International: United States
Seattle wants to charge city drivers
9 Apr 2018
A Seattle proposal to make drivers pay a fee for coming downtown is a linchpin in a list of initiatives aimed at reducing carbon emissions from the city’s transportation sector.
US to ease car and truck emissions standards
5 Apr 2018
US environmental regulators will ease emissions standards for cars and trucks, saying that a timeline put in place by President Obama was not appropriate and set standards “too high”.
Walden Pond pilgrims pollute one of nature's sacred sites
5 Apr 2018
Even the waters of Walden Pond, where Henry David Thoreau famously retreated to try to understand nature, are not safe from climate change and human pollution.
Judge rejects Exxon bid to shut down fraud probe
3 Apr 2018
A US federal judge has rejected Exxon's attempt to shut down two state investigations into whether the oil giant misled investors for years about the risks of climate change.
US judge rules out mining on public land
29 Mar 2018
A federal court has ruled on clmate grounds against a US Interior Department plan to open more than 15 million acres of public land and mineral rights to fossil fuel extraction.
New York commits $1.4b to renewable energy work
16 Mar 2018
New York has said it will spend $1.4 billion on 26 renewable projects, including 22 solar farms, three wind farms, and one hydroelectric project.
Schwarzenegger planning to sue oil companies
15 Mar 2018
Former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is planning to sue oil companies, alleging they are "knowingly killing people all over the world".
Pompeo is a buddy of the Koch brothers
15 Mar 2018
Mike Pompeo, Donald Trump's choice to replace Rex Tillerson as US foreign affairs chief, is an ally of the Koch brothers and a critic of the Paris climate agreement.
How America's clean coal dream unravelled
6 Mar 2018
Kemper power plant in the US promised to be a world leader in ‘clean coal’ technology but Guardian reporting found evidence top executives knew of construction problems and design flaws years before the scheme collapsed.
Major US emitters getting away with it
14 Feb 2018
The US Environmental Protection Agency’s enforcement activity against polluters has fallen to its lowest level in a decade.
Why hasn’t Trump affected carbon markets?
9 Feb 2018
US President Donald Trump's fight against climate change reduction efforts hasn't had a noticeable impact - yet. Why not?
Top universities form climate change coalition
9 Feb 2018
Leading universities across North America have launched the University Climate Change Coalition to leverage their research and resources to spur local climate action.
Half of US bases worldwide under threat from weather
9 Feb 2018
Nearly half of US military sites are threatened by wild weather linked to climate change, according to a new Pentagon study.
Florida Keys raising road levels to beat the sea
7 Feb 2018
Parts of the Florida Keys will spend millions on raising roads before they are inundated by rising sea levels.
California wants five million electric cars by 2030
31 Jan 2018
California Governor Jerry Brown wants to put five million electric cars on the state’s roads by 2030.
Trump tariffs will cost thousands of solar jobs
25 Jan 2018
President Donald Trump’s decision to impose a tariff on imported solar panels will cost the US solar industry about 23,000 jobs this year and risks slowing the growth of clean energy.
INTERVIEW: Trump's man who doesn't know what 2deg means
15 Dec 2017
Donald Trump’s climate adviser George David Banks cut an intriguing, divisive figure at the recent climate talks in Bonn.
How Big Oil is tightening its grip on the White House
13 Dec 2017
The oil industry has stalled action on climate change from the inside and sold America on fossil fuels – and its influence goes back further than people realise.
GE's 12,000 job cuts highlight how it went wrong
13 Dec 2017
After spending years building up its gas-power business, General Electric is trying to figure out how to keep pace in a world that’s no longer all that interested in fossil fuels.
These high-speed trains could take 3m cars off the roads
13 Dec 2017
A $3 billion project that will introduce high-speed deisel trains to the US could take up to three million cars off the roads.
US judge sends Volkswagen exec to jail for seven years
11 Dec 2017
A senior Volkswagen executive has been sentenced to seven years in prison by a US court after being found guilty of concealing software used to evade pollution limits on nearly 600,000 diesel vehicles.
Peru’s melting glaciers are a godsend (until they’re gone)
29 Nov 2017
Accelerating glacial melt in the Andes caused by climate change has set off a gold rush downstream, letting the desert bloom. But as the ice vanishes, the vast farms below might do the same.
What do the Koch brothers want from Time?
28 Nov 2017
That Charles and David Koch are putting $650m into Meredith Corp’s purchase of Time would ordinarily be cause for great soul-searching in media. But these are not ordinary times.
Drilling awakens sleeping faults in Texas
27 Nov 2017
Since 2008, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and a handful of other states have experienced unprecedented surges of earthquakes.
Community solar heads for rooftops of New York
24 Nov 2017
New York City’s public housing authority is taking bids in a plan to lease its roofs for community solar projects that could power thousands of urban homes.
Climate change drove Trumps out of Germany
24 Nov 2017
Climate change contributed to the wave of German immigration to the US that included Donald Trump’s grandfather.
California nets $860 million from carbon auction
23 Nov 2017
California will collect $860 million from auctioning carbon-emissions permits after the allowances sold out at a record price for the second straight quarter.
Senate bill would cut EPA funding by $150 million
23 Nov 2017
The US Senate Appropriations Committee this week introduced a bill that would cut nearly $150 million in funding for the Environmental Protection Agency next year.
EPA revises social cost of potent greenhouse gas
22 Nov 2017
The Trump administration is tweaking how it measures the costs of emitting a potent greenhouse gas, a move that will have major impacts for climate rules.
Wildfires are making Americans sick
17 Nov 2017
As climate change fuels large wildfires, the pollution they're releasing is making Americans sick and undermining decades of progress in cleaning the air.
GATESVILLE: Bill buys big bit of Arizona to build a smart city
15 Nov 2017
Bill Gates is buying 25,000 acres near Phoenix, Arizona, on which to build a high-tech smart city named Belmont.
What would happen if all Americans went vegan?
15 Nov 2017
To produce four US hamburger patties takes 25 kilogrammes of animal feed, 25 square metres of land, and about 220 litres of water.
Can California eliminate millions of fossil cars?
9 Nov 2017
California State leaders are discussing banning the sale of the millions of cars that run on gasoline or diesel.
EPA aims to block scientists who get EPA funding
2 Nov 2017
US Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt is poised to jettison scientists who have received grants from the EPA and replace them with industry experts and state government officials.
Winter coming later ... and leaving earlier
1 Nov 2017
Across the United States, the year’s first freeze has been arriving further into the calendar, according to more than a century of measurements.
Why California’s wine country fires were so destructive
31 Oct 2017
As of late October, more than a dozen wildfires north of San Francisco had killed more than 40 people, burned approximately 160,000 acres and destroyed more than 7000 structures.
Rising seas are flooding Virginia’s vast naval base
27 Oct 2017
The giant United States naval base at Norfolk is under threat by rising seas and sinking land - and little is being done to hold back the tides.
EPA scrubs website clean of ‘climate change’
27 Oct 2017
The US Environmental Protection Agency has removed dozens of online resources dedicated to helping local governments address climate change.
US unprepared to face costs of climate change
27 Oct 2017
The risks to the US are big, and they’re rising, a new report says - just as the Trump administration is changing how it calculates costs to make them look smaller.
Texas power giant to shut coal-fired plants
25 Oct 2017
Texas power generator Luminant has announced it will close three coal-fired plants in early 2018. Combined, they account for 12 per cent of the state's coal power plant capacity.
Texas town mayor turns green-power tyro
19 Oct 2017
The mayor of Georgetown, Texas, Dale Ross is ‘a good little Republican’ – but ever since his city weaned itself off fossil fuels, he has become a hero to environmentalists.
How NASA tracks carbon emissions from space
16 Oct 2017
Fires, drought and warmer temperatures were to blame for excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere during the 2015-2016 El Niño, say scientists with NASA’s Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2.
Puerto Rico wants Tesla to make it a showpiece
12 Oct 2017
Hurricane-hit Puerto Rico has urged Tesla to turn the islands into a flagship project that can show the world what solar and batteries can do.
The war on coal is over, says US environment chief
10 Oct 2017
“The war on coal is over,” EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt declared as he announced that this week he will sign a new rule overriding Barack Obama's Clean Power Plan.
Lawsuits try to paint green activism as a racket
9 Oct 2017
Logging and pipeline companies are using a new legal tactic to seek damages from Greenpeace and other groups. The long-shot cases are having a chilling effect.
Trump picks coal lobbyist to help to lead EPA
9 Oct 2017
President Trump's nominee to be second in command at the Environmental Protection Agency helped to kill bipartisan climate legislation during his time as a top Senate aide.
New York aims to be carbon neutral by 2050
5 Oct 2017
Donald Trump’s home city aligns its strategy with tough 1.5deg global warming limit, in defiance of the president’s hostility to climate action.
Post-hurricanes, wetlands take on a new role
4 Oct 2017
As communities rebuild after hurricanes, a study shows that wetlands can significantly reduce property damage.
US eyes help for struggling coal and nuclear plants
3 Oct 2017
US Energy Secretary Rick Perry has taken sweeping steps to buttress a pair of financially strapped nuclear plants under construction and to redefine how coal and nuclear plants are compensated for the electricity they provide.
Trump swaps 'climate change' for 'resilience'
3 Oct 2017
In the Trump administration's list of dos and don'ts, "climate change" is out and "resilience" is in.
Australia lets biggest LNG plant run to 2070 in climate blow
Thu 29 May 2025
Australia gave preliminary approval to extend the life of its biggest and oldest liquefied natural gas plant for decades, potentially creating billions of dollars in new drilling opportunities but raising questions about the nation’s climate agenda.
For the first time, China invests more in wind and solar than coal overseas
Thu 29 May 2025
China’s Belt and Road Initiative, long derided for its heavy carbon footprint, was dominated by wind and solar power projects for the first time from 2022 to 2023, according to a new analysis. But coal plants financed in earlier years are still coming online.
Brussels to propose ‘pragmatic’ 90% climate target for 2040
Fri 30 May 2025
The European Commission will tell countries to cut 90 percent of their planet-warming emissions by 2040, but offer “flexibilities” to make the goal politically palatable, according to EU climate chief Teresa Ribera.
Why expensive gas – not net-zero – is keeping UK electricity prices so high
Wed 28 May 2025
The UK’s high electricity prices have become intensely political, with competing claims over the cause of rocketing bills and how best to get them down.
Engineer explains why Alberta’s hydrogen strategy is money-losing climate failure
Mon 26 May 2025
Desperation, bad advice and lobbying likely underpinning the province’s plan to blend hydrogen with natural gas for home heating.
Indonesia backtracks on coal phase-out in new 2034 power supply plan
Thu 29 May 2025
Indonesia plans to add 69.5 gigawatts (GW) of power capacity by the end of 2034, much of it from renewable sources, but it still expects to add new coal-fired power plants.
Pacific Island nations support China's Taiwan claims at high-profile foreign ministers' meeting
Fri 30 May 2025
Pacific nations have backed China's claim over Taiwan during a high-profile meeting, but have shied away from directly endorsing Beijing's push to "reunify" the democratically ruled island with the mainland.
I just returned from Antarctica: climate change isn’t some far-off problem – it’s here and hitting hard
13 May 2025
Antarctica is often viewed as the last truly remote place on Earth – frozen, wild and untouched. But is it really as untouched as it seems?
TotalEnergies abandons its carbon plantations in the Republic of Congo
Thu 29 May 2025
TotalEnergies has quietly abandoned the Batéké Carbon Sink project in the Republic of Congo, with only 12.5% of the proposed trees planted.
South America sets historic benchmark: Zero new coal plants planned
Wed 28 May 2025
South America just achieved a remarkable energy milestone, quietly setting a global benchmark: for the first time in history, the entire continent now has zero new coal-fired power plants planned.
Nations agree on carbon-pricing system to steer shipping towards net-zero
14 Apr 2025
Nations have agreed to introduce a worldwide carbon-pricing system for international shipping to drive the sector towards net-zero emissions by 2050.
