This Week on Earth
Week in Review: Environmental News for Dec. 31-Jan. 5
January 5, 2019
New U.S. representatives move in and promise action on climate, and to be guided by science.
The House will take up climate legislation, including a measure based on a bill the body approved last time Democrats were in the majority, Nancy Pelosi says. https://t.co/HwZsmUs7tw
— Bloomberg Environment (@environment) January 5, 2019
Congress just got a bumper-crop of scientists. Meet the 10 new science whizzes on Capitol Hill, via @businessinsider https://t.co/c9ZEi9Vtel #sciencematters #climatefriday
— Earth Day Network (@EarthDayNetwork) January 4, 2019
Other leaders have more questionable motives.
As of Thursday, DOD will be run by a former senior Boeing executive. EPA is run by a former coal lobbyist. HHS is run by a former pharmaceutical lobbyist. And Interior will be run by a former oil-industry lobbyist. Welcome to 2019.
— Eric Lipton (@EricLiptonNYT) January 3, 2019
The U.S. government shutdown is a threat to our public lands, environment, and public safety.
Environmental contamination doesn’t stop as EPA staff furloughed during government shutdown https://t.co/FbqLruOOz6 pic.twitter.com/ZSCuU3z8nX
— Climate Progress (@climateprogress) January 3, 2019
National parks are America’s public lands, but right now they’re America’s trashcans https://t.co/7kPWxbn2sZ
— National Geographic (@NatGeo) January 5, 2019
National parks are covered in poop but @Interior still found money to keep plans to drill Alaska for oil humming along https://t.co/OAh4fGocO0
— Brian L Kahn (@blkahn) January 4, 2019
Hundreds of federal scientists will miss the @ametsoc conference which starts Sunday. This is a huge loss to weather science. We all benefit from better weather forecasting and science, so when they lose, we all lose. https://t.co/XTAs8jXsng #ScienceShutdown
— Dr. Anne Jefferson 🌧🏡 (@highlyanne) January 3, 2019
Freedom of the press is being threatened again, this time by the Interior Department.
FOIA is a critical tool for journalists seeking to shed light on government activities. The Interior Department said it wants the right to ignore some requests altogether https://t.co/6dKQmTi2uX
— Freedom of the Press (@FreedomofPress) January 4, 2019
There’s more bad news for endangered orcas.
An ‘extinction event’ is unfolding in Washington state as two more endangered orcas fall ill https://t.co/U48LjgveaY pic.twitter.com/L9lYSo66oO
— Earther (@EARTH3R) January 4, 2019
Finally, straight talk about climate on TV.
.@chucktodd during a special climate edition of @MeetThePress today: “We’re not going to debate climate change, the existence of it … We’re not going to give time to climate deniers. The science is settled, even if political opinion is not” https://t.co/MGRrPIJ6rE
— Alayna Treene (@alaynatreene) December 30, 2018
There are signs of hope for 2019.
‘Momentum is growing’: reasons to be hopeful about the environment in 2019 https://t.co/3DSXi3vHNw
— Guardian Environment (@guardianeco) January 2, 2019
The world has taken an important step to drastically reduce the production and consumption of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and limit global warming, with the #KigaliAmendment coming into force on January 1, 2019. pic.twitter.com/y7l7mmjXSz
— UN Environment in North America (@UNEnvironmentNA) January 3, 2019
Hope for a green new year – op-ed in the @nytimes https://t.co/CaK9HKKkak
— Earth Day Network (@EarthDayNetwork) January 2, 2019
