Environmental Politics

"Brazil intended this year’s United Nations climate talks now underway in the Amazon rainforest, to be the capstone of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s effort to establish the country as a global environmental leader. Instead, Brazil’s own domestic environmental policy is in disarray, as the summit known as COP30 struggles to offer a counterpoint to the Trump administration’s aggressive efforts to promote fossil fuels."

"The Environmental Protection Agency announced Monday it is redefining the scope of the nation’s bedrock clean water law to significantly limit the wetlands it covers, building on a Supreme Court decision two years ago that removed federal protections for vast areas."

"Everyone has looked up at the clouds and seen faces, animals, objects. Human brains are hardwired for this kind of whimsy. But some people – perhaps a surprising number – look to the sky and see government plots and wicked deeds written there. Conspiracy theorists say that contrails – long streaks of condensation left by aircraft – are actually chemtrails, clouds of chemical or biological agents dumped on the unsuspecting public for nefarious purposes. Different motives are ascribed, from weather control to mass poisoning."

"Turkey has proposed jointly leading next year's U.N. climate summit with Australia, though the two sides have not yet reached an agreement and the discussions on the hosting standoff remain unresolved, Turkish diplomatic sources said."

"A PFAS contamination crisis is continuing to plague a Maryland community as a plume of contaminated groundwater moves through the area, residents and their attorneys said this week."

"A committee of expert advisers is calling for stronger environmental regulations to protect children from plastics and other harmful chemicals, despite a dissenting industry position claiming there is little evidence that plastic is toxic to children."

"New York just slammed the brakes on rules that would’ve prohibited fossil fuels in new homes and businesses."

"A new report finds that local opposition to data centers skyrocketed in the second quarter of this year."

"Figures show none of US ‘big four’ – CBS, NBC, ABC and Fox – appear to have sent teams to cover summit in Belém"

"Pennsylvania will no longer seek to be part of a regional climate agreement among states in the Northeast U.S."