As climate change, wildfires and other extreme weather events intensify, the demand for native seeds is surging in order to help preserve plant biodiversity.

Access to more power producers over a wider range of the West could lower rates, but Wyoming regulators will monitor the market to see if it penalizes the state’s coal, oil and gas over the next five years.

By Jake Bolster

Wyoming’s largest utility today began participating in a new “Extended Day Ahead Market” for electricity on the Western grid, a potentially landmark shift in the way energy is sold in the state that could lower rates as energy costs soar. 

Vancouver has an electric fire truck. I’ve even seen it. That still sounds like a line from a pilot project brochure, but the truck is real, it is in service, and it is part of the city’s municipal fleet. I had also been looking at electric garbage trucks recently, another ... [continued]

The post Electric Fire Trucks Are Spreading, But They Lag Buses, Garbage Trucks, & Drayage Fleets appeared first on CleanTechnica.

The US flow battery innovator ESS will manufacture a new sodium-ion battery developed by the startup Alsym Energy.

The post A New Sodium-Ion Battery Twist In The Tale Of ESS appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Volkswagen presented the production version of the ID, Polo this week, which seeks to assume the mantle of "people's car" for a new century.

The post Volkswagen ID. Polo — The Return Of The People’s Car appeared first on CleanTechnica.

The US startup Rivian has secured a $4.5 billion loan from the US Department of Energy, in support of its plans for producing EVs at scale in Georgia in 2028.

The post Rivian Emerges Victorious As Trump’s War On EVs Flops appeared first on CleanTechnica.

NIO’s sales figures last month were a bit mixed. Yes, as shown in the headline above, the good news is that sales were up 23% year over year (YoY). However, they were actually down month over month. With 29,356 vehicle deliveries in April, the company saw a 22.8% rise over ... [continued]

The post NIO Sales Rise 23% YoY appeared first on CleanTechnica.

XPENG’s sales results in April were mixed. There are some strong figures and some weak ones. There’s also a new figure I’ve never seen before. First off, total sales in April were 31,011 vehicles. That was a 13.1% increase month over month, but it was also an 11.5% decline year ... [continued]

The post XPENG Sales Speed Jumps 44.7% Following VLA 2.0 Release appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Sometimes these electric vehicle developments don’t seem real, but they are. The speed at which transportation is electrifying is almost stunning sometimes. In the Flanders region of Belgium, the transport agency De Lijn commissioned its 1,000th electric bus. Yes, that’s electric bus number 1,000 — with many more to go. ... [continued]

The post 1,000th Electric Bus Set For Part Of Belgium appeared first on CleanTechnica.

The Dutch city has outlawed advertising that promotes lifestyles linked to high carbon emissions, which is a driver of climate change. It’s a first for a world capital.

Bill McGlashan served time for trying to buy his son’s way into college during the Varsity Blues scandal. He hopes his new venture will restore his name — and save the planet.

Participants broke a long-standing taboo by openly linking oil and gas not just to emissions, but to war, displacement and economic instability.

By Bob Berwyn

While some major fossil fuel producers keep pushing for expanded oil and gas use, which is linked to warfare, economic shocks and ecological damage, more than 50 countries at the first Conference on Transitioning Away From Fossil Fuels began developing plans to shift toward renewable energy systems designed for stability and abundance rather than scarcity and conflict.

As climate change, wildfires and other extreme weather events intensify, the demand for native seeds is surging in order to help preserve plant biodiversity.

In this week’s newsletter: the European pollen season is now up to two weeks longer than it was in the 90s – just one more way global heating is causing millions to suffer

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Here’s a confession that may alarm faithful readers of this newsletter: I am an environment reporter who does not love nature.

Before I get cancelled, yes, I do care about the fate of the natural world – scientists are clear that wrecking it hurts us – but the weird wonders of wildlife have always occupied a smaller place in my heart than those of most people I interview. One reason for that, I realised last week, is that hay fever has seriously dampened the pleasure I get from ambling through forests or squelching through wetlands.

BP profits more than double as oil and gas prices soar in Iran war

Inside Chornobyl: 40 years after disaster, nuclear site still at risk in Russia’s war

Nordic heatwave part of record year that saw temperatures scorch most of Europe, report finds

Continue reading...

Observers say pressure on IMO negotiations appears to be linked to countries that have invested heavily in gas

About a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) passed through the strait of Hormuz, a strip of sea less than 30 miles wide at its narrowest point, before it was in effect closed by the US-Israeli attack on Iran, which sent the price of oil soaring and left an estimated 20,000 seafarers on 2,000 vessels stranded.

Their plight has shone a spotlight on the complex and dirty relationship between shipping and the fossil fuel industry. The sector is one of the most polluting, with most ship engines fuelled by what has been called the dregs of the oil refining process, heavy and carbon-intensive diesel too filthy for any other purpose. Shipping produces about 3% of global greenhouse gases, a portion set to rise as trade globalises further.

Continue reading...

BEVs reach 22% market share! Thanks to a number of factors (new, cheaper and/or better models, record high gas prices, mass arrival of Chinese models, etc.), EVs have risen to record highs in Europe, with over half a million plugin vehicles being registered in Europe in March, 349,000 of them ... [continued]

The post Record Month for EV Sales in Europe! appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Between the week ending March 20 and the week ending April 24, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) released a total of 17.5 million barrels of crude oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), according to data in our Weekly Petroleum Status Report. DOE released 7.1 million barrels in the ... [continued]

The post US DOE Has Released 17.5 Million Barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve since March appeared first on CleanTechnica.

America’s family farmers are facing mounting challenges. Input costs like fertilizer and diesel are going up while international markets recede and commodity prices crater. Despite these challenges, American farmers are resilient and resourceful. They make decisions every day that balance risk, reward, and long-term stewardship. They adapt to volatile commodity ... [continued]

The post Farmers Are Choosing Solar to Maintain their Farms. Localities Shouldn’t Take Away That Choice. appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Modeling Advancements Could Help Developers Build More Robust, Seaworthy Devices Wave energy technologies can provide reliable, local power for autonomous underwater vehicles, and at-sea applications across U.S. coastal regions, especially where traditional energy supply is limited or costly. Although some wave energy devices have demonstrated promising performance, most are still ... [continued]

The post Riding the Ocean’s Data appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Sacramento, CA — In a written decision today, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) denied a SoCalGas application that would have charged customers $266 million to fund the controversial Angeles Link Project pipeline. This decision means that SoCalGas will either drop the project entirely or require shareholders to pay to develop the risky ... [continued]

The post CPUC Protects Ratepayers, Rejects SoCalGas’ Attempt to Charge Customers for Hydrogen Pipeline appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Washington, DC — Today, the nation’s largest and most influential environmental advocacy organization weighed in on the Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision in Louisiana v. Callais that will further erode the landmark Voting Rights Act and dilute the voting power of minorities. In response, Sierra Club Executive Director Loren Blackford released the following ... [continued]

The post Sierra Club Statement on Supreme Court Ruling to Gut the Voting Rights Act appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Washington, DC — Yesterday, U.S. Steel announced it will invest nearly $2 billion to build a direct reduced iron (DRI) facility at Big River Steel Works in Osceola, Arkansas. The DRI will provide a cleaner input to feed into the company’s electric arc furnaces that produce steel. Nippon Steel, the parent company of ... [continued]

The post Sierra Club: Nippon Investment in DRI in the South a Good First Step, Must Not Overlook Greening Midwest Steel appeared first on CleanTechnica.

In fiscal year 2026, Tahara Plant became the first Toyota plant to attain carbon neutrality. At the genba, a “One Tahara” spirit could be seen throughout, from large-scale equipment initiatives to small, on-the-ground improvements. Tahara Plant is located in Tahara City, Aichi. About 9,000 people work at the plant, which ... [continued]

The post The First Toyota Plant to Go Carbon Neutral: “One Tahara” appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Workers wrote ‘Katrina declaration’, warning that funding cuts made US dangerously unprepared for natural disasters

Fourteen employees with the US Federal Emergency Management Agency returned to work this week, after spending eight months on administrative leave for signing a public letter criticising the Trump administration.

The so-called “Katrina declaration”, sent last August to members of Congress and a federal council formed to help determine Fema’s future, was written as a rebuke from the workers about the dangerous erosion in US capacity to prepare for and respond to natural disasters.

Continue reading...

The Trump administration says the cities shouldn’t be penalized for unhealthy air because pollution can blow in from abroad. Some experts say that’s preposterous.

Members of Congress in Wyoming and Texas tout the bills as protecting energy security, but opponents say they amount to a corporate handout that will cost taxpayers billions and harm human and environmental health.

By Jake Bolster

Members of Congress from Texas and Wyoming introduced bills recently that would grant fossil fuel companies sweeping legal immunity and shield energy producers from stricter compliance with the Clean Air Act. 

Dozens of countries met this week to discuss how to end the world’s dependence on fossil fuels, a goal that the Trump administration doesn’t share.

The fossil fuel transition moved forward this week at a conference in Colombia that brought nations in search of solutions together.

The post In Colombia, 57 Nations Chart A Path To A Future Without Fossil Fuels appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Stabilizing rising global surface temperatures is essential for the long-term health of the planet. Climate change is an existential crisis that affects everyday life, how businesses operate, and the ways that countries acquire materials and regulate systems. Yet we are immersed in a moment in time in which too many ... [continued]

The post We Need To Speak Out Against Policies That Are Exacerbating Climate Change appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Amid high gas prices and tight state budgets, laggards risk leaving money on the table that could help drivers go electric WASHINGTON — States more than doubled their progress on implementing federal funding for the nation’s EV highway charging network in 2025, according to a new Sierra Club report out today. However, more ... [continued]

The post Faster but Not Fast Enough: States’ Rollout of Federal EV Charging Funds Has a Long Way to Go, Per Sierra Club Analysis appeared first on CleanTechnica.

“You are the light in a tunnel of darkness,” climate scientist Johan Rockstrom told delegates at the First Conference On Transitioning Away From Fossil Fuels this week in Santa Marta, Colombia. After years of UN climate summits rarely even mentioning the words “fossil fuels,” 57 countries representing one-third of the world’s economy came to Santa Marta to discuss not whether, but how, to leave behind the primary driver of climate change. This potentially historic development drew strong media interest: 146 journalists from 61 news outlets and 28 countries attended in person, countless more followed the livestream, and abundant news coverage appeared around the world, according to the governments of Colombia and The Netherlands, the conference’s co-sponsors.

The gathering got an unexpected boost when the head of the International Energy Agency said in an interview with The Guardian that the war in Iran has broken fossil fuel markets beyond repair. The interruptions to oil and gas supplies and the resulting price spikes, said Turkish economist Fatih Birol, will forever turn countries away from fossil fuels and toward more secure renewable energy sources. “The damage is done,” added Birol, whose agency The New York Times has described as “enormously influential” on the long-term plans of energy companies and investors around the world.

Irene Vélez Torres, the environment minister of Colombia, welcomed Birol’s comments. “It seems that many of us are seeing at the same time that fossil fuels cannot provide energy security, because fossil fuels are subject to scarcity, and scarcity can be manipulated,” she said in an interview with Covering Climate Now.

The conference is separate from the UN process, so the goal was not to negotiate a legal agreement but to learn from everyone — including businesses, Indigenous peoples, and other parts of civil society — about the best ways to disentangle economies and societies from fossil fuels. Each country’s roadmap will be voluntary and specific to its own circumstances. “This conference is not about documents,” said Rachel Kyte, the UK special representative for climate. “It’s about finding fellow travelers and learning from them—what’s working, what isn’t?” 

For example, France released what it called “the first national roadmap” by a developed country to phase out fossil fuels. The plan foresees removing coal from the national electricity grid by 2027, ending oil consumption by 2045 and gas by 2050. The Chinese electric car giant BYD and the Australian mining company Fortescue hosted a private sector roundtable aboard what Fortescue said was the world’s first cargo ship powered completely without fossil fuels. The company urged businesses and governments to pursue “real zero” emissions, rather than the “net zero” goal that employs carbon offsets and allows continued emissions. Asked about the 80–89% of people around the world who want stronger climate action, Ana Toni, the Brazilian diplomat who served as executive director of COP30 UN climate summit, urged citizens to act “at the national level. There are elections coming up, and what consumer choices people make also matter.”

The Santa Marta conference’s conclusions are aimed at accelerating progress at COP31 this coming November, but its larger impact may come from the economic heft of the conference’s “coalition of the willing.“ Joined in Santa Marta by California, the world’s fifth biggest economy, these countries account for 30% of global fossil fuel consumption. Withdrawing that buying power from oil, gas, and coal over the coming years could accelerate the retreat from fossil fuels foreseen by Birol.

Santa Marta may be a game-changing moment in the climate story, and journalists have an abundance of story lines to explore in the months ahead. Will the stirring rhetoric that governments expressed in Santa Marta be matched by policies they implement back home? Will more countries and subnational governments join their ranks? How will the big emitters that did not attend—the US, China, and other fossil fuel producing states and companies — react? A follow-up conference will take place in February 2027, hosted by the Pacific island nation of Tuvalu and co-sponsored by Ireland. “This is not the end,” Velez declared in the conference’s closing moments. “It is the beginning of a new global climate democracy.”

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From Us

Free training! CCNow is accepting applications for the spring cohort of The Climate Newsroom, our three-session free training program for journalists in the US. Training begins the week of May 12. Learn more and apply by May 8.

CAAD-CCNow survey. Climate Action Against Disinformation (CAAD) and CCNow are developing a new, improved, and global “Journalist Field Guide to Covering Climate Disinformation,” building on CAAD’s existing resource. Read the current version and share your feedback by May 1, to help shape the new version.

Radar Clima: Cómo cubrir el Acuerdo de comercio entre la Unión Europea y Mercosur. La última edición de Radar Clima, nuestro boletín en español para periodistas de todas las áreas, te trae datos clave, recursos, contactos de voces expertas y ángulos de cobertura para reportear los ángulos climáticos de uno de los mayores acuerdos de libre comercio del mundo. Échale un vistazo a las ediciones anteriores y suscríbete para recibir el boletín los miércoles.

WATCH: Compelling Climate Visuals & Where to Find Them. Selecting the right visuals is crucial to accurately telling the climate story and engaging audiences. CCNow and Climate Visuals hosted a special webinar about how to visualize climate change with videos and stills. Watch now.

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Noteworthy Stories

Age of electricity. Analysts say that the world is entering the “age of electricity” as consumers shift from fossil fuels to electricity for more and more everyday energy uses, such as driving cars, heating houses, and even some industrial operations, according to two new reports. By Zoya Teirstein for Grist… 

• Learn how the US’s aging national grid is woefully inadequate for an electrified future. By Robinson Meyer for The New York Times…

Deforestation is down. In 2025, global tree loss fell by 14% from the year before, according to a new report from World Resources Institute. The decline was mostly due to better protections for rainforests, particularly in Brazil. But increasing wildfires offset those gains. By Sachi Kitajima Mulkey and Harry Stevens for The New York Times…

Climateflation. Making the connection between climate change impacts, like heatwaves, droughts, and floods, and cost of living expenses is complicated, but economists and central bankers are developing models to connect climate to grocery bills, housing costs, electricity bills, and more. By Emma Court for Bloomberg Green…

Russian workaround. California has the highest gas prices in the nation, averaging almost $6 a gallon. As gasoline reserves fell and prices spiked due to the Iran War, the state increased imports of Russian oil refined in a third country to stabilize supply, by relying on a “refining loophole.” By Aaron Cantú for Capital & Main…

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On the Beat

Creator journalists. Liz Kelly Nelson, former legacy newsroom leader and founder of Project C, recently shared her thoughts on why younger audiences are turning to independent journalists and what it means for the greater news ecosystem in this Neiman Reports interview.

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Quote of the Week

“Renewables offer something fossil fuels never did: stability and sovereignty. There are no embargoes, price shocks or tariffs. … Message for developed countries: Lead by example. Move first, fast, and furthest.”

– Selwin Hart, UN special adviser, speaking at the 1st Conference onTransitioning Away from Fossil Fuels 

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Resources & Events

Clean energy momentum. The Union of Concerned Scientists’ John Rogers, associate director of energy analytics, provides a comprehensive rundown of the latest reports and broken records from the renewable energy revolution. 

RSVP: News Reimagined: The Creator Journalism Summit. During a one-day event at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., on Monday, May 4, journalists, creators, and newsroom leaders will come together to discuss how to grow audiences and build trust. Learn more and RSVP.

Training: Featuring the Farm. Join Southlands Magazine founding editor and freelance writer Boyce Upholt on May 8 at 1pm US Eastern Time (5pm UTC) for a workshop about how to find, develop, and pitch feature stories on the food and ag beat. Learn more and RSVP.

Young people and the news. Join researchers from the Reuters Institute for a webinar on May 12 at 3pm SGT (7am UTC) to explore how 18- to 24-year-olds are engaging with news now, how their habits have evolved, and how journalists might better reach them. Learn more and RSVP.

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Jobs, Etc.

Jobs. Lighthouse Reports is hiring a climate and environment editor (remote). Politico is looking for a deputy editor, energy & environment (Arlington, Va.). World Wildlife Fund seeks an Associate Specialist, Climate Communications (Washington, D.C.). Public First is looking for a Director of Media: Energy & Climate (London). The Raleigh News & Observer is looking for an Environmental Reporter (Raleigh, N.C.). McClatchy Media is hiring a California Meteorologist (Sacramento, Calf.). Climate Central is hiring a Vice President for Business Development (primarily remote).

Fellowships. Climate Tracker Asia is opening applications for the NextGen Climate Bootcamp 2026: Voices of Philippine Youth; apply by May 22. The Pulitzer Center is accepting applications for its Rainforest Investigations Network Fellowships; apply by May 22. The Chips Quinn Reporter Fellowship is accepting applications; apply between April 13 and May 13. Quanta Magazine is accepting applications from early-career science journalists for its summer/fall 2026 writing fellowship.

Freelance. ProPublica is accepting story pitches.

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Support Covering Climate Now

The post Santa Marta May Be a Game-Changing Moment appeared first on Covering Climate Now.

Lee Zeldin claims before Senate that Trump administration plan will make Environmental Protection Agency ‘more efficient’

Senate Democrats accused the Trump administration of abandoning the Environmental Protection Agency’s mission to protect human health and the environment at a congressional hearing Wednesday, slamming agency leadership over a proposal to cut its budget in half.

Lee Zeldin’s appearance before the Senate environment committee was the EPA administrator’s last of three budget hearings this week where he argued for sharply reduced funding for the agency, which already has seen its staffing reduced to its lowest level in decades under his leadership. During much of the week, the former Republican congressman from New York took an aggressive approach, responding to Democrats in the House and Senate with his own questions and at times accusing them of being unprepared or failing to care about the EPA’s record.

Continue reading...

Australia’s famous Twelve Apostles didn’t just erode into existence—they were slowly pushed up from the ocean floor by powerful tectonic forces over millions of years, new research reveals. Scientists discovered that these towering limestone stacks act like a natural time capsule, preserving clues about ancient climates, sea levels, and even life from up to 14 million years ago.

The electrification of fleet vehicles, including large public transit buses, isn’t a “sexy” or glamourous subject matter for most readers. It does, however, indicate how much progress there has been and continues to be for the switch from gas and diesel vehicles to all electrics. Over 100 new electric buses ... [continued]

The post 103 New Electric Buses Coming To Swedish Cities appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Trump froze funding for the Biden-era initiative, but, after court battles, some states continue to use the money.

By Dan Gearino

Recalling the optimism that surrounded the launch of the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program is bewildering, even though it happened just five years ago.

Deep beneath the Southern Ocean, a quiet but alarming shift is underway: warm water is creeping closer to Antarctica, and scientists are now seeing it clearly for the first time. By combining decades of ship data with robotic float measurements and machine learning, researchers uncovered that a massive pool of heat—circumpolar deep water—has expanded and edged toward the continent over the past 20 years.

At first glance, it seems the clean energy front isn’t going as well as we’d like. The Trump administration has used every tool in its power — and then some — to extinguish clean energy innovation and installations. Yet hope springs eternal, to the point that, in March, the US ... [continued]

The post The Clean Energy Front Is Expanding Nicely, Thank You — Renewables Beat Natural Gas In USA appeared first on CleanTechnica.