May 23 Norfolk Southern will pay modest $15 million fine as part of a federal settlement over Ohio train derailment By Josh Funk, Associated Press Residents were generally underwhelmed by the deal the Environmental Protection Agency and Justice Department announced Thursday, two days after a federal judge signed off on the railroad's $600 million class action settlement with residents. Continue reading
Apr 25 Coal-fired plants will have to capture emissions or shut down, says strict new EPA rule By Matthew Daly, Associated Press The rule was among four measures targeting coal and natural gas plants that the EPA said would provide “regulatory certainty” to the power industry and encourage them to make investments to transition “to a clean energy economy.”… Continue reading
Apr 22 WATCH: Biden marks Earth Day with new grants for solar power By Alexa St. John, Will Weissert, Associated Press President Joe Biden is announcing $7 billion in federal grants for residential solar projects serving 900,000-plus households in low- and middle-income communities. Continue reading
Apr 10 Watch 6:51 What new EPA limits on ‘forever chemicals’ mean for U.S. drinking water By William Brangham, Courtney Norris The Environmental Protection Agency says that so-called “forever chemicals,” which are harmful to human health, must be removed from U.S. drinking water. It's a moment public health advocates have long called for as PFAS have been linked to certain cancers… Continue watching
Apr 10 1st national limits on toxic PFAS in drinking water set by Biden administration By Michael Phillis, Associated Press Officials say this will reduce exposure for 100 million people and help prevent thousands of illnesses, including cancers. Continue reading
Apr 09 More than 200 chemical plants must reduce toxic emissions under new EPA rule By Matthew Daly, Associated Press The rule will apply to 218 facilities spread across Texas and Louisiana, the Ohio River Valley, West Virginia and the upper South, the agency said. It updates several regulations on chemical plant emissions that have not been tightened in nearly… Continue reading
Apr 04 EPA announces $20 billion in green bank grants for clean energy projects By Alexa St. John, Associated Press Clean energy projects like residential heat pumps, electric vehicle charging stations and community cooling centers aim to combat climate change. Continue reading
Mar 19 As electric vehicle sales slow, U.S. relaxes plans for stricter auto emissions standards By Tom Krisher, Matthew Daly, Associated Press The auto industry has cited lower sales growth in objecting to the EPA's preferred standards unveiled last April as part of the most ambitious plan ever to cut planet-warming emissions from passenger vehicles. Continue reading
Dec 02 Watch 7:47 What to know about the COP28 deal and new U.S. rules to cut methane emissions By John Yang, Murrey Jacobson, Lorna Baldwin, Andrew Corkery At COP28 on Saturday, 50 oil and gas companies — including industry giants ExxonMobil, Shell and BP — pledged to reduce methane emissions to “near zero” by 2030. At the same time, the Biden administration announced new rules to enforce… Continue watching
Nov 22 Biden declared an emergency over lead in water in the U.S. Virgin Islands. But experts think tests were wrong. By Michael Phillis, Associated Press But experts question the way those water samples were collected, saying the results could be false. Continue reading