trump administration

Biden’s EPA Restores Rule Protecting Vulnerable Communities From Mercury and Other Toxic Power Plant Emissions

Biden’s EPA Restores Rule Protecting Vulnerable Communities From Mercury and Other Toxic Power Plant Emissions

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reaffirmed the legal, scientific and economic bases of the 2012 Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) that require coal– and oil-fired power plants to implement “significant reductions” in emissions of mercury, acid gases and other toxic pollutants, a press release from the EPA said. The decision reverses the […]

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    Biden Admin Pauses Permits for New Fossil Fuel Projects

    Biden Admin Pauses Permits for New Fossil Fuel Projects

    The Biden administration said Saturday it would halt all federal decisions on new oil and gas projects due to an ongoing legal battle over how to assess their climate impacts. The administration’s pause comes alongside an appeal of a decision from a Trump-appointed judge, who ruled earlier this month that the administration could not use […]

    In Post-Trump Reversal, U.S. Joins Call for Global Plastics Treaty

    In Post-Trump Reversal, U.S. Joins Call for Global Plastics Treaty

    The U.S. and France have joined forces to call for an international treaty to control plastic pollution.  They issued their joint statement on the last day of the One Ocean Summit from February 9 to 11 convened by France in its port city of Brest.  “The United States and France are committed to protecting our […]

    Biden Extends Trump-Era Tariffs on Solar Panel Imports, With Some Exceptions

    Biden Extends Trump-Era Tariffs on Solar Panel Imports, With Some Exceptions

    President Biden has extended Trump-era tariffs on imported solar panels with some exceptions, including “bifacial” solar panels that are used in large-scale solar projects. Two important factors in the decision to extend the tariffs were supporting the domestic manufacturing of solar panels and bolstering the transition to clean energy. Tariffs on imported solar cells and […]

    Virginia Senate Panel Rejects Trump’s EPA Chief Wheeler for State’s Top Environmental Post, But Could He Still Get the Nomination?

    Virginia Senate Panel Rejects Trump’s EPA Chief Wheeler for State’s Top Environmental Post, But Could He Still Get the Nomination?

    A Virginia Senate panel has rejected former coal-lobbyist and Trump administration Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) head Andrew Wheeler from serving in the state’s top environmental post.  Wheeler was first nominated to serve as the state’s secretary of natural resources by new Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin in early January, as Huffpost reported at the time. The […]

    Trump’s Border Wall Kept Endangered Wolf From Finding Home and a Mate

    Trump’s Border Wall Kept Endangered Wolf From Finding Home and a Mate

    Scientists now have proof that the border wall built by former President Donald Trump is impeding the movements of wildlife.  Data from a tracking collar on a Mexican gray wolf named Mr. Goodbar revealed that he spent four days in November pacing along 23 miles of newly-constructed border wall in New Mexico, likely frustrated in […]

    DOE Restores Washing Machine Efficiency Rule Revoked by Trump

    DOE Restores Washing Machine Efficiency Rule Revoked by Trump

    The U.S. Department of Energy released a final rule on January 12 revoking an efficiency standard rollback for certain washing and drying appliances put in place during former President Donald Trump’s administration, a reversal endorsed by efficiency advocates. In 2020, the Trump administration published two final rules that respectively established new product classes for dishwashers, […]

    Biden Administration to Reverse Trump-Era Policy for Wider Oil Development in Alaska

    Biden Administration to Reverse Trump-Era Policy for Wider Oil Development in Alaska

    The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced that it will pursue the reversal of a Trump-era plan that would leave more than 82 percent of Alaska’s 23-million-acre National Petroleum Reserve (NPR-A) vulnerable to new oil drilling, The Hill reported. The BLM will instead seek to follow an Obama administration plan that allows 52 percent of the reserve to be made available for drilling.