The Environmental Digest is a short daily newsletter that delivers the hottest news about climate change directly to your inbox.
Politics & Environment
The Anniversary of Biden’s Climate Law
About a year ago, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law. It was supposed to be one of the grandest actions in the fight against climate change. Here’s how it’s coming along.
What’s the IRA all about:
Introduced as an alternative to the Build Better Act and spanning 730 pages, the bill includes a variety of strategies to reduce the government’s budget deficit. Although the proposal included lowering prescription drug prices and other actions, the bulk of the bill (a total of $369 billion in spending and tax credits) was dedicated to transitioning the US to clean energy.
Fun Fact
A recent report from the Rhodium Group, an analytics firm that tracks greenhouse gas emissions, estimates that the IRA will reduce national greenhouse gas emissions from 29% to 42% of 2005 levels by 2030.
Where is it now?
The bill was greeted with overwhelming support and cheer, but a recent Washington Post poll found that 7 out of 10 Americans had heard little to nothing about the measure since it passed.
Moreover, the Environmental Defense Fund has so far logged 150 IRA-related actions that the federal government has taken, ranging from the Environmental Protection Agency awarding climate pollution reduction grants to the Department of Agriculture opening applications for its rural-energy-in-America program.
Notable Mentions
The IRA included $4 billion for water management and conservation efforts in the Colorado River Basin, which has already helped states settle long-fought negotiations over how to reduce the river’s water use.
The agreement reached this May allocated $1.2 billion to cities and irrigation districts in Lower Basin states in exchange for them using less water.
The groundwork for the federal tax incentives and fund dispersion was laid out this year as well.
Read more here.
Daily ED: United States
Here is what the Republican presidential candidates think of climate change
With the first Republican debate behind us, let’s see what the candidates say on climate and emission policies.
Donald J. Trump - the former president may have accelerated the onset of climate change, per the New York Times. While in the White House, he rolled back almost 100 environmental regulations targeted at combatting climate change, withdrew the US from the Paris Agreement, and appointed pro-fossil fuel people in charge of the EPA.
Ron De Santis - despite dismissing climate change concerns as “left-wing stuff”, the Florida governor took steps to fortify his state against stronger storms and rising waters. He also backed the Resilient Florida Program, sending +$100 million to vulnerable communities to finance projects like building sea walls and improving drainage systems.
However, when asked if he would implement these changes on the federal level, he said that he would promote fossil fuels and reverse Biden’s plan for electric vehicles.
Tim Scott - the South Carolina senator acknowledged climate change in an interview “There is no doubt that man is having an impact on our environment. There is no doubt about that. I am not living under a rock.” However, he opposed most policies that would curb carbon dioxide emissions and dismissed the urgency of the issue.
Vivek Ramaswamy - the tech-based entrepreneur opposed all government efforts to reduce carbon emissions and called the climate agenda a “hoax” and a “cult.” He also rejected the scientific consensus that emissions are hurting the environment and said fossil fuels are essential to “human flourishing.”
Nikki Haley - a former governor of South Carolina, has acknowledged that climate change is real and caused by humans, but she has generally rejected governmental efforts to reduce emissions. Her advocacy group Stand for America said that “liberal ideas would cost trillions and destroy our economy.”
Climate & Science
Megadrought in the West said to be the worst since 800 AD
A new study published in the renowned journal Nature Climate Change, an update to a previous study published in 2020, examined the 19-year period between 2000 and 2018, comparing it with other historical droughts known to have occurred across the southwestern U.S.
The researchers relied on analyses of ancient, preserved tree rings, which can provide information about the climate conditions over the course of the tree’s life. These tree ring records stretch back all the way to 800 AD.
2021 turned out to be the breaking point for the climate record. Before last year, a previous megadrought occurring in the late 1500s was the only other drought known to be worse than today. A megadrought is typically defined as a severe dry period lasting at least a couple of decades.
Read more here.
Daily ED: United States
The Presidential Candidates and Climate Policy: Continued
Mike Pence - Former Vice President has acknowledged that climate change is happening. His energy plan would reverse President Biden’s restrictions on oil and gas leases, end efforts to reduce methane emissions, and instruct federal agencies to “break down barriers to exploration, extraction, and production of any source of domestic energy” — including renewable sources but also coal, oil, and gas.
Chris Christie - The former governor of New Jersey acknowledged the reality of climate change before many Republicans did. “When you have over 90% of the world’s scientists who have studied this stating that climate change is occurring and that humans play a contributing role, it’s time to defer to the experts,” he said in 2011.
He has expressed openness to reducing emissions and said he would push China to act. “There’s no doubt in my mind that it would make sense for all of us to be moving towards things that don’t add to carbon, and you could also do things like carbon capture,”
Asa Hutchinson - the former governor of Arkansas, rejects government-led efforts to reduce emissions and says he will “end the war on fossil fuels,” but also says he is open to “market-driven solutions to transition towards cleaner energy sources.” He said he would lift restrictions on pipelines and drilling — as well as nuclear power, which is carbon-free — and withdraw from the Paris Agreement, which he said hurt “America’s ability to allow for economic growth.”
Doug Burgum - Governor of North Dakota has pushed harder to address climate change than most Republicans by actively identifying carbon neutrality as a goal: In 2021, he announced that he wanted North Dakota to reach it by 2030.
He wants to do so through carbon-capture programs alone, without transitioning away from fossil fuels. His campaign declined to answer questions about what he would do as president.
Will Hurd - Former Texas Representative has acknowledged the gravity of climate change. In a 2021 essay on his website, he wrote that rising temperatures would worsen hurricanes, floods, wildfires, and droughts; threaten water supplies; and, by reducing crop yields and restricting animal habitats, have economic consequences, such as making food more expensive.
He voted against many climate measures in the House and declined to elaborate on what he would do as president, and his campaign did not respond to a request for details.
Francis Suarez - Mayor of Miami has acknowledged that climate change is a serious threat — one that is already hurting his city.
Mr. Suarez has largely focused on adaptation measures such as building sea walls. But unlike most Republicans, he has also endorsed significant emission reductions. In 2020, he announced a goal for Miami to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. His campaign did not respond when asked if he would support similar policies at the federal level.
Pop Culture Break
Notable Mentions
More than 70,000 Burning Man festival attendees remain stranded in the Nevada desert after heavy rain left the roads in ankle-deep mud that sticks to shoes and car tires.
Under new state law, Texas will bill electric vehicle drivers an extra $200 a year.
On Maui, returning home means confronting toxic risks. A growing body of research shows that wildfires leave a trail of dangerous chemicals behind.
Thank you for your support! Find us in your inbox tomorrow!
Incredible read!