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IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Donald Trump weaponizes disaster, calls for dismantling FEMA; First rain in months helps douse Los Angeles Fires; PLUS: New York City's congestion pricing is working, with fewer crashes and pedestrian injuries... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

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IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Trump’s scorched earth executive orders for the environment; Ocean warming accelerating rapidly, new study warns; Stanford sea turtle study uncovers new effects of global warming in the Pacific Ocean; Trump looks to seize control of California water; Notorious WV chemical plant polluting water with toxic PFAS, lawsuit claims; Storm Eowyn brings hurricane-level destruction to Ireland... PLUS: How Big Insurance’s investment in fossil fuels came back to bite it... and much, MUCH more! ...

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

• First rain in months helps douse L.A. Fires::
• Rain and snow finally break SoCal’s relentless dryness that fueled unprecedented fires (LA Times):
  
  By midmorning Monday, the heaviest rain and snowfall had mostly passed through the Southland, but cleanup and recovery efforts continued after bursts of intense downpours hit the mountains and foothills, including near some recent burn areas.
• California fires live updates: Death toll in Los Angeles fires rises to 29 (ABC News)
• Rain douses wildfires in Southern California without causing serious mudslides (AP)
• LA wildfires: How contaminated drinking water is the latest worry for residents (First Post)
• LA Wildfires: The Incarcerated Firefighters Battling Blazes (Thompson Reuters Foundation)
• Not even sea life is safe from the L.A. fires (Washington Post)
• Trump sets course to dismantle FEMA:
• FEMA faces shakeup under Trump while it wrestles with disasters on both coasts (AP)
• VIDEO: Trump says he’s considering ‘getting rid of’ FEMA during briefing in North Carolina (PBS NewsHour)
• Trump Questions FEMA’s Future Just When LA Needs It Most (Bloomberg)
• Authorities caution against sifting through debris at fire-ravaged properties (LA Times):
  
  The president suggested residents should be allowed to sift through the wreckage themselves and start rebuilding right away. Bass emphasized that it isn’t safe to do that. The discussion spurred a charged debate on social media.
• Trump Publicly Spars with Karen Bass After Touring Wildfire Damage (Newsweek)
• Storm-ravaged North Carolina faces new hurdle in fighting floods (E&E News)
• Trump's attack on FEMA follows Project 2025 manifesto
• True: Project 2025 would "cut" the Federal Emergency Management Agency and "kill federal-backed flood insurance" (Politifact):
  
  Project 2025 outlines changes to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, including reducing the federal government’s share of local disaster relief contributions from 75% to 25%, privatizing flood insurance, terminating FEMA’s grants and raising the per capita threshold for providing FEMA public assistance.
• Trump Administration fires 17 inspectors general, halts agency works:
• Mass Firing: Trump Removes Independent Inspectors General At 17+ Agencies (AP):
  
  The Trump administration has fired about 17 independent inspectors general at government agencies, a sweeping action to remove oversight of his new administration that some members of Congress are suggesting violated federal oversight laws." EPA, Energy Dept., Interior, Commerce, Agriculture are included in the list.
• Trump Fires EPA Watchdog Who Closely Scrutinized Biden's Agency (Bloomberg Law)
• VIDEO: Interior Ispector General fired by Trump has a warning for Americans (CNN)
• President Trump lays off 17 inspectors general. Here's what they do in that job (USA Today)
• Trump administration halts environmental litigation, sidelines lawyers, sources say (Reuters):
  
  The department's Environment and Natural Resources Division is responsible for bringing criminal and civil cases related to air and water pollution, animal welfare and public safety, as well as defending in court government agencies such as the Department of the Interior and the Department of Energy. The four section chiefs were told in an email late Thursday they have 15 days to accept the new assignment to a newly created Sanctuary City Working Group or face adverse consequences, the sources told Reuters.
• Trump Stocks E.P.A. With Oil, Gas and Chemical Lobbyists (NY Times)
• Trump Quietly Withdraws Proposed Limits On PFAS In Industrial Wastewater (The New Lede)
• Michael Bloomberg to help cover U.S. climate funding commitments to United Nations:
• Michael Bloomberg Will Help Fund UN Climate Body After Trump Withdraws From Paris Climate Agreement (Forbes):
  
  Bloomberg --- the former mayor of New York City, cofounder of Bloomberg Media and special envoy to the UN --- also helped cover the U.S.’ portion of its climate commitments to the UN from 2017 to 2020 after Trump withdrew from the Paris Agreement for the first time.
• NYC's congestion pricing is working
• Congestion Relief Zone is Also a CRASH Relief Zone: Data (NYC Streetsblog):
  
  Manhattanites have one more reason to appreciate congestion pricing: early statistics show that roadways inside the congestion relief zone below 60th Street are experiencing fewer crashes resulting in fewer injuries.
• Congestion Pricing Results Are Mixed but Some Commutes Improve (NY Times):
  
  Many commuters continue to oppose the new tolling program in New York City even as some drivers and bus riders are spending less time trapped in traffic.
• Data Show That For Some in NYC, Congestion Pricing is Improving Commutes (Inc.):
  
  The congestion pricing plan for New York City remains controversial, but for people who actually need to commute into the city, early signs show it may be working out.

'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

• Trump’s scorched earth executive orders for the environment (Yahoo News)
• Ocean Warming Accelerates Rapidly: Study Warns Of Dire Climate Consequences (MSN)
• Global sea levels may rise by up to 1.9m by 2100, exceeding earlier projections: NTU study (Straits Times)
• Stanford sea turtle study uncovers new effects of global warming in the Pacific Ocean (ABC-San Francisco)
• How Big Insurance’s investment in fossil fuels came back to bite it (Capital and Main)
• Trump looks to seize control of California water (E&E News)
• Notorious WV chemical plant polluting water with toxic PFAS, lawsuit claims (Guardian)
• US Is Trying To Unravel A Hacking Plot That Targeted Climate Activists (NPR)
• Study warns against ‘oppressive heatwaves’ due to global warming (Businessline)
• Map shows rising wildfire threat across the U.S.: See if you're affected (USA Today)
• Burgum Hosted ‘VIP Dinner’ for Oil, Gas, and Coal Execs Last Year: Emails (DeSmog Blog)
• Storm Eowyn brings hurricane-level destruction to Ireland (Yale Climate Connections)
• State warns of looming 'systemic failure' of Trenton’s water utility (States Newsroom)
• Can we avoid the enshittification of clean-energy tech? (David Roberts, Volts)
• Stop emissions, stop warming: A climate reality check (Dr. Andrew Dessler, Climate Brink)
• The Climate Fight Will Continue (This Is Not Cool blog)
• Who Will Care for Americans Left Behind by Climate Migration? (Pro Publica)
• Is the Atlantic Overturning Circulation Approaching a Tipping Point? (The Oceanography Society)
• How Oil Companies Manipulate Journalists (Drilled)
• Abrupt reduction in shipping emission as an inadvertent geoengineering termination shock produces substantial radiative warming (Nature)
• How To Spot 5 Of The Fossil Fuel Industry's Biggest Disinformation Tactics (Guardian)
• The Oceans We Knew Are Already Gone (The Atlantic)
• 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)
• 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)
• Project Drawdown: 100 Solutions to Reverse Global Warming (Drawdown.org)

                 

Article Categories: California, North Carolina, New York, United Nations, Environment, FEMA, Los Angeles, Michael Bloomberg, Green News, EPA, Donald Trump, Climate change, Extreme weather, Water, Transportation, Paris Agreement, Dept. of Interior, Dept. of Energy, Pollution, Project 2025, wildfires, Hurricane Helene