Statement: Senate rejects amendment that would speed approval of polluting projects
The legislation from Sen. Manchin would have weakened environmental protections under NEPA.
Media Statements
STATEMENT: Biden administration announces first-ever national building performance standard
Building performance standards will spur federal buildings to use fewer fossil fuels, become more energy-efficient
Statement: Bills introduced to protect Greater Chaco Canyon from further drilling
Ninety percent of the Greater Chaco Landscape has already been leased for oil and gas development.
Statement: Inflation Reduction Act could be a ‘game changer’ for climate and clean energy
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia have reached a deal on a reconciliation bill that would represent the nation’s largest ever investment in clean energy and climate solutions.
Statement: U.S. Postal Service more than doubles its electric vehicle commitment
The U.S. Postal Service announced on Wednesday that it would purchase at least 25,000 electric vehicles as part of its plan to replace an aging fleet, more than doubling its previous commitment. The announcement comes after the agency’s initial plan to “modernize” its fleet would have electrified only 10% of its vehicles, prompting calls for the agency to revisit its decision and a lawsuit filed by 16 states. The new commitments means at least 50% of the agency’s first 50,000 vehicle purchases will be electric.
Statement: New federal rule would help tackle country’s largest source of global warming pollution: transportation
WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden’s administration announced a notice of proposed rulemaking on Thursday to address the climate impact of the nation’s transportation system. The rule, proposed by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), will require state transportation departments and metropolitan planning organizations to report the carbon dioxide emissions of vehicles traveling on their respective sections of the federal highway system, and to set declining yearly emissions targets. The public will have 90 days to comment on the proposed rule.
Statement: Biden administration’s drilling proposal would put U.S. over a barrel
"By proposing as many as 11 new offshore drilling lease sales, President Biden is taking us down the same old path toward more spills and a warmer climate. This plan would lock in long-term risks that, with renewable energy on the rise, we increasingly don’t need."
Statement: Supreme Court hamstrings EPA’s ability to tackle climate change
WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court of the United States announced its decision on the West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) case Thursday, severely limiting the EPA’s authority to regulate climate pollution from power plants. Despite the fact that the Biden administration has yet to propose rules regulating greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, the Court issued a decision that severely limits the EPA’s authority to implement systemwide regulations of carbon from power plants, holding that unless expressly delegated, that authority belongs to Congress.
Statement: EU to phase out new fossil fuel cars by 2035
The European Union reached a deal on Wednesday to pass a new climate law that will require new car sales to be zero-emission by 2035.
Statement: Canada Bans Single-Use Plastics
The Canadian government has announced that it will ban the manufacture and import of most single-use plastic products in December 2022 and the sale of these products as of December 2023.