Scientists have warned that coal burning needs to be phased out by 2050 in order to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and avoid the worst impacts of the climate crisis. Now, a new report reveals that this goal may be within sight: the number of proposed coal plants has dropped […]
The U.S. electric car manufacturer Tesla suspended its plans to accept Bitcoin as a payment method, CEO Elon Musk announced in a Twitter statement late Wednesday. Musk, who has become notorious for moving the price of cryptocurrencies via tweets, cited the massive amount of energy required to keep Bitcoin running and its environmental impacts as […]
By Rich Collett-White and Rachel Sherrington Fossil fuel companies could face legal challenges over their misleading advertising, after a DeSmog investigation uncovered the extent of their “greenwashing.” Environmental lawyers ClientEarth have put companies on notice with the publication of the Greenwashing Files. The analyses, which use DeSmog’s research, show how adverts of major fossil fuel […]
Poland’s government and unions signed an agreement with the coal mining industry on Wednesday, to phase out coal production by 2049. Industry representatives agreed to shut all coal mines by the target date, with severance payments for workers in the Silesia coal basin. The agreement marks the first time that the powerful coal mining sector […]
Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg attacked powerful politicians for ignoring climate change, as she called for an end to government subsidies for fossil fuels such as coal and oil. The 18-year-old was speaking at an online U.S. House of Representatives committee hearing. It was held in honor of Earth Day, to address “The Role of […]
By Jessica Corbett As the Biden administration reviews the U.S. government’s federal fossil fuels program and faces pressure to block any new dirty energy development, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland won praise from environmentalists on Friday for issuing a pair of climate-related secretarial orders. “Today is a watershed moment in the history of the U.S. Department […]
By Jessica Corbett “The boardrooms of the world’s largest banks are polluted to the core… How are we ever meant to stop the climate crisis if the world’s most powerful decision-makers are in bed with the companies behind the wheel!?” That’s how Bank on Our Future — a UK-based network pressuring financial players to align […]
The threat of a catastrophic failure unleashing a 20-foot wall of industrial wastewater over nearby homes and businesses in Piney Point, Florida, illustrates the danger of widespread reliance on industrial waste ponds across the U.S., The New York Times reports. Many of these ponds, filled with toxic and sometimes radioactive, byproducts of climate-change causing activity […]
By Tara Lohan Mined lands reclaimed for biking trails, office parks — even a winery. Efforts like these are already underway in Appalachia to reclaim the region’s toxic history, restore blighted lands, and create economic opportunities in areas where decades-old mines haven’t been properly cleaned up. The projects are sorely needed. And so are many […]