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IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Extreme heat and storms grip Asia; New study reveals the 56 major brands responsible for half of global plastic pollution; Negotiations for international plastic pollution treaty end with no limit on production; PLUS: Congressional probe finds Big Oil still trying to deceive the public about the impacts of climate change... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

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IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): A bit closer to holding Big Oil accountable; Asia's relentless heat wave is a warning; Increasingly frequent ocean heat waves trigger mass die-offs of sea life; Biden to expand 2 national monuments; Congress needs to stop trying to revive Yucca Mountain; Florida says no to federal funding aimed at greenhouse gas emissions; Minnesota's biggest solar project will help replace a huge coal plant; California's reneable energy roll rolls on... PLUS: Video: Inside the Icelandic plant turning CO2 into rocks ... and much, MUCH more! ...

STORIES DISCUSSED ON TODAY'S 'GREEN NEWS REPORT'...

• Extreme weather and storms grip Asia:
• Summer heat hits Asia early, killing dozens as one expert calls it the "most extreme event" in climate history (CBS News)
• Heat wave in Southeast Asia closes schools, triggers health alerts (Reuters)
• Searing heat shuts schools for 33 million children (BBC)
• Bangladesh reopens schools even as heatwave alert extended by three days (Al Jazeera):
  
  Average maximum temperatures in Dhaka over the past week have been 4-5 degrees Celsius higher than the 30-year average.
• Parts of India record hottest April as heatwave kills nine (Reuters/MSN)
• Extreme heat shuts schools for millions, widening learning gaps worldwide (Reuters)
• China: Extreme storms kill dozens, destroy infrastructure:
• Death toll in southern China highway collapse rises to 48 (Al Jazeera)
• Massive floods threaten tens of millions as intense rains batter southern China (CNN)
• Extreme weather in Guangzhou kills five and brings destruction to China’s industrial heartland (Guardian)
• Freak winds kill three people by pulling them from apartments in China (CNN)
• Modest progress in international plastic pollution treaty negotiations:
• VIDEO: Plastic pollution talks make modest progress but sidestep production curbs (Reuters):
  
  That work will include searching for forms of funding to help developing countries implement the treaty. Countries also agreed to devise a process to identify plastic chemicals that are hazardous and plastic products that are wasteful, such as single-use plastic containers. But they failed to establish a formal process to review how much virgin plastic is produced or to determine how much might be considered unsustainable.
• 5 takeaways from the global negotiations on a treaty to end plastic pollution (AP)
• New study reveals the world's biggest known plastic polluters:
• Global producer responsibility for plastic pollution (Science Advances)
• A global study just revealed the world’s biggest known plastic polluters (Washington Post):
  
  The researchers, who used a team of over 100,000 volunteers to catalogue over 1.8 million pieces of plastic waste, found that 56 companies were responsible for more than 50 percent of branded plastic waste globally.The largest contributor was Coca-Cola, which accounted for 11 percent of the branded plastic pollution worldwide.
• 5 companies create a quarter of plastic pollution: Study (The Hill/MSN):
  
  The study also found that for every 1 percent increase in plastic usage, its contribution to plastic pollution increases 1 corresponding percent.
• Hardly any plastics can be truly recycled, and producers have known for decades: Report (The Hill)
• Plastics industry heats world 4 times as much as air travel, report finds (The Hill)
• Congressional probe reveals Big Oil still trying to deceive the public about fossil fuels' climate impacts:
• Big oil spent decades sowing doubt about fossil fuel dangers, experts testify (Guardian):
  
  "Big oil had to evolve from denial to duplicity," said Sheldon Whitehouse, the Rhode Island Democrat, who chairs the Senate committee. The revelations, based on hundreds of newly subpoenaed documents, illustrate how oil companies worked to greenwash their image while fighting climate policy behind the scenes.
• Big oil privately acknowledged efforts to downplay climate crisis, joint committee investigation finds (Guardian):
  
  Big oil has privately acknowledged its efforts to downplay the dangers of burning fossil fuels, US Democrats have found.
• Congress puts "carbon kings" back in the crosshairs (Exxon Knews):
  
  In a Senate Budget Committee hearing chaired by Sheldon Whitehouse, witnesses drew parallels between Big Oil and Big Tobacco, lawmakers demanded accountability for the fossil fuel industry, and a former U.S. Department of Justice attorney suggested the agency could bring legal action against Big Oil.
• Charge Big Oil with conspiracy, former tobacco prosecutor says (Heated):
  
  A former U.S. Department of Justice attorney who prosecuted and won the massive racketeering case against Big Tobacco said she believes the DOJ now has enough evidence to pursue a conspiracy case against Big Oil.
• VIDEO: Ranking Member Raskin's Testimony: Senate Budget Committee Hearing on Fossil Fuels (House Oversight Committee/YouTube)
• VIDEO: Denial, Disinformation, and Doublespeak: Big Oil's efforts to avoid accountability for climate change (Senate Budget Committee/YouTube)
• Full hearing: Big Oil's efforts to avoid accountability for climate change (HillHeat/Senate Budget Committee)
• Report: Denial, Disinformation, and Doublespeak: Big Oil's efforts to avoid accountability for climate change [pdf] (Senate Budget Committee)

'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (Stuff we didn't have time for in today's audio report)...

For a comprehensive roundup of daily environmental news you can trust, see the Society of Environmental Journalists' Daily Headlines page

• A Bit Closer to Holding Big Oil Accountable (Bill McKibben, The Crucial Years)
• Asia's relentless heat wave is a warning (Axios)
• Increasingly Frequent Ocean Heat Waves Trigger Mass Die-Offs of Sealife (Inside Climate News)
• VIDEO: Inside the Icelandic plant turning CO2 into rocks (BBC)
• Biden to expand the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument, add forest rangers, funding (LA Daily News/MSN)
• To find a place to store spent nuclear fuel, Congress needs to stop trying to revive Yucca Mountain (Bulletin of Atomic Scientists)
• More money is going to African climate startups, but a huge funding gap remains (AP)
• Minnesota’s Biggest Solar Project Will Help Replace A Huge Coal Plant (Canary Media)
• Florida Says No to Federal Funding Aimed at Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Inside Climate News)
• EPA Proposes Ban on Pesticide Widely Used on Fruits and Vegetables (Pro Publica)
• EQT Says Fracked Gas Is a Climate Solution; Scientists Call Greenwashing (Public Source PA)
• Energy Department finalizes rule to phase out fossil fuels in federal buildings (Utility Dive)
• Giant toxic hammerhead flatworms invade Quebec, U.S. states (CBS News)
• VIDEO: California’s Renewable Roll Rolls On (This Is Not Cool blog)
• Used EVs Rapidly Becoming Affordable (This Is Not Cool blog)
• How To Spot 5 Of The Fossil Fuel Industry's Biggest Disinformation Tactics (Guardian)
• The Oceans We Knew Are Already Gone (The Atlantic)
• 'In A Word, Horrific': Trump's Extreme Anti-Environment Blueprint (Guardian)
• Plug-in hybrids vs. electric cars: We did the math on which is better for you (Washington Post)
• How to electrify your life when you rent (The Verge)
• Complete Series: Farmers Under Attack for Supporting Clean Energy (This Is Not Cool blog)
• These are the places most at risk from record-breaking heat waves as the planet warms (CNN)
• Feeling Overwhelmed About Going All-Electric at Home? Here's How to Get Started (Inside Climate News)
• Feeling Hopeless About the Climate? Try Our 30-Day Action Plan (The Revelator)
• Climate Change Will Force a New American Migration (Pro Publica)
• Exxon's Snake Oil: 100 years of deception (Columbia Journalism Review)
• VIDEO: A Message From the Future With Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (The Intercept)
• Project Drawdown: 100 Solutions to Reverse Global Warming (Drawdown.org)
• An Optimist's Guide to Solving Climate Change and Saving the World (Vice)

                 

Article Categories: Environment, U.S. Senate, Democrats, Green News, Natural gas, Chevron, Oil, Climate change, Extreme weather, China, Exxon Mobil, India, Shell Oil, Paris Agreement, Philippines, Jamie Raskin, Pollution