Hello! U.S. President Donald Trump faces his first legal challenges over his administration's environmental policies in a case filed by climate advocacy groups in Alaska's federal court. The lawsuit seeks to block Trump from revoking former President Joe Biden's ban on offshore drilling in certain coastal areas, while a new filing in a case from the first Trump administration seeks to reinstate prohibitions against drilling in 128 million acres of the Arctic and Atlantic oceans. The Northern Alaska Environmental Center and other groups allege Trump has no authority to undo Biden's permanent protections against drilling in parts of the Arctic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico, which Trump recently renamed the Gulf of America. "We defeated Trump the first time he tried to roll back protections and sacrifice more of our waters to the oil industry. We're bringing this abuse of the law to the courts again," Steve Mashuda of Earthjustice said in a statement. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Also on my radar today: |
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Environmental activists rally against offshore drilling during a demonstration in Lafayette Park in Washington, U.S. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts |
What is the current state of things? |
As it stands, Biden's administration banned new offshore oil and gas development along most U.S. coastlines ahead of Trump taking office. However, the move was considered mostly symbolic because it did not impact areas where drilling was already underway and mainly covered zones lacking important development prospects. Within hours of his inauguration, Trump sought to undo that move as part of a flurry of executive orders aimed at boosting the nation's already record-high oil and gas production and unwinding Biden's climate agenda. The groups say drilling in those areas would have "significant, wide-ranging adverse impacts" on endangered species, sensitive ecosystems and local tribes. |
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| Denise Cheung resignation probe |
In keeping with U.S. law and environmental policies, four Democratic senators have asked the Justice Department's (DOJ) Inspector General to investigate the resignation of a senior federal prosecutor in Washington who was being pressured to launch a criminal probe of a contract awarded under the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) during the Biden era. Democratic Senators Edward Markey, Sheldon Whitehouse, Chris Van Hollen and Bernie Sanders objected to the resignation of Denise Cheung, who left the U.S. Attorney's office under pressure from officials in Trump's administration. The senators cited media reports that said she was referencing a request to investigate money appropriated by Congress for multibillion-dollar green banking programs created by the EPA to help low-income and minority communities invest in clean energy and leverage private sector help. The senators said the officials "demonstrate a gross abuse of prosecutorial authority" in pressuring Cheung to start a criminal probe of the contract despite a lack of evidence. Her resignation follows other DOJ prosecutors protesting alleged political interference under Trump. |
Repealing more Biden-era rules |
Greta Thunberg at a demonstration on social justice with the message "People Not Profit" in central Stockholm, Sweden. TT News Agency/Anders Wiklund via REUTERS |
- Greta Thunberg: Sweden's Supreme Court ruled that Greta Thunberg and hundreds of other activists cannot proceed with a class action lawsuit that had sought to force the state to take stronger action against climate change. Their case argued that Sweden was violating the European Convention on Human Rights by not doing enough to limit or mitigate climate change.
- Indigenous rights: The Yindjibarndi Ngurra Aboriginal Corporation (YNAC) is seeking A$1.8 billion ($1.1 billion) from Western Australia in compensation after the state government allowed Fortescue to mine for iron ore without a land use deal, court filings showed. Its claim includes A$1 billion for cultural damage and A$678 million for economic loss, filings to the Federal Court of Australia showed.
- China renewables: China invested 6.8 trillion yuan ($940 billion) in clean energy in 2024, according to a new analysis by the UK-based research organisation Carbon Brief. China's electric vehicle (EV) industry contributed the largest share of GDP, with 3 trillion yuan of GDP from EV and hybrid production and 1.4 trillion yuan from factory investment. Solar was the next-largest contributor to GDP at 2.8 trillion yuan, with 1 trillion of that tied to investment in power generation projects.
- HSBC net-zero: HSBC is ditching its target of reaching net-zero carbon emissions across its business by 2030, it said. Europe's biggest bank said it expects to record a 40% drop in emissions across its operations, business travel and supply chain by 2030 and aims to hit the more ambitious net-zero target by the middle of the century.
- J&J lawsuit: Johnson & Johnson is seeking approval over its $10 billion proposal to end litigation alleging that its baby powder caused ovarian cancer as it attempts to use a subsidiary's bankruptcy to resolve the talc lawsuits from more than 62,000 plaintiffs. During a marathon court hearing lasting two weeks, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez in Houston will decide the fate of J&J's latest Chapter 11 filing weighing competing demands to approve the settlement or end the bankruptcy altogether.
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Gerbrand Haverkamp, executive director at global non-profit World Benchmarking Alliance, shares his thoughts on business' role in ESG leadership: "While the decision by the Trump administration to pull the U.S. from the Paris Agreement marks a major setback in international collaboration to limit planetary warming to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels, it also highlights an opportunity for the private sector to fill the gap in leadership. "Businesses can play a key role in ensuring critically important ongoing progress towards meeting the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals and addressing the climate crisis. "With collective annual revenues of $48 trillion, equivalent to 46% of global GDP and hundreds of millions more in their supply chains, the financial private sector holds unparalleled power to drive systemic change for sustainability. "We need companies willing to take the lead and break away from the pack. Our collective future depends on the transformation of big business. "Companies that take bold action on their transition plans now will not only mitigate the risks of worsening climate change to their long-term profitability but also unlock significant economic opportunities for both people and planet. "The most successful businesses of tomorrow will not simply comply with regulations — they will lead on sustainability." |
Wendell Stemley, president of the National Association of Minority Contractors at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. REUTERS/Alyssa Pointer |
Today's spotlight shines a light on the struggle faced by some minority-owned firms in the U.S. amid Trump rollbacks of federal diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives (DEI). "DEI isn't for us," said Casey Cooper, a Black woman who owns a long-haul trucking firm. "It looks good on paper, but that money doesn't go to us anyway." The current administration is threatening to erode the modest progress made under President Biden's era in increasing representation of Black-owned companies doing business with the federal government, according to 10 experts in DEI, government contracts and public policy and advocacy group leaders interviewed by Reuters. |
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Sustainable Switch was edited by Susan Fenton. |
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