Climate Point: Rising seas, leaking oil wells and toxic chemicals. Oh my!
Welcome to Climate Point, your weekly guide to climate, energy and environment news from across the Golden State and the country. From Palm Springs, Calif., I’m Mark Olalde.
President Donald Trump's State of the Union address largely side-stepped environmental issues. But the week brought more evidence of a changing climate and rising sea levels. William & Mary's Virginia Institute of Marine Science released a report this week with a stark finding: "The rate of sea-level rise along much of the U.S. coastline continues to accelerate," Doyle Rice from USA Today reports.
And here at The Desert Sun, I wrote about two climate change cases that had their latest day in court on Wednesday in Pasadena, Calif. The recent failure of the Children’s Climate Lawsuit to compel the government to act now brings to the fore a separate slate of litigation targeting oil companies and arguing that they’re responsible for mitigation costs such as seawalls.
There was just too much news this week for a single newsletter, but here's at least some other important reporting ...
MUST-READ STORIES
When the wells run dry. California, once a top-three American oil producer, is watching its fossil fuel industry wither. More than 350,000 Californians now live within 600 feet of an unplugged oil well, meaning they could be exposed to carcinogenic fumes. Fossil fuel companies have only set aside hundreds of dollars to clean up each well, while the true price tag is tens of thousands of dollars each, or more. The Los Angeles Times and the Center for Public Integrity revealed these and other findings in a new investigation, which is one reason I'm sharing. Another? I wrote the thing (alongside data whiz Ryan Menezes).
Deadly work. Late last month, the mysterious death of Mexican environmental activist Homero Gómez, known for his work protecting monarch butterflies, caught international headlines. A second man, Raúl Hernández, doing very similar work in Mexico is now dead, under circumstances that also appear insidious, the BBC reports.
The missing millions. The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission regulates that state's industry. But that sentence gets a resounding asterisk after a recent report from the state auditor found 75% of oil and gas companies operating in Colorado were out of compliance with mandated monthly reporting. It's not just a paperwork issue, though, as the state likely missed out on millions of dollars in taxes and fines as a result. Moe Clark at The Colorado Sun has more.
POLITICAL CLIMATE
Trumping science. President Donald Trump delivered his State of the Union address on Tuesday, and, perhaps unsurprisingly, he didn’t mention climate change, Elizabeth Weise of USA Today reports. The closest he came to addressing the climate crisis was lauding a tree-planting initiative. Trump did, however, tout his administration’s efforts to prop up fossil fuels. Also this week in executive branch news, reporters at BuzzFeed obtained emails from the #SharpieGate incident in which Trump incorrectly warned that Hurricane Dorian was headed to Alabama before the administration doctored a map to cover up the mistake.
Differentiating the Dems. The Desert Sun's own Sam Metz is in the midst of grilling the Democratic presidential candidates on a wide range of issues. This week, he asked them: "Should California set its own emission standards?" The answer to this question could have huge implications for smog in cities as well as the future of cars sold in the U.S. If you're participating in the Democratic primary, the candidates' responses are important reading as you decide for whom to cast your vote.
A Roundup of health news
Mixed news for bees. The Trump administration has been unveiling a flurry of activity approving the use of controversial pesticides, herbicides and insecticides, including the key ingredient in Monsanto's Roundup and "neonics," which are linked to declining bee populations. Bloomberg reported this week that neonics finally ran into stiff opposition across the pond, where the European Union declined to approve their use on an "emergency" basis for the first time.
What you don't know will hurt you. The Trump administration continues to approve toxic chemicals, HuffPost reported, with sign-off expected for several in the PFAS group, which research shows are tied to cancer in many areas. And Undark published a frightening investigation that digs into how pollution impacts community health while a dearth of good data and research continues to sideline legal claims.
AND ANOTHER THING
Breaking the addiction. In a 179-20 vote, Harvard University’s faculty voted to demand the Ivy League institution divest its roughly $40 billion endowment from fossil fuel-related holdings. At one point more symbolic than effective, the divestment movement has gained significant traction on college campuses, with the University of California system announcing the largest such action in September. If Harvard, a symbol of American tertiary education, were to divest, it would be a monumental win for the movement. Here’s the student newspaper, The Harvard Crimson, with the news.
Scientists agree that to maintain a livable planet, we need to reduce the atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration back to 350 ppm. We’re above that and rising. Here are the latest numbers:
That’s all for now. Don’t forget to follow along on Twitter at @MarkOlalde. You can also reach me at molalde@gannett.com. You can sign up to get Climate Point in your inbox for free here. And, if you’d like to receive a daily round-up of California news (also for free!), you can sign up for USA Today’s new In California newsletter here. Cheers.