Change
by Ashira Morris, ODP Staff Writer World leaders from the Group of 7 countries wrapped up their first post-pandemic in-person summit on Sunday, and the climate crisis was one of the primary agenda items. The heads of state from the U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Canada, Italy, and Japan (as well as the European Union) Agreed […]
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The nation’s largest reservoir, Lake Mead, created by the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River, has reached record lows (at only 36% full) in the face of a severe drought sweeping the western U.S. The reservoir supplies drinking water for 25 million people in Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, Tucson, Las Vegas, and more.
Why This Matters: Drought is becoming a permanent fixture across the west, and dry conditions are moving further east each year.
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For generations, Native Alaskans have stored their food year-round in icy cellars that have been dug deep underground, but recently many of these cellars are either becoming too warm so that the food spoils or failing completely due to flooding or collapse Civil Eats’ Kayla Frost reported from Alaska. The cellars, known as siġluaqs, are usually about 10 to 20 feet below the surface and consist of a small room that used to be consistently about 10 degrees Fahrenheit year-round.
Why This Matters: The loss of these natural freezers could be devastating to Native Alaskans.
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A 20-year-old tax break for oil and gas companies in Texas quietly met its end last Thursday. In the previous two decades, a provision of the Texas code known as “Chapter 313” has provided $10 billion in property tax relief to corporations in Texas, primarily petrochemical firms.
Why This Matters: Texas has long been a “safe space” for the oil industry. Experts say that the fact that the program quietly died is a sign of changing attitudes around fossil fuels and climate change.
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The Biden administration released its detailed budget proposal on Friday and it contained $36 billion in total for climate, a huge increase in climate-related spending.
Why This Matters: Biden is making good on campaign promises, and he proposes to pay for it by keeping another promise and ending subsidies to fossil fuels that would have cost billions.
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A Dutch court has ordered Royal Dutch Shell to slash its CO2 emissions by 45% by 2030, including those from both its operations and the energy products it sells. This is the first time a court has ordered a company to reduce its emissions to achieve climate goals.
Why This Matters: Despite many oil companies making promises to cut emissions, the world isn’t moving fast enough to meet the goals of the Paris agreement
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