Climate Point: We're running out of time

Welcome to Climate Point, your weekly guide to climate change, energy and the environment. You know what's bad? Plastic. Yes, I use it, you use it, our modern lives are basically plastic-based. But it's still bad. If you're not convinced, read this excellent deep dive into New Jersey's "war on plastic" by Scott Fallon at the Bergen Record.

Here are some other things you might want to know:

MUST-READ STORIES:

We're really, truly running out of time: You may have heard about the new report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, or IPCC. If you didn't, it's even worse than the plastic thing: The IPCC, which actually has a history of being too cautious in its assessments of climate change, says we need "rapid, far-reaching and unprecedented changes in all aspects of society" in the next decade to avoid truly catastrophic harm, as Paste BN's Doyle Rice reports. Part of the reason the situation is so dire is that 1.5 degrees of warming, while still below the international target of 2 degrees, would also be extremely bad, as Brad Plumer and Nadja Popovich explain for the New York Times.

Trump administration whistleblower talks climate: President Trump has not made climate change a priority, undoing emissions rules and making the U.S the only country to reject the Paris climate agreement. That failure to address an enormous global threat has frustrated climate scientists within the federal government, including Joel Clement, a former Interior Department official who focused on challenges faced by Alaska Native communities. Clement filed a whistleblower complaint after he was reassigned within the department and recently shared his story with Carley Lanich at the Indianapolis Star.

ALL ABOUT CLEAN ENERGY:

California makes it more expensive to ditch your utility: For all of California's sweeping policies to support clean energy and fight climate change, the state's various interest groups still find plenty to fight over. One of those fights was on full display this week, when the California Public Utilities Commission voted to make it more expensive to leave your electric utility and join a locally-run energy program, as I reported for the Desert Sun. Critics say the move will make it harder for local energy programs to invest in clean energy and save their customers money, as I explained before the vote here.

Gas-guzzling SUVs, built with wind power: Really curious what you all make of this ... General Motors says its pickup trucks and SUVs will soon be built at plants powered by wind turbines, as Jamie L. LaReau reports for the Detroit Free Press. The irony, of course, is that while wind power helps reduce planet-warming emissions, gas-guzzling cars — especially big ones, like pickup trucks and SUVs — are one of the main causes of global warming. So should GM be commended for investing in clean energy, or is this a public relations stunt that distracts from the climate pollution created by GM's cars?

POLITICAL CLIMATE:

Arizona political candidates are ignoring climate change: Politicians are too rarely held accountable for their failure to act on climate change. So I was impressed by this piece from Ian James, Alex Devoid and Joshua Bowling at the Arizona Republic, making the simple but powerful observation that political candidates in Arizona have largely avoided talking about climate, even though the state is feeling the heat. The Republic's Ian James also asked candidates where they stand on climate change and water issues.

Let's talk about Trump and Iowa corn production: President Trump delivered a big win for Iowa corn producers, lifting a limit on how much corn-based ethanol can be blended into the country's gasoline supply over the summer, as Donnelle Eller reports for the Des Moines Register. (Trump also falsely claimed that Iowa Democrats are opposed to ethanol, per Eller.) The president's move is good for Iowa farmers, but it may be bad for the environment. As Emma Sarappo writes for Pacific Standard, gasoline with higher amounts of ethanol is less efficient and contributes to summer smog formation. Also, the corn tends to be produced in a way that increases planet-warming emissions.

AND ANOTHER THING:

Don't let it be said that President Trump ignored the new report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Do let it be said, however, that he doesn't know much about the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Here's how Trump responded when asked about the report, per Lisa Friedman at the New York Times: 

"It was given to me. And I want to look at who drew it. You know, which group drew it. I can give you reports that are fabulous and I can give you reports that aren't so good. But I will be looking at it, absolutely."

I'd love to see a report that says climate change is fabulous.

That's all for this week. For more climate, energy and environment news, follow me on Twitter @Sammy_Roth. You can sign up to get Climate Point in your inbox here.