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Viewing recent news releases in program Climate Law Institute .
Lawsuit Challenges Trump Administration’s Failure to Cut Airplane Climate Pollution
WASHINGTON— Environmental groups sued the Trump administration today over its finalization of the nation’s first-ever airplane climate emissions standards, which don’t actually reduce greenhouse gas pollution.
Read more.EPA Report: Gas Mileage Down, Pollution Up
WASHINGTON— Major automakers are failing to meet fuel-efficiency standards critical to reducing climate pollution from cars and trucks, according to the Automotive Trends Report released today by the Environmental Protection Agency.
Read more.Trump Administration Finalizes Do-nothing ‘Standards’ for Airplane Climate Emissions
WASHINGTON— The Trump administration announced today that it finalized new regulations of airplane climate emissions that fail to force greenhouse gas reductions through either technology or operations changes.
Read more.Leading Progressive Groups Launch Public Pressure Campaign for Biden to Address Fossil Fuel Pollution, Climate Crisis
WASHINGTON— Organizations representing millions of environmental, racial and economic justice advocates across the country launched a new campaign today to hold President-elect Joe Biden accountable on his promises for bold climate action. The Build Back Fossil Free campaign includes 25 crucial executive actions Biden must take the moment he enters office to prevent climate chaos, end fossil fuel racism and improve well-being for millions of people.
Read more.California Must Set Clean Car Mandate to 2030 to Meet Climate Goals: Report
LOS ANGELES— California Gov. Gavin Newsom must move up his target for 100% zero-emission vehicle sales to meet crucial state climate goals, according to a new report by the Center for Biological Diversity.
Read more.Biden Urged to Sign Climate Emergency Executive Order
WASHINGTON— More than 380 groups today called on President-elect Joe Biden to sign an executive order to confront the climate emergency with the full power of the executive branch as soon as he takes office.
Read more.Trump Administration Auctions Off California Public Lands for Oil, Gas
BAKERSFIELD, Calif.— The Trump administration opened bidding today in the first auction of California federal public lands to oil companies in eight years. Despite community opposition and ongoing legal disputes, the Bureau of Land Management put over 4,000 acres in Kern County up for sale for oil drilling and fracking.
Read more.Online Press Conference to Launch Presidential Plastics Action Plan on Dec. 8
WASHINGTON — A coalition of more than 550 community and conservation organizations plans to publicly release its Presidential Plastic Action Plan on Dec. 8. The plan urges President-elect Biden to address the plastic pollution crisis with a series of executive orders shortly after taking office. A virtual press conference discussing the plan will include prominent environmental justice, political, science, legal and academic experts and advocates.
Read more.Trump Administration Dodges Environmental Review on Liquefied Methane
WASHINGTON— The Trump administration today finalized a rule making it easier to export superpolluting methane gas without environmental review. The Department of Energy rule moves to “categorically exclude” its authorizations of liquefied methane export and any associated ship transportation from review under the National Environmental Policy Act.
Read more.Nevada Releases Flawed Climate Strategy
LAS VEGAS— Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak and the Nevada Climate Initiative released the state’s climate strategy late Tuesday. This is an important milestone in the state’s march toward decarbonization, as mandated by 2019’s Senate Bill 254.
Read more.San Francisco Bay Oil Tanker Dredging Project Shelved
OAKLAND, Calif.— The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has announced it will withdraw plans to dredge a 13-mile stretch of San Francisco Bay and adjacent waters in a project that would have allowed larger oil tankers to access local oil refineries.
Read more.Audit Finds California Oil Regulator’s Rampant Legal Violations
SACRAMENTO, Calif.— On the eve of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, the California Department of Finance released a damning audit detailing repeated violations of oil and gas regulations. Today’s report shows that Gov. Gavin Newsom’s oil and gas regulators repeatedly skipped required reviews when approving hundreds of oil and gas wells last year.
Read more.California Court Strikes Down Limits on Fighting Dirty Power Plants
SAN FRANCISCO— A California appeals court has struck down unconstitutional limits on the rights of citizens to challenge the location of power plants in their communities.
Read more.Formosa Plastics Opponents Ask Feds to Expand Environmental Justice Analysis of Suspended Permit, Hold Hearing
NEW ORLEANS— Following the Army Corps of Engineers’ recent suspension of its permit for Formosa Plastics’ proposed Louisiana plant, plaintiff groups in the federal lawsuit that sparked that decision asked today for a public hearing and expanded analysis of the plant’s environmental justice, wetlands and pollution impacts.
Read more.Legal Protest Fights First Federal Oil-lease Sale in California in 8 Years
BAKERSFIELD, Calif.— On behalf of 10 conservation, environmental justice, health and community groups today, the Center for Biological Diversity filed protest comments against the Bureau of Land Management’s plans to lease California federal public land to oil and gas companies for the first time in eight years.
Read more.Youth Leader Nalleli Cobo Honored With Rose Braz Award for Bold Activism
LOS ANGELES— The Center for Biological Diversity has awarded the 2020 “Rose Braz Award for Bold Activism” to Nalleli Cobo.
Read more.Report: Funds to Clean Up California Oil Wells Dangerously Low, Records Show
SACRAMENTO, Calif.— A new report by the Center for Biological Diversity reveals that California’s largest oil producers have set aside only a miniscule fraction of the money that would be required to properly plug their oil and gas wells.
Read more.Efficient, Electric: Report Offers Path to U.S. Aviation Climate Pollution Cuts
LOS ANGELES— Planet-warming pollution from U.S. aviation could be cut by three-quarters or more in the next 20 years, according to a new report released today by the Center for Biological Diversity. The report challenges airplane emissions standards recently proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency as weak and ineffective.
Read more.Public Records Sought Over Delays in National Climate Report
WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity filed a Freedom of Information Act request today seeking records relating to delays in preparing the Fifth National Climate Assessment. The request for records from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration comes amid government delays in recruiting the dozens of scientists needed to produce the report. The next version is due in 2022, but the agency’s website indicates it is already behind schedule.
Read more.Thousands Oppose First Federal Oil Lease Sale in California in Eight Years
BAKERSFIELD, Calif.— More than 85 conservation, environmental justice, public health and community groups submitted a letter to the Bureau of Land Management today opposing the Bureau’s first oil and gas lease sale of federal public lands in California in eight years.
Read more.Legal Petition Seeks to Close California Forest Carbon Loophole
SAN FRANCISCO— Conservation and environmental justice groups filed a legal petition today that demands the California Public Utilities Commission stop letting carbon-polluting biomass projects take advantage of programs meant to benefit clean energy.
Read more.Gov. Newsom’s Climate Initiative Omits Key Actions on Oil Drilling, Fracking
SACRAMENTO, Calif— Gov. Gavin Newsom announced steps today that California will take to accelerate climate action, but he failed to include ambitious actions to curb oil drilling and ban fracking. Today’s measures include an executive order directing the California Air Resources Board to require 100% zero-emissions vehicle sales for passenger cars, pickups and SUVs by 2035.
Read more.Gov. Newsom Faces Lawsuit Over California’s Illegal Oil-well Permits
SACRAMENTO, Calif.— The Center for Biological Diversity notified Gov. Gavin Newsom today of its intent to file a lawsuit to halt illegal permitting of oil and gas wells in California. In a letter to the governor, the group says giving out such permits causes unacceptable climate and health harms and that the permits are being issued illegally, without the review required under the California Environmental Quality Act.
Read more.EPA Airplane Pollution Rule Blasted for Failing to Help Climate
LOS ANGELES— The Center for Biological Diversity today offered live testimony opposing the Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed greenhouse gas emissions standards for aircraft. The Center argued at a public hearing that the rules, which mirror those adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organization, or ICAO, are too weak to address the severity of the climate crisis.
Read more.Airplane Pollution Standards Lag 10 Years Behind Technology: Report
WASHINGTON— International airplane standards for planet-warming pollution lag behind industry advances by about a decade, according to a report released today by the International Council on Clean Transportation.
Read more.Trump Administration Proposes First Oil Lease Sale in California in Eight Years
WASHINGTON— The Trump administration announced Wednesday that it intends to hold the first federal oil and gas lease sale in California since 2012.
Read more.Lawsuit Fights Trump Administration Plan to Open 18 Million Acres of Western Arctic to Oil and Gas Drilling
ANCHORAGE — Conservation groups today sued the Trump administration over its plan to allow oil and gas drilling on 18.7 million acres of the Western Arctic, known as the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska.
Read more.California Senate Bill May Shield Oil Companies From Cleanup Costs
SACRAMENTO, Calif.— Last-minute amendments to Senate Bill 1012 in the California legislature threaten to shift massive oil-industry well-cleanup costs to taxpayers. S.B. 1012, introduced by Sen. Melissa Hurtado, would make changes to the California Public Resources Code that could make it harder for the state to recoup well-remediation costs from oil companies.
Read more.Judge OKs Millions in Executive Payouts for Bankrupt California Oil Giant
HOUSTON— A federal judge in Houston late yesterday approved an incentive package worth up to $57 million for top executives as part of bankruptcy proceedings for oil giant California Resources Corporation.
Read more.Trump Administration Rolls Back Methane Pollution Rules for Oil, Gas Industry
WASHINGTON— The Trump administration finalized two rules today that will roll back regulation of the oil and gas industry, allowing the release of hundreds of thousands of tons of methane and other harmful air pollutants over the coming years.
Read more.Labor, Environmental Groups Urge Emergency Action to Protect Frontline Workers From COVID-19
WASHINGTON— Labor unions representing health care workers, teachers, transit operators and millions of other frontline workers joined with environmental groups today to demand that the Trump administration take emergency action to provide adequate masks, gloves and other personal protective equipment to these essential workers.
Read more.Formosa Plastics Agrees to Delay Work on Louisiana Plant After Opponents File for Injunction
ST. JAMES PARISH, La.— A federal judge has approved Formosa Plastics’ agreement not to start construction work on its massive petrochemical complex in St. James Parish, Louisiana after opponents filed a preliminary injunction on July 14 to block work on the site.
Read more.California Data Show Regular Truck Crashes, Deaths Along Proposed ExxonMobil Oil-trucking Route
SANTA BARBARA, Calif.— There’s been a large truck collision every week, and almost two fatalities per year, on average over the past five years along the California highways where ExxonMobil wants to send up to 70 oil tanker trucks a day, according to California Highway Patrol data analyzed by the Center for Biological Diversity.
Read more.Trump Administration’s Weak New Aircraft Pollution Rules Fail to Protect Climate
WASHINGTON— The Trump administration proposed long-overdue rules today to regulate greenhouse gas pollution from aircraft. The rules, which mirror those adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organization, or ICAO, are too weak to address the severity of the climate crisis. The EPA itself says it doesn't expect the rule to result in emissions reductions.
Read more.As Oil Giant Goes Bankrupt, California Governor Urged to Hold Industry Responsible for Well Cleanups
SACRAMENTO, Calif.— As one of California’s largest oil producers enters bankruptcy, the Center for Biological Diversity and Sierra Club today urged Gov. Gavin Newsom to prevent California Resources Corporation and other troubled oil companies from shirking legal obligations to clean up their wells and prevent pollution. CRC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Wednesday.
Read more.Opponents of Formosa Plastics’ Louisiana Plant File for Preliminary Injunction
ST. JAMES PARISH, La.— Opponents of Formosa Plastics’ massive proposed petrochemical complex in St. James Parish, Louisiana filed for a preliminary injunction today to block construction of the project. The proposed facility would be one of the largest plastics plants in North America.
Read more.60 Groups Denounce Trump Administration’s Proposal to Revive Super-polluting Supersonic Planes
WASHINGTON— More than 60 climate, environmental, community and public-health groups nationwide called on the Trump administration to withdraw a proposed rule that would pave the way for the return of commercial supersonic airplane travel.
Read more.With New Permits, Newsom Ramps Up Fracking in California
SACRAMENTO, Calif.— Gov. Gavin Newsom’s oil and gas regulatory agency has approved 12 new permits for Chevron to conduct hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, in the Lost Hills Oil Field in Kern County.
Read more.Lawsuit Targets Trump Administration Push to Gut Car Pollution Standards
WASHINGTON— Conservation groups sued the Trump administration today to block a major rollback of fuel-efficiency standards for automobiles. The revised standards will worsen dangerous levels of air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions and cost consumers more at the gas pump without making the nation’s roads safer.
Read more.Pipeline Shutdown Prevented 34 Million Tons of Carbon Pollution in California
SANTA BARBARA, Calif.— The failure of Plains All American Pipeline’s coastal California oil pipeline five years ago prevented massive emissions of climate pollution. If the seven offshore drilling platforms served by the pipeline had not gone idle, they would have added 33.9 million metric tons of carbon dioxide pollution to the atmosphere.
Read more.Louisiana Groups Urge Delay in Power Project for Industrial Polluters, Citing COVID-19 Concerns
ST. JAMES PARISH, La.— The coalition opposing Formosa Plastics’ massive proposed petrochemical complex in St. James Parish, Louisiana, has requested a delay in upgrading electric transmission lines to serve that project and future industrial polluters. The coalition’s letter cites current public health warnings about COVID-19 and damage to wetlands.
Read more.300 Groups Call on Congress to Bail Out People, Not Polluters
WASHINGTON— More than 300 groups called on Congress today to demand that federal relief money be directed to people affected by the COVID-19 crisis and not to fossil fuel polluters.
Read more.Trump Administration Moves to Weaken Oil Pipeline Spill Rules
WASHINGTON— The Trump administration proposed weaker new rules today governing how companies operating oil pipelines prepare for and respond to oil spills. The changes would eliminate or modify several key protections and relieve companies of the responsibility for reporting many oil spills.
Read more.Trump Opens Door to Return of Super-polluting Supersonic Planes
WASHINGTON— The Trump administration proposed new rules today that would pave the way for the return of commercial supersonic airplane travel. The new rules would allow commercial supersonic aircraft, which have been banned for almost 50 years, to be noisier at takeoff and landing than new conventional jets.
Read more.Information Sought on Trump EPA’s Suspension of Environmental Rules
WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity filed a Freedom of Information Act request today for documents related to the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to suspend enforcement of environmental laws in light of the coronavirus pandemic.
Read more.Trump Administration Cripples Effort to Curb Car Pollution
WASHINGTON— The Trump administration finalized a major rollback of fuel-efficiency standards for automobiles today. The revised standards will maintain dangerous levels of air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions and cost consumers more at the gas pump without making the nation’s roads safer.
Read more.Crews Break Ground on Formosa Plastics Project in Louisiana Despite Coronavirus Crisis, Flood Risk
ST. JAMES PARISH, La.— Utility crews unexpectedly broke ground on Formosa Plastics’ massive proposed petrochemical complex in St. James Parish, Louisiana, this week, surprising community members and other opponents, who are demanding work on the site stop until after the COVID-19 public health crisis passes.
Read more.Senate Republicans Bail Out Major Fossil Fuel Polluters
WASHINGTON— The Senate voted tonight to pass a $2 trillion stimulus package that aims to combat the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic. The package includes over $400 billion in funding for “distressed sectors” of the economy including oil, gas and coal companies and commercial airlines despite pleas to hold those industries accountable for their reckless behavior.
Read more.Congress Urged to Reject $400+ Billion Fossil Fuel Bailout
WASHINGTON— More than 100 climate, environmental, social-justice and workers’ rights groups urged Congress today to reject Republican efforts to assist the fossil fuel industry and instead focus relief legislation on the American people.
Read more.Congress Urged to Hold Airlines Accountable on Climate, Workers
WASHINGTON— More than 200 climate, environmental, social-justice and workers' rights groups urged Congress today to make any federal relief for the U.S. aviation industry contingent on airlines cutting carbon pollution and supporting airline workers during the coronavirus crisis.
Read more.Opponents of Formosa Plastics Project to Demand Louisiana’s St. James Parish Council Rescind Approval
CONVENT, La.— Opponents of Formosa Plastics’ massive proposed petrochemical complex in Louisiana will urge the St. James Parish Council today to rescind its land-use permit for the project, following up similar earlier requests with new information. The demand follows the discovery of burial sites of enslaved people on the property, the filing of two lawsuits against the project, and the record-setting $50 million settlement of a lawsuit against Formosa for polluting Texas waterways with billions of plastic pellets.
Read more.California Court: Kern County Violating Law by Rubberstamping Oil Drilling
FRESNO, Calif.— In a monumental victory for both public advocacy groups and local farmers, a California court today ruled that a Kern County oil and gas ordinance paid for and drafted by the oil industry violated the state’s foundational environmental law.
Read more.Appeal Challenges Louisiana’s Air Permits for Formosa Plastics’ Massive Petrochemical Complex in Cancer Alley
ST. JAMES PARISH, La.—Local and national organizations filed an appeal today challenging the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality’s decision to approve air permits for Formosa Plastics’ massive proposed petrochemical complex in St. James Parish. The complex would contain 14 plants spanning 2,500 acres, just one mile from an elementary school in a predominantly African American community already inundated with industrial pollution.
Read more.Sens. Sanders, Merkley Introduce Bill to Ban Fracking Nationwide
WASHINGTON— Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) introduced legislation today to immediately ban fracking for oil and gas on all federal public lands onshore and offshore. The bill also would forbid any new federal permits for fossil fuel infrastructure such as pipelines, natural gas export terminals and ethane cracker plants.
Read more.Lawsuit Threatened Over Trump Administration’s Failure to Cut Airplane Climate Pollution
WASHINGTON— Environmental groups threatened today to sue the Trump administration for failing to fulfill its obligation under the Clean Air Act to curb planet-warming pollution from airplanes.
Read more.Report: $550 Million Needed to Plug Abandoned California Oil, Gas Wells
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California taxpayers could be on the hook for more than $500 million to plug thousands of so-called “orphan” wells drilled and abandoned by oil and gas companies, according to a report by experts with the California Council on Science and Technology.
Read more.Lawsuit Challenges Trump Administration’s Suppression of Grid Study Bolstering Clean Energy Transition
WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity sued the Trump administration today for failing to release documents about a $1.5 million study that examined how grid improvements can bolster renewable energy access.
Read more.Lawsuit Challenges Trump Plan to Frack, Drill 1 Million Acres of California Public Lands, Minerals
LOS ANGELES— Conservation groups sued the Trump administration today challenging the last step in the administration’s plan to allow oil drilling and fracking on more than 1 million acres of public lands and minerals in Central California.
Read more.Louisiana Issues Air-pollution Permits for Formosa Plastics Plant
ST. JAMES PARISH, La.— The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality today issued air-pollution permits for a massive petrochemical complex that Formosa Plastics wants to build in St. James Parish, Louisiana.
Read more.Trump Administration Permits Oil Company to Harm Alaska’s Endangered Whales, Ice Seals
ANCHORAGE—The Trump administration today announced the issuance of federal take permits that would allow Hilcorp Alaska to kill or seriously injure 14 whales and nine ice seals as it constructs the Liberty offshore drilling island. The controversial project would be the first offshore drilling development in federal Arctic waters.
Read more.Trump Administration Gives Final OK to Drilling, Fracking in Central California
BAKERSFIELD, Calif.— The Trump administration took the final step today to break a five-year moratorium on leasing public land in California for oil drilling and fracking, issuing a decision that will allow more than 1 million acres to be put on the auction block.
Read more.500 Groups Urge Next U.S. President to Declare National Emergency, Rejoin Paris Accord With Bold Climate Commitments
MADRID— U.S. environmental and climate-justice groups at the United Nations climate change conference in Madrid called on the next U.S. president today to declare a national climate emergency. The plan, supported by hundreds of U.S. groups, urges the next administration to take 10 executive actions in its first 10 days in office to confront the climate crisis.
Read more.Organizaciones de EEUU Urgen al Próximo Presidente Declarar Emergencia Nacional y la Reincorporación al Acuerdo de París con Fuertes Compromisos Climáticos
MADRID, España- Organizaciones ambientalistas y de justicia climática de EEUU en la conferencia sobre cambio climático de las Naciones Unidas en Madrid, hacen un llamado al próximo Presidente de Estados Unidos para declarar una emergencia nacional climática. Un plan, apoyado por cientos de grupos de Estados Unidos, insta a la próxima administración a tomar 10 acciones ejecutivas en sus primeros 10 días de gobierno para hacer frente a la crisis climática.
Read more.U.S. Groups to Unveil Plan at UN Conference for Next President to Declare National Climate Emergency
MADRID— Environmental and climate-justice groups from the United States will host a press conference Wednesday at the United Nations climate conference to unveil a plan urging the next U.S. president to take 10 executive actions in her or his first 10 days in office to confront the climate crisis.
Read more.500 Groups Call for Next President to Declare National Climate Emergency
WASHINGTON— More than 500 conservation, environmental justice, youth, health, faith and labor groups today called on the next U.S. president to declare a national climate emergency. The plan urges the next administration to take 10 executive actions in its first 10 days in office to confront the climate crisis.
Read more.Mike Mann, Other Experts to Expose Fossil Fuel Industry’s Shifting Tactics to Block Climate Action at San Francisco Event
SAN FRANCISCO— Climate scientist Mike Mann, community organizer Andres Soto and investigative journalist Antonia Juhasz will expose the fossil fuel industry’s latest efforts to block a just and equitable transition away from dirty fossil fuel production at a public event on Dec. 10 in San Francisco.
Read more.Legal Petition Seeks New Air Pollution Standards for Petrochemical Plants
WASHINGTON― More than 350 community and conservation organizations filed a legal petition today that demands the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency adopt strict air pollution standards for industrial plants that create plastic.
Read more.National Coalition to Announce Legal Challenge to Plastic Plant Pollution at San Francisco EPA Office
SAN FRANCISCO― More than 350 community and conservation organizations from around the country will announce a major new legal challenge to pollution from industrial plants that create plastic tomorrow in San Francisco.
Read more.Panel de Cumbre Climática de la ONU Advierte Sobre la Importancia de Eliminar el Uso de Petróleo Mediante la Electrificación del Transporte
MADRID, España— Grupos ecologistas y académicos serán los anfitriones de un panel sobre la eliminación gradual de la producción de petróleo y la electrificación del transporte con energía limpia y renovable, en la conferencia climática de las Naciones Unidas en Madrid este lunes 2 de diciembre.
Read more.UN Climate Summit Panel to Focus on Importance of Phasing Out Oil, Electrifying Transportation
MADRID, Spain— Environmental groups and academics will host a panel on phasing out oil production and electrifying transportation with clean and renewable energy at the United Nations climate conference in Madrid on Monday, Dec. 2.
Read more.Lawsuit Challenges Trump’s Move to Block California’s Clean Car Standards
WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity joined eight other groups today in suing the Trump administration for trying to prevent California and other states from setting more protective vehicle pollution standards.
Read more.Legal Action Challenges North Carolina Utilities’ Unlawful Use of Ratepayer Funds
RALEIGH, N.C.— The Center for Biological Diversity today submitted a brief to the North Carolina Utilities Commission arguing that utilities cannot use ratepayer funds for trade association dues as it violates customers’ First Amendment rights. Money from ratepayers is frequently channeled into campaigns against rooftop solar.
Read more.Trump Administration Proposes Oil Drilling Expansion in Alaska’s Arctic Reserve
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — The Trump administration released a new draft plan today that could dramatically increase the federal land available for oil and gas drilling in Alaska’s Arctic Reserve. The Bureau of Land Management’s proposal includes an alternative that would turn over about 18.3 million acres to the oil industry.
Read more.Lawsuit Challenges Trump Administration OK of Oil Waste Dumping in California Aquifer
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif.— The Center for Biological Diversity sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today for failing to consider threats to the environment and endangered wildlife before approving an aquifer exemption for the Arroyo Grande oilfield south of San Luis Obispo.
Read more.Newsom Administration Announces Crackdown on Dangerous California Oil Extraction
SACRAMENTO, Calif.― Gov. Gavin Newsom announced today that the state would take major steps to protect Californians from oil industry pollution, as part of an overall strategy to phase out oil production in California. The actions include a moratorium on new high-pressure steam injection wells and the initiation of a process to protect the health of people living near oil and gas wells.
Read more.Ninth Circuit to Hear Arguments Against Arctic Offshore Drilling Project Approval
PORTLAND, Ore.— A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit will hear oral arguments tomorrow in a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s approval of the Liberty project, the first offshore drilling development in federal Arctic waters.
Read more.Trump to Quit Paris Accord, End U.S. Obstruction of Global Climate Progress
WASHINGTON— President Trump today will submit the official withdrawal of the United States from the 2015 Paris agreement on climate change. Trump’s withdrawal comes days after the Chilean government cancelled its plan to host the 2019 United Nations climate change talks.
Read more.Trump Plans to Open 1 Million More Acres of California Public Land to Drilling, Fracking
BAKERSFIELD, Calif.— The Trump administration today announced a proposal to open more than 1 million acres of public lands and minerals in central California to oil drilling and fracking. The plan, first floated in draft form in April, would end a more than five-year moratorium on leasing federal public land in the state to oil companies.
Read more.Lawsuit Challenges Trump Administration’s California Fracking Plan
SAN FRANCISCO— Conservation groups today sued the Trump administration to challenge its Oct. 4 decision to allow fracking and drilling on 725,500 acres of public lands and mineral estate across California’s Central Coast and the Bay Area.
Read more.Gov. Newsom Urged to Phase Out Fossil Fuel Cars by 2030
SACRAMENTO— The Center for Biological Diversity called on Gov. Gavin Newsom today to phase out the sale of fossil fuel cars in California on an ambitious timeline that matches the scale and urgency of the climate crisis.
Read more.Legal Challenge Opposes Duke Energy’s North Carolina Rate Hike
RALEIGH, N.C.— The Center for Biological Diversity and Appalachian Voices filed a petition today to intervene in Duke Energy Carolinas’ application to substantially increase electricity rates in North Carolina without also promoting renewable energy. The groups argued that simply raising rates, without concrete policies to advance the clean energy transition, is wrong for North Carolina, its people and the climate.
Read more.Formosa Plastics Settles Texas Pollution Case for $50 Million, No More Plastic Releases
VICTORIA, Texas— Formosa Plastics today settled a Clean Water Act lawsuit brought by a former shrimper and San Antonio Bay Estuarine Waterkeeper challenging its extensive plastic pollution of waterways around its Point Comfort, Texas plant. Under the $50 million settlement, Formosa is paying for pollution cleanup and promises no future discharges of plastic pellets or other plastic materials from the plant.
Read more.Study: Emperor Penguins Threatened by Climate Crisis, Need Urgent Protection
GLAND, Switzerland— A study published this week finds that emperor penguins are being pushed towards extinction by the climate crisis melting the sea ice they need for survival. Yet the Trump administration has refused to give Endangered Species Act protections to the iconic birds.
Read more.Trump Bucks Protests, Opens 725,500 Acres of California’s Central Coast to Oil Drilling
MARINA, Calif.— The Trump administration today dismissed protests and made a formal decision to open 725,500 acres of public lands and mineral estate across California’s Central Coast and the Bay Area to new oil and gas drilling and fracking.
Read more.Federal Studies: Oil Waste Fluid Contaminated California Groundwater
MCKITTRICK, Calif.— Oil industry waste fluids containing benzene and other toxic chemicals have migrated into California’s groundwater through multiple pathways at sites in Kern County, west of Bakersfield, federal experts have discovered.
Read more.Lawsuit Filed Over Trump’s Move to Block California’s Clean Car Standards
WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity joined eight other groups today in suing the Trump administration over its attempt to prevent California and other states from setting more protective vehicle pollution standards.
Read more.Climate Strike Highlights Opposition to Restarting ExxonMobil Offshore Oil Platforms Off Santa Barbara
SANTA BARBARA, Calif.— California Central Coast residents will march and call for climate action Friday as part of the global Climate Strike Week of Action. The Center for Biological Diversity, one of more than 30 participating organizations, will use the occasion to highlight opposition to ExxonMobil’s proposal to restart its dormant offshore drilling platforms off Santa Barbara County.
Read more.NYC Youth, Global Frontline Leaders Disrupt Oil, Gas Climate Initiative Greenwash Soirée
NEW YORK CITY— Two days after hundreds of thousands marched through New York demanding action to confront the climate crisis, youth activists disrupted a greenwashing event attended by several oil major CEOs. They then joined global frontline movement leaders to denounce these polluting corporations’ abuses and demand real, people-first solutions to address the climate crisis and ensure polluters pay for the damage they have knowingly caused.
Read more.Center for Biological Diversity Strikes for Climate Action
TUCSON, Ariz.— More than 600 Climate Strike events are taking place today across the country. The event is the latest manifestation of the global youth climate strike movement, inspired by Greta Thunberg’s #FridaysforFuture, and is led by youth organizers. The Center for Biological Diversity is supporting and participating in strikes across the country, from Honolulu and Portland, Ore. to New York City, Tucson, Ariz. and beyond.
Read more.Lawsuit Launched to Protect Students, Chapel Hill-Carrboro from UNC’s Coal Plant Pollution
CHAPEL HILL, N.C.— The Center for Biological Diversity and Sierra Club today filed a formal notice of intent to sue the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for violations of the Clean Air Act.
Read more.Report: U.S. Airlines’ Carbon Emissions Grew Twice as Fast as Fuel Efficiency Gains
WASHINGTON— Domestic aviation fuel use and carbon dioxide emissions increased by 7 percent from 2016 to 2018, according to a report released today by the International Council on Clean Transportation. Fuel efficiency increased by only 3 percent during the same period.
Read more.Formosa Plastics’ Proposed Louisiana Plant Gets Permit to Destroy Wetlands
ST. JAMES PARISH, La.— The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has issued a Clean Water Act permit for Formosa Plastics’ massive proposed plastic plant in St. James Parish, La. This federal permit authorizes the company to dredge and fill sensitive wetlands along the Mississippi River.
Read more.North Carolina Governor Urged to End Duke Monopoly, Transform Energy System
RALEIGH, N.C.— In the wake of Hurricane Dorian, the Energy Justice NC Coalition today called on North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper to end Duke Energy’s monopoly and transform the state’s electricity system to 100 percent renewable energy as soon as possible.
Read more.Trump Proposes Killing Methane Pollution Rule
WASHINGTON— Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency proposed today to eliminate direct limits on methane pollution from new and modified oil and gas infrastructure.
Read more.Trump Urged to Block Return of Super-polluting Supersonic Planes
WASHINGTON— Twenty-eight public-interest groups called on Trump’s Federal Aviation Administration Tuesday to stop the comeback of highly polluting luxury supersonic planes, which are projected to burn five to seven times more fuel per passenger than typical airliners.
Read more.Lawsuit Filed to Protect Habitat for 12 Endangered Coral Species
WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity sued the Trump administration today for failing to protect 12 coral species around Florida and islands in the Pacific Ocean. The corals all received Endangered Species Act protection in 2014, but they did not receive the critical habitat protection the law requires.
Read more.Lawsuit Takes on Trump’s Dirty Power Plan
WASHINGTON— Ten environmental groups sued Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency today to overturn the administration’s Dirty Power Plan and reinstate the Obama-era Clean Power Plan.
Read more.Trump Visit to Plastic Plant Ignores Pollution Crisis, Outdated Federal Rules
MONACA, Pa.― President Donald Trump’s visit today to a massive plastics plant being built in Pennsylvania by Royal Dutch Shell ignores the plastic pollution and toxic chemicals such plants are allowed to release under decades-old federal regulations. Local groups protested today’s visit and the petrochemical industry’s plan to increase U.S. plastic production using the oversupply of fracked natural gas.
Read more.Lawsuit: Trump Is Failing to Protect Emperor Penguins From Climate Crisis
WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity sued the Trump administration today for failing to act on a petition to protect emperor penguins under the Endangered Species Act.
Read more.Lawsuit Launched Over Trump Administration’s Approval of Oil-waste Dumping in California’s Arroyo Grande Aquifer
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif.— The Center for Biological Diversity filed a notice today of its intent to sue the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for ignoring threats to endangered wildlife in its recent approval of an aquifer exemption in the area around the Arroyo Grande oilfield.
Read more.Legal Petition Seeks Ban on Plastic Pollution From Petrochemical Plants
WASHINGTON― More than 270 community and conservation organizations filed a legal petition today that demands the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency adopt strict new water-pollution limits for industrial plants that create plastic.
Read more.Lawsuit Forces Trump Administration to Consider Oil Drilling’s Harm to Endangered Wildlife in Gulf of Mexico
TAMPA, Fla.— Prompted by a lawsuit filed by three conservation groups, the Trump administration has finally agreed to complete a legally required consultation about the harm offshore oil drilling does to whales and other threatened and endangered wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico.
Read more.Congressional Resolution Declares Climate Emergency
WASHINGTON— Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) unveiled a concurrent resolution today to declare the climate crisis an emergency warranting a “massive-scale mobilization to halt, reverse and address” its consequences.
Read more.Louisiana to Hold Hearing on Massive Formosa Plastics Toxic Chemical Complex
ST. JAMES PARISH, La.— Louisiana will hold a public hearing on issuing 15 air permits for Taiwanese company Formosa Plastics. The massive proposed complex would be one of the largest and most toxic plastic production facilities in the world.
Read more.Federal Court Rules Formosa Plastics Is Liable for Plastic Pollution in Texas
VICTORIA, Texas— A federal judge in Texas on Thursday found Formosa Plastics liable for polluting Texas waterways with billions of plastic pellets from its plant in Point Comfort. The Taiwanese company is currently seeking permits to build an even larger plastic-making plant along the Mississippi River in St. James Parish, La., a project strongly opposed by local residents and national conservation groups.
Read more.California to Evaluate Curbing Oil, Gas Extraction
SACRAMENTO, Calif.— Gov. Gavin Newsom Thursday signed into law this year’s California budget, which includes the allocation of $1.5 million toward a study to “identify strategies to decrease demand and supply of fossil fuels.” The provision marks the first step the state has taken toward decreasing the state’s fossil fuel production.
Read more.Trump Administration to Dredge San Francisco Bay to Make Room for More Oil
OAKLAND, Calif.— Public-interest groups filed a joint letter Monday with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers strongly warning against efforts to dredge a deeper channel through San Francisco Bay.
Read more.Trump's EPA Finalizes Dirty Power Plan
WASHINGTON— The Trump administration’s Environmental Protection Agency today released its final rule that scraps the Clean Power Plan and lets states decide whether, and how, to limit power-plant pollution.
Read more.Trump Administration Sued for Failing to Protect Imperiled Ice Seals’ Arctic Habitat
WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity sued the National Marine Fisheries Service today for failing to designate critical habitat in Alaska for two ice-seal species. Both bearded and ringed seals are listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act because climate change is melting their Arctic sea-ice habitat.
Read more.Appeals Court Throws Out Case Blocking Keystone XL Tar Sands Pipeline, Relying on New Permit Issued by President Trump
SAN FRANCISCO— The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed a legal challenge to the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline, ruling the case was no longer active due to President Trump’s revocation of the permit at the center of the case. In March, Trump issued a new “presidential” permit for Keystone XL, in an effort to spur construction of the pipeline.
Read more.Lawsuit Launched to Force Trump EPA to Protect California’s Ventura County From Deadly Smog
VENTURA, Calif.— The Center for Biological Diversity and Center for Environmental Health filed a notice today of their intent to sue the Trump administration for failing to finalize plans to curtail dangerous smog in Ventura County, Calif.
Read more.Court Urged to Reject Discrimination Against Arizona Rooftop-solar Customers
PHOENIX— The Center for Biological Diversity today took legal action in a federal court to challenge an Arizona power-utility company’s discrimination against rooftop-solar customers.
Read more.Rally to Oppose Dangerous Oil-industry Injections in Santa Maria Aquifers
SANTA MARIA, Calif.— Santa Barbara County residents and environmental advocates will rally Wednesday against a proposed aquifer exemption that could pollute groundwater and drastically expand oil drilling in the county. The rally will precede the state’s public meeting on the proposal.
Read more.2019 Hurricane Predictions Spell Disaster for Coastal Communities, Wildlife
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.— The 2019 Atlantic hurricane season officially starts on Saturday, with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicting a total of nine to 15 named storms and as many as four major hurricanes.
Read more.Lawsuit Launched to Protect Hawaii’s Cauliflower Coral After 36 Percent Decline
HONOLULU— The Center for Biological Diversity today filed a notice of intent to sue the Trump administration for failing to protect cauliflower coral around the Hawaiian Islands. The bushy, shallow-water coral species has been devastated by ocean warming triggered by human-caused climate change.
Read more.Disregarding Climate, Trump Administration Pushes to Re-open Public Lands to Coal Leasing
WASHINGTON— The Trump administration today restarted an effort to reopen public lands to new federal coal leasing. In today’s action, the Interior Department responded to a court order overturning its illegal nixing of a nationwide coal leasing moratorium with a highly abbreviated environmental review.
Read more.Rallies in Bakersfield, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara to Oppose Trump's Oil-leasing Plan for California
BAKERSFIELD, Calif.— Environmental and community groups joined by elected officials will hold rallies this week to blast the Trump administration’s draft plan to open more than a million acres of public land and mineral estate in central California to oil drilling and fracking. The rallies will precede each of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s public hearings in Bakersfield, San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara.
Read more.Pipeline Shutdown Prevented 27 Million Tons of Carbon Pollution in California
SANTA BARBARA, Calif.— The closure of Plains All American Pipeline’s coastal California oil pipeline after it ruptured four years ago has prevented massive emissions of climate pollution. If the seven offshore drilling platforms served by the pipeline had not gone idle, they would have added 27 million metric tons of carbon dioxide pollution to the atmosphere. That’s roughly equivalent to operating two coal-fired power plants in California over the same period — or burning almost 30 billion pounds of coal.
Read more.Lawsuit Challenges Trump Administration Approval of Massive Utah Oil Shale Development
BONANZA, Utah— Conservation groups today sued the Trump administration to challenge what would be the nation’s first commercial-scale oil shale mine and processing facility. The lawsuit says officials failed to protect several endangered species when they approved rights-of-way across public lands to provide utilities to the proposed oil shale development.
Read more.Report: Trump Fracking Leases Top 1 Gigaton of Potential Climate Pollution in Lower 48
TUCSON, Ariz.— A new Center for Biological Diversity report shows that the Trump administration is dramatically ramping up oil and gas leases, offering nearly 5 million acres of public lands in the lower 48 states ― most of it in Wyoming and Utah. Those leases, offered as scientists warn that fossil fuels should be rapidly phased out, contain 1 gigaton of potential greenhouse gas pollution.
Read more.Trump Finalizes Plan to Open 725,500 Acres of California's Central Coast to Drilling, Fracking
MARINA, Calif.— The Trump administration today finalized a plan to open 725,500 acres of public lands and mineral estate across California’s Central Coast and the Bay Area to new oil and gas drilling. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management plan is an increase of nearly 327,000 acres from the draft proposal prepared under the Obama administration.
Read more.Oregon Denies Key Permit for Proposed Jordan Cove Natural Gas Project
SALEM, Ore.— The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality today issued a resounding denial of the proposed Jordan Cove LNG project and the Pacific Connector fracked gas pipeline, which have faced fierce opposition from a grassroots coalition for more than a decade. The denial effectively stops the project from moving forward.
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