Most recent 30 articles: New York Times - Climate Section
|
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
|
 |
Amtrak Passengers Face Record Delays From Extreme Weather - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 17) |
|
Jul 17 · The dated U.S. rail infrastructure is struggling to stay operational as climate change accelerates and intense heat waves, downpours and high winds become more frequent.
Total
100
minutes
All others and
unspecified
weather-realted
delays
90
Amtrak weather-
related delays
80
70
Cold
Snow/ice
60
Mud/rockslides
Rain/storms
Power failures
50
Trees
40
Wind
Floods
30
Wet/
slippery ... | By Karl Russell Read more ...
|
|
|
|
Britain Needs to Move Faster on Climate, Monitoring Group Says - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 17) |
|
Jul 17 · A report by a government body that oversees efforts to reduce greenhouse gases will help underpin the Labour Party’s plans to accelerate renewable energy and other measures.
An influential government body gave what amounts to strong support Thursday to one of the main planks of the new British government’s plans to revitalize the economy: a crash program to accelerate efforts for dealing with climate change.
In a report to Parliament, the Climate Change Committee, a statutory body that monitors progress on the reduction of greenhouse gases in Britain, warned that the country was “not on track to hit” a 2030 interim target of reducing emissions by 68 percent compared with ... | By Stanley Reed Read more ...
|
|
|
|
New York City Tenants Are Entitled to Heat. What About Air-Conditioning? - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 17) |
|
Jul 17 · Landlords have to keep tenants warm in the winter, but can leave them sweating in the summer. A city councilman wants to change that.
As New York City endures its third heat wave of the year, a city councilman plans to introduce a bill this week that would require landlords to buy, install and maintain air-conditioning units or cooling systems for tenants during the summer, with fines of up to $1,250 per day for noncompliance.
The idea behind the legislation, proposed by Councilman Lincoln Restler from Brooklyn, is to update the existing housing code so that building owners are just as responsible for keeping people cool in the summer as they are for keeping them warm in ... | By Hilary Howard Read more ...
|
|
|
|
'This Storm Has Broken People’: After Beryl, Some Consider Leaving - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 16) |
|
Jul 16 · Devastating, back-to-back power outages have led some in Houston to consider whether they want to stay in the city they love.
Reporting from Houston
Houston is no stranger to natural disasters, but living through two crippling power outages in two months has driven some in the city to consider what may be the ultimate evacuation plan: moving out.
The more powerful of the storms, Hurricane Beryl, devastated the power infrastructure over nearly the entire city. When it hit, thousands of people were already living in shelters and hotels, according to state officials, because they had been displaced by an earlier weather event, the spring thunderstorms that caused wind ... | By J. David Goodman Read more ...
|
|
|
|
A Giant Offshore Wind Turbine Blade Breaks, Prompting Beach Closures - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 16) |
|
Jul 16 · It’s unclear why a blade from one of the Vineyard Wind turbines broke into pieces, which are washing up on Nantucket beaches.
Debris from a damaged wind turbine blade has been washing up on the shores of Nantucket, Mass., prompting the closure of several beaches to swimmers and spurring an investigation into what caused the mishap.
The damage to the blade occurred on Saturday evening at Vineyard Wind, the country’s second large-scale offshore wind farm, which is 14 miles off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard, Mass. It’s still under construction but the first turbines began generating electricity in February.
The companies behind the project, Avangrid and Copenhagen ... | By Brad Plumer Read more ...
|
|
|
|
Climate and the Republican Convention - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 16) |
|
Jul 16 · Subscriber-only Newsletter
Climate Forward
Here’s where the party stands on global warming, energy and the environment.
It’s official: Donald Trump is the Republican nominee for the presidential election this November, and Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio is his running mate.
The long-awaited announcement of the vice-presidential candidate came as the Republican National Convention opened in Milwaukee on Monday and Trump made his first public appearance since the assassination attempt in Pennsylvania on Saturday.
Climate change was not on the agenda. But the convention’s first day, which was focused on the economy, offered fresh signs of what a new Trump ... | By Manuela Andreoni Read more ...
|
|
|
|
Fact-Checking the Republican National Convention on Energy Claims - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 16) |
|
Jul 16 · Several speakers focused on the sharp rise in gas and electricity prices under President Biden. We scrutinized their statements.
Reporting from Washington
The rising price of energy was a major theme of the first day of the Republican National Convention, with several speakers blaming President Biden’s policies for the spike in gasoline and electricity prices since 2021.
Here’s a look at some of their claims.
What was said about gas prices
“The day Joe and Kamala walked into office, gas was cheaper.” - Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee
“Gas is up 48 percent” - Senator Katie Britt of Alabama.
This needs context. The average price of ... | By Brad Plumer and Lisa Friedman Read more ...
|
|
|
|
The World Is Pushing Clean Energy. Oil Companies Are Thriving. - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 16) |
|
Jul 16 · High prices and growing demand have helped U.S. oil producers take in record profits despite global efforts to spur greater use of renewable energy and electric cars.
Reporting from Midland, Texas
For all of the focus on an energy transition, the American oil industry is booming, extracting more crude than ever from the shale rock that runs beneath the ground in West Texas.
After years of losing money on horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, the companies that have helped the United States become the leading global oil producer have turned a financial corner and are generating robust profits. The stocks of some oil and gas companies, such as Exxon Mobil and ... | By Rebecca F. Elliott Read more ...
|
|
|
|
What Trump 2.0 Could Mean for the Environment - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 16) |
|
Jul 16 · If Donald Trump returns to the White House, he would likely face fewer legal and bureaucratic obstacles to dramatically remake the E.P.A.
As president, Donald Trump’s sweeping attempts to roll back federal environmental regulations were often stymied - by the courts, by a lack of experience, even by internal resistance from government employees.
But if he retakes the White House in November, Mr. Trump would be in a far better position to dismantle environmental and climate rules, aided by more sympathetic judges and conservative allies who are already mapping out ways to bend federal agencies to the president’s will.
“It’s going to be easier,” said Myron Ebell, who ... | By Brad Plumer and Lisa Friedman Read more ...
|
|
|
|
At the Republican National Convention, Climate Change Isn’t a Problem - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 15) |
|
Jul 15 · As the event opens with a focus on energy, former President Trump and other leaders are calling for more oil, gas and coal development.
Reporting from Washington
The United States is experiencing scorching new levels of heat fueled by climate change this summer, with dozens of people dying in the West, millions sweating under heat advisories and nearly three-quarters of Americans saying the government must prioritize global warming.
But as the Republican Party opens its national convention in Milwaukee with a prime-time focus on energy on Monday night, the party has no plan to address climate change.
While some Republicans no longer deny the overwhelming ... | By Lisa Friedman Read more ...
|
|
|
|
J.D. Vance Is an Oil Booster and Doubter of Human-Caused Climate Change - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 15) |
|
Jul 15 · He once said society had a climate problem but changed his position sharply while seeking Donald Trump’s endorsement in his Senate race.
Reporting from Washington
Senator J.D. Vance, Republican of Ohio, is a strong supporter of the oil and gas industry, opposes solar power and electric vehicles, and has said climate change is not a threat.
It wasn’t always that way.
Mr. Vance, a fierce critic of Mr. Trump before becoming one of his most loyal MAGA supporters, also appears to have undergone an evolution on the issue of climate change. As recently as 2020, Mr. Vance said in a speech at Ohio State University that “we have a climate problem in our society.” He ... | By Lisa Friedman Read more ...
|
|
|
|
What’s Greenest and Cleanest When Nature Calls? - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 15) |
|
Jul 15 · Conventional toilet paper has a big environmental impact. We’ve got the lowdown on alternatives, from bamboo tissue to bidets.
Credit...Naomi Anderson-Subryan
These days, the toilet paper aisle is crowded with products that claim to be more sustainable, from bamboo and recycled material to products with “forest-safe” labels. But are they really better for the environment? And can you cast aside the paper altogether?
Today, we’ll try to get to the bottom of it.
If you’re in the United States, the roll in your bathroom right now most likely comes from somewhere in North or South America. It could be a blend of trees from the United States Southeast and the ... | By Elizabeth Anne Brown Read more ...
|
|
|
|
Electric Vehicles May Become Harder to Rent - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 14) |
|
Jul 14 · Rental car firms are offering temporary deals on electric cars, which they are selling after they lost value more quickly than expected.
If you’ve been wanting to try an electric vehicle, renting can be an affordable option. But finding one may soon become much more difficult.
Electric vehicles have been financially disastrous for rental companies, especially Hertz, which in January scaled back plans to acquire 100,000 Teslas after the cars’ resale values plunged much faster than the company had expected.
Hertz’s experience had a chilling effect on its industry, and many rental car companies are now trying to sell off electric vehicles at deep discounts. And it may ... | By Jack Ewing and Dionne Searcey Read more ...
|
|
|
|
A Leading Environmental Group Calls on Biden to Step Aside - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 12) |
|
Jul 12 · The Sunrise Movement, expressing concern about the president’s ability to win re-election, said he should “pass the torch to a new nominee.”
The Sunrise Movement, the youth-led climate organization that helped elect President Biden, is now calling on him to quit the race for the White House.
The group’s leaders say they believe that Mr. Biden, who has overseen the most aggressive climate agenda of any president, cannot win against former President Donald J. Trump, who has dismissed global warming as a hoax.
“Joe Biden’s next climate legacy-defining act must be to pass the torch to a new nominee,” Aru Shiney-Ajay, the executive director of the Sunrise Movement, said ... | By Lisa Friedman Read more ...
|
|
|
|
How Rebuilding Forests Helped Pangolins, Orangutans and People - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 12) |
|
Jul 12 · Land restored by local residents in Borneo drew an array of wildlife after nonprofit groups first addressed the needs of nearby villagers.
The two tracts of land at the edge of the ancient forest in Borneo were relatively small: One was just 74 acres, the other 195. They had also been heavily degraded by human activity. One site consisted of abandoned rice paddies, leaving barren spaces largely devoid of wildlife. The other was deforested grassland that caught fire every year.
But starting in 2009, people from neighboring communities were hired by a local environmental group to help restore the land. They planted native seedlings, yanked out weeds, dug firebreaks and ... | By Cara Buckley Read more ...
|
|
|
|
In Brazil, Early Wildfires Break Records - and Raise Alarm - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 12) |
|
Jul 12 · Huge blazes are spreading hundreds of miles across some of the most biodiverse parts of Brazil, with the worst of the annual fire season still weeks away.
Reporting from Rio de Janeiro
Brazil is still weeks away from its traditional fire season, but hundreds of blazes, fanned by searing temperatures, are already laying waste to the Pantanal, the world’s largest tropical wetlands, and to parts of the Amazon rainforest.
Scientists say the burning of such vast swaths of land may represent a new normal under rising global temperatures and uneven rain, making efforts to save some of the world’s most important ecosystems much harder.
There were more wildfires in ... | By Ana Ionova Read more ...
|
|
|
|
Marathon Oil Agrees to Record Penalty for Alleged Clean Air Act Violations - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 12) |
|
Jul 12 · The company will spend $242 million to resolve allegations that it released methane, a greenhouse gas, and other pollutants in North Dakota.
Marathon Oil agreed to spend $241.5 million to resolve federal allegations that it unlawfully emitted methane, a planet-warming greenhouse gas, and other pollutants from oil and gas facilities in North Dakota.
Under the proposed settlement announced on Thursday, the oil and gas producer, based in Houston, would pay a $64.5 million civil penalty. The federal government said it was the largest-ever fine for alleged violations of the Clean Air Act that took place at stationary infrastructure.
Marathon also agreed to spend $177 ... | By Rebecca F. Elliott Read more ...
|
|
|
|
'More Heat, More Often’: Temperature Records Keep Breaking - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 11) |
|
Jul 11 · The burning of fossil fuels has created more frequent and more intense heat waves. Experts warn these heat waves are “the new normal.”
June was the Earth’s 13th consecutive month to break a global heat record. It beat the record set last year for the hottest June on record, according to data from the Copernicus Climate Change Service of the European Union.
“We should consider this the new normal,” said Katherine Idziorek, an assistant professor in geography and community planning at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. “We need to be preparing for more heat, more often. That’s the reality.”
More than half the U.S. population - almost 175 million people - ... | By Austyn Gaffney Read more ...
|
|
|
|
A.I.’s Insatiable Appetite for Energy - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 11) |
|
Jul 11 · Subscriber-only Newsletter
Climate Forward
The soaring electricity demands of data centers and A.I. are straining the grid in some areas, pushing up emissions and slowing the energy transition.
A few weeks ago, I joined a small group of reporters for a wide-ranging conversation with Bill Gates about climate change, its causes and potential solutions. When the topic turned to the issue of just how much energy artificial intelligence was using, Gates was surprisingly sanguine.
“Let’s not go overboard on this,” he said during a media briefing on the sidelines of an event he was hosting in London.
A.I. data centers represent a relatively small additional ... | By David Gelles Read more ...
|
|
|
|
Biden Offers $1.7 Billion to Help Factories Build Electric Vehicles - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 11) |
|
Jul 11 · A Jeep plant that closed last year will be among those that will benefit from federal grants meant to help automotive manufacturers and protect jobs.
The federal government will grant car and auto parts factories in eight states $1.7 billion to begin producing electric vehicles and other clean energy technology, the Biden administration announced on Thursday.
Among the 11 recipients will be a Jeep factory in Belvidere, Ill., that the brand’s parent company Stellantis closed last year. The money will allow the plant to reopen and produce electric vehicles, officials said, restoring almost 1,450 jobs.
Other beneficiaries include a factory in Georgia that plans to ... | By Jack Ewing Read more ...
|
|
|
|
In New York, Protesting the Backers of Big Oil With Die-Ins, Drums and Song - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 11) |
|
Jul 11 · Amid soaring temperatures, hundreds of activists are staging boisterous blockades and solemn marches at banks and insurers that support fossil fuel projects.
They slather SPF 50+ on their toddlers’ legs under scorching sun before breaking out in song. They march joyously through the canyons of the Financial District while banging drums. The oldest among them lie down on the burning hot pavement and allow themselves to be dragged away by police.
Over the course of a blistering summer in New York, hundreds of activists have been assembling day after day to draw attention to the main thing that’s driving up global temperatures: the burning of coal, oil and gas, which ... | By Somini Sengupta and Cara Buckley Read more ...
|
|
|
|
Amazon Says It Reached a Climate Goal Seven Years Early - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 10) |
|
Jul 10 · The company said it effectively got all of the electricity it used last year from sources that did not produce greenhouse gas emissions. Some experts have faulted the company’s calculations.
Amazon announced on Wednesday that effectively all of the electricity its operations used last year came from sources that did not produce greenhouse gas emissions. But some experts have criticized the method the company uses to make that determination as being too lenient.
In its announcement, Amazon said it had reached its goal of 100 percent clean energy seven years ahead of schedule. The company said it invested billions of dollars in more than 500 solar and wind projects to ... | By Ivan Penn and Eli Tan Read more ...
|
|
|
|
As Climate Toll Grows, FEMA Imposes Limits on Building in Flood Plains - New York Times - Climate Section (Jul 10) |
|
Jul 10 · New restrictions are meant to reduce damage during floods. The rules were first proposed in 2016, then the Trump administration scrapped them.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency will take new steps to ensure that the structures it funds - including schools, hospitals, police stations, libraries, sewage treatment plants and bridges - are protected from flooding.
The agency said Wednesday that projects constructed with FEMA money must be built in a way that prevents flood damage, whether by elevating them above the expected height of a flood or, if that’s not feasible, by building in a safer location. The rule also makes it clear that building decisions must reflect ... | By Christopher Flavelle Read more ...
|
|
|