Disasters

Trump Admin Looks to Slash Environmental Protection Rules for Rocket Launches

"A draft executive order viewed by ProPublica directs the secretary of transportation to “use all available authorities to eliminate or expedite” environmental reviews for launch licenses — a change Elon Musk’s SpaceX and others have long sought." 

Source: ProPublica, 07/23/2025

"FEMA Urban Search and Rescue Chief Resigns, Citing Agency ‘Chaos’"

"The head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s urban search and rescue unit has resigned, telling colleagues he was frustrated by bureaucratic hurdles the Trump administration imposed that delayed the agency’s response to deadly flooding in Texas, according to three people familiar with his reasoning."

Source: NYTimes, 07/23/2025
August 29, 2025

DEADLINE: GHHIN/EJN Extreme Heat Photo Contest

The Global Heat Health Information Network, in partnership with Internews’ Earth Journalism Network, is launching a global photography competition to showcase the real impacts of extreme heat, and the ways communities around the world are responding to it. Deadline: Aug 29, 2025.

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As Wildfires Rage, Trump Cuts Force Firefighters To Clean Toilets: Critics

"The U.S. Forest Service faced criticism from current and former employees who say federal workforce reductions under the Trump administration have left fire teams understaffed, as the country grapples with decade-high U.S. wildfire numbers this year."

Source: Reuters, 07/22/2025

Texas Flood Protest Goes To DC: ‘No More Kids Lost To Climate Disasters’"

"Twenty-seven blue, pink and purple trunks, adorned with yellow roses and other flowers, were placed within view of the White House on Monday – each representing a child who perished when Camp Mystic in Texas was overwhelmed by a devastating flood."

Source: Guardian, 07/22/2025

"After Devastating Winter Losses, Another Threat Looms for U.S. Beekeepers"

"Every January, Charles Linder travels from Illinois to Idaho to retrieve thousands of bee hives from a temperature-controlled storage facility. He loads boxes of hives onto a semi truck headed west for almond season, the first of many stops his bees will make on a cross-country pollination tour. But two winters ago, Mr. Linder opened those boxes and discovered that around 90 percent of his bees were dead."

Source: NYTimes, 07/21/2025

U.S. Suffers 15 Billion-Dollar Weather Disasters During 1st Half Of 2025

"The U.S. suffered 15 billion-dollar weather disasters during the first half of 2025, said insurance broker Gallagher Re in its latest quarterly report issued July 16. The average number of January-June inflation-adjusted billion-dollar disasters over the previous 10 years in the U.S. was 15; the record was 23, set in 2024. The Gallagher Re quarterly reports help fill a void left by the elimination of NOAA’s program to track billion-dollar weather disasters, which was terminated this year."

Source: Yale Climate Connections, 07/18/2025
August 19, 2025

DEADLINE: Metcalf Institute's Climate Ready Newsroom Fellowship for Local Journalism

Metcalf Institute invites applications from newsrooms in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont for this fellowship providing virtual interactive training, coaching, an in-person visit and a $1,000 stipend. Deadline is Aug 19, 2025.

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