International: United States
Ten tough climate questions for the presidential debate
11 Sep 2024
Climate and energy get little acknowledgement in most political debates. But there are plenty of questions for both Trump and Harris on the urgent choices the next president faces.
‘Dangerously hot’ weather roasts US west as brutal summer continues
6 Sep 2024
California, Nevada and Arizona swelter in what could be the most intense heatwave of an already blazing season.
US climate envoy Podesta to visit China from Wednesday for talks
5 Sep 2024
US climate envoy John Podesta will visit China for three days to discuss climate change issues, as the world's two biggest emitters of greenhouse gas look to bridge gaps on issues such as finance.
Could permeable pavement ease flooding woes in New York City?
2 Sep 2024
It can’t help cities control the weather, but by slowing the flow of stormwater, permeable pavement can lessen flooding from big storms.
Kamala Harris avoids getting specific on climate change — for now
26 Aug 2024
Harris has backed away from past climate policies to avoid breaking with Biden. How long will that last?
Millions broil as southern US heat dome causes record highs and wildfires
23 Aug 2024
Extreme heat affecting nearly 23m people across US south-west and pushing Texas’s electrical grid to the limit.
Harris stirs hope for a new chapter in climate action
20 Aug 2024
Although expected to follow in Biden's pragmatic footsteps, her record as a prosecutor and voice for justice has environmentalists looking to the future.
Wildfires can contaminate the water farmers use to irrigate crops and support livestock
15 Aug 2024
The wildfires that burned across Maui, Hawaii, in August 2023 became the deadliest conflagration in the United States in more than a century.
Will climate cash help democrats win US election?
14 Aug 2024
An area near Pittsburgh is being recast into a clean energy hub by IRA cash. It’s a test of whether climate policies can help Democrats beat Trump.
The lost history of what Americans knew about climate change in the 1960s
14 Aug 2024
It wasn't just scientists who were worried, but Congress, the White House, and even Sports Illustrated.
A line-by-line fact check of the Musk-Trump interview
14 Aug 2024
Donald Trump told some wild lies about climate change in his two-hour live-streamed conversation with Elon Musk last night.
Climate change deniers make up nearly a quarter of US Congress
7 Aug 2024
There are 23 climate denialists in the Senate and 100 in the House, making the US an outlier internationally.
Harris grabs green new deal network endorsement that eluded Biden
5 Aug 2024
The coalition of progressive youth and environmental justice groups are confident they can help give the presumptive Democratic nominee a needed edge with the base, even as the Trump team seeks to paint her as a radical.
Drillers emit far more methane than estimates
2 Aug 2024
US oil and gas basins are emitting around four times more planet-warming methane than federal regulators have estimated, according to the results of an aerial survey released.
Supercharged by climate change, western megafires explode simultaneously
1 Aug 2024
In western North America, wildfire season is in full swing—and well on its way toward setting records.
Yellen says $3 trillion needed annually for climate financing, far more than current level
30 Jul 2024
US Treasury Secretary said that the global transition to a low-carbon economy requires $3 trillion in new capital each year through 2050, far above current annual financing.
Wildfires push devastation and spread smoke across US West
30 Jul 2024
Firefighters made progress over the weekend in the battle against wildfires covering massive areas in the western United States, but further evacuations have been necessary.
Electric vehicles strain the automaker-big oil alliance
30 Jul 2024
In the clean car battle, the oil industry leans on friends—including Donald Trump—to keep gasoline transport alive, while carmakers steer toward an EV future.
‘This used to be a beautiful place’: how the US became the world’s biggest fossil fuel state
29 Jul 2024
No country has ever in history produced as much oil and gas as the US does now and Louisiana is ground zero.
When Kamala Harris sued Obama over fracking
24 Jul 2024
A 2016 lawsuit illustrates why some activists believe Harris will be more aggressive on climate than Biden.
Trump’s environmental impact endures, at home and around the world
23 Jul 2024
His break from the Paris accord inspires other populist leaders, while his reshaping of the federal courts and environmental rollbacks distrupt efforts to counter climate change.
How Kamala Harris’ platform could differ from Joe Biden’s
22 Jul 2024
President Joe Biden’s decision to abandon his reelection bid and endorse Vice President Kamala Harris means that Harris could soon become the standard-bearer for the Democratic Party’s biggest priorities — including climate change.
Climate activists alarmed by Trump’s ‘dangerous’ pick for vice president
22 Jul 2024
‘JD Vance will empower Donald Trump to enact even worse damage on our planet,’ campaign group warns.
US court overturns Alaska oil lease sale in a win for environmentalists
19 Jul 2024
A federal court in Alaska overturned an oil and gas lease sale that had been mandated by the Biden administration's signature climate law as part of a political compromise.
Rising seas wiped out an entire US species for the first time. Scientists say it’s a sign of things to come
17 Jul 2024
A unique plant has become the first species in the United States to be exterminated from the wild by the compounding effects of rising seas, scientists say.
Montana’s High Court considers a constitutional right to a stable climate
15 Jul 2024
The state’s Supreme Court heard oral arguments on an appeal of a decision that struck down a law supporting fossil fuel development.
The Hawaii seabed mining ban doesn’t spell the end of EV batteries
15 Jul 2024
Hawaii has banned all seabed mining for minerals within its waters to protect the local fishing industry, biodiversity and Native Hawaiian rights.
How different are the US presidential candidates on climate?
11 Jul 2024
An analysis of both Trump and Biden's climate policies quantifies the difference.
Biden proposes new rule to protect 36 million workers from extreme heat
4 Jul 2024
President Joe Biden proposed a new rule to address excessive heat in the workplace, warning that high temperatures are the country’s leading weather-related killer.
US examines carbon pricing on imports, climate envoy says
3 Jul 2024
The US is examining a potential carbon pricing system on imports among a “range of options”, in what would be a key policy shift as it looks to combat Chinese competition and cut emissions.
'I will save you from the heat'
3 Jul 2024
The US city of Phoenix responds to the deadliest environmental threat to city dwellers with a Heat Response and Mitigation team and initiatives like overnight cooling centres.
Lawyers could charge big oil with homicide after 2023 Arizona heatwave
27 Jun 2024
Prosecutors in Arizona could reasonably press homicide charges against big oil for deaths caused by a July 2023 heatwave, lawyers wrote in a new prosecution memorandum.
Climate change is already making your bills more expensive
27 Jun 2024
Researchers warn the hazards will only get worse, for the planet and the economy.
Officials announce two new carbon removal sites for Southern US
26 Jun 2024
In an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Louisiana officials announced two new projects that are expected to remove hundreds of thousands of tons of carbon dioxide.
Hawaii reaches first settlement in youth climate case
25 Jun 2024
Hawaii and young climate activists have reached a first-of-its kind legal settlement, giving youth a role in curbing planet-warming emissions while avoiding a major trial that was set to begin next week.
California seeks to seize big oil companies’ profits in climate greenwashing suit
24 Jun 2024
California’s Attorney General announced the state would seek to seize the “illegally obtained profits” of several big oil companies, for falsely advertising the environmental sustainability attributes of their products.
Record-breaking US heat wave scorches the Midwest and Northeast, bringing safety measures
19 Jun 2024
Stifling heat blanketed tens of millions across United States on Tuesday, forcing people and even zoo animals to find ways to cool down as summer arrives in what promises to be a sweltering week.
‘The time is right’ for US to catch up on high-speed rail, says British Amtrak exec
17 Jun 2024
With half a dozen US rail projects in the works, Andy Byford thinks Americans will soon clamor for 200mph train lines.
How congestion pricing makes cities more livable
17 Jun 2024
As New York puts its gridlock-busting plans on hold, the success of congestion pricing elsewhere proves it’s not just smart — it’s popular.
Florida’s 2024 hurricane season arrives with a rainy deluge
14 Jun 2024
Dangerous flooding from a tropical disturbance inundated much of southern Florida, blocking roads, floating vehicles and delaying the Florida Panthers on their way to Stanley Cup games.
International court to determine state role in protecting population from climate change harm
31 May 2024
Briefings before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights focused on how fossil fuels, mining and tourism worsen the effects of climate change, violating the human rights of the most marginalised populations.
The end of greenwashing is now within sight
30 May 2024
OPINION: The Biden administration’s new plan to overhaul the voluntary carbon market is an important step forward.
Biden’s offset reset
29 May 2024
The Biden administration is laying out new guardrails for corporate participation that could help boost confidence in markets that have come under heavy fire in recent years.
American AI data centres may use as much energy as new US solar farms produce
22 May 2024
Generative AI uses a lot of energy, though figuring out how much is hard. There’s no point in asking ChatGPT. It won’t say.
Biden ending new leases in America's top coal region
21 May 2024
The Biden administration is moving to end all new coal leasing in the country's largest producing coal region, the Powder River Basin of Wyoming and Montana.
The dangers of secret solar geoengineering
20 May 2024
A lack of transparency in solar geoengineering projects may tank public perception for an already maligned climate change strategy.
Inside a California oil town’s divisive plan to survive the energy transition
20 May 2024
Kern County is betting on carbon capture to replace oil jobs and tax revenue. But will the county’s new economy repeat the sins of the old one?
This Utah county is buying lawns to save water
17 May 2024
Would you ditch your grass for less-thirsty plants? In a place where every drop of water counts, a little cash compels residents to say yes.
How much is a planet worth?
16 May 2024
OPINION: Donald Trump recently told fossil fuel execs that a clean billion would get them literally anything they want in his next administration. That they would use that power to once-and-for-all overheat the earth is a given.
Biden to set 100% tariff on electric cars made in China
14 May 2024
It’s not official yet, but the Wall Street Journal says the Biden administration is expected to increase the import tariffs on electric cars made in China from 25% to 100%, a move that may embolden regulators in the European Union to do likewise.
Datacentres should be forced to invest in wind and solar energy, all states agree – except Queensland
Wed 13 May 2026
Power hungry datacentres that are growing to meet the demands of artificial intelligence could be forced to invest in enough new solar and wind generation to completely cover their electricity needs.
China’s leadership calls for ‘strict control’ of fossil fuels
28 Apr 2026
Chinese government leaders published a policy document on 22 April – Earth Day – calling for stricter controls on fossil-fuel consumption and greater oversight of heavy emitters.
Inequality causing 100,000 extra deaths a year from heat and cold in Europe
Tue 12 May 2026
Economic inequality adds more than 100,000 deaths to the vast toll from heat and cold in Europe each year, research has found.
Risk of drought in UK grows after unusually dry start to spring
Thu 14 May 2026
The risk of drought is rising after an unusually dry start to spring has pushed river flow, groundwater and reservoir stores below normal levels across much of the country, especially in central and southern England.
Carbon capture ‘doesn’t work’: Former British Columbia premier
8 May 2026
Former British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell warned the costly, troubled technology has failed to deliver, undercutting a central justification for billions in public subsidies and new oil infrastructure.
While the world hesitates, India must continue leading on climate
Thu 14 May 2026
India’s updated climate targets must translate into systems that secure growth, resilience, and autonomy.
How climate change threatens the economic backbone of the Pacific
4 May 2026
The vast Pacific Ocean and the islands dotted within it produce more than half of the world's tuna.
‘Triple whammy of climate chaos’: Why Antarctica's sea ice collapse is no longer a mystery
Mon 11 May 2026
Scientists have finally identified the ‘triple whammy’ behind Antarctica’s dramatic collapse, shedding new light on the chain reaction that has pushed its sea ice to record lows.
With its first marine reserve, Ghana protects its ocean to secure its future
5 May 2026
Comment: Last month, Ghana made news when it declared its first marine reserve and sited it in one of the nation’s most ecologically and biologically significant marine environments.
The country where lethal hantavirus cases are on the rise. Experts blame climate change
Wed 13 May 2026
Experts believe environmental degradation caused by climate change and human activity is contributing to its spread by allowing the rodents that transmit the virus to thrive in new areas.
UN methane alert system expanded to coal and waste sectors after Indian landfill named among world’s top emitters
6 May 2026
The United Nations is expanding its methane monitoring system to cover coal mines and waste facilities, after satellite analysis identified a landfill in India among the world’s three largest methane-emitting sites.
