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IN TODAY’S RADIO REPORT: New data suggests utility company grid equipment sparked deadly Eaton Fire in Altadena, CA; Senate confirms Trump’s pick, Lee Zeldin, to head EPA; Ireland hit with strongest storm on record; PLUS: Study confirms warming Pacific Ocean is changing marine life migration patterns… All that and more in today’s Green News Report!

Green News Report with Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen 1/30/2025

‘Green News Report’ – January 30, 2025  |  With Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen...   Â· · · · ·   ‘Green News Report’ – January 30, 2025  |  With Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen...

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IN ‘GREEN NEWS EXTRA’ (see links below): Lutnick says he won’t dismantle NOAA as called for in Project 2025; A.I. “DeepSeek” earthquake upends power forecasts; Trump EPA fires science advisers; Clean energy firms remain upbeat; Amid freeze fracas, uncertainty lives on for environmental programs… PLUS: Texas City approves new site for fracking near daycare and schools… and much, MUCH more! …

STORIES DISCUSSED ON TODAY’S ‘GREEN NEWS REPORT’…

• New evidence suggests SoCal Edison’s electric grid equipment sparked deadly Eaton Fire:
• New Data Shows Major Electrical Disruption Ahead of Eaton Fire (NY Times):
  Moments before flames erupted below transmission towers near Altadena, Calif., high-voltage power lines faulted in the area, new sensor data shows, offering fresh clues about whether utility equipment may have failed as the deadly Eaton fire broke out on Jan. 7.
• Exposed Utility Wires May Have Contributed to LA’s Eaton Fire, Law Firm Says (Reuters/US News)
• Eaton Fire cause: New video appears to show origin of deadly blaze, attorneys say (Fox News-Los Angeles)
• Ireland pummeled by strongest storm on record::
• Storm Eowyn brings hurricane-level destruction to Ireland (Yale Climate Connections):
  With hurricane-force winds of 84 mph, gusting to 114 mph, Eowyn was the strongest storm on record for Ireland. The same low-pressure system that brought historic snowfall to the U.S. Gulf Coast early this week intensified into an extremely powerful extratropical cyclone in the North Atlantic, designated Storm Eowyn.
• Ireland and UK clean up after unprecedented Storm Eowyn brings record winds and damage (AP)
• Thousands still waiting for electricity to be restored following Storm Eowyn (The Standard)
• Record ocean warming in 2024 is a warning for our planet (Earth)
• Ocean Warming Accelerates Rapidly: Study Warns Of Dire Climate Consequences (MSN)
• Sea turtle study confirms warming Pacific Ocean is changing migration patterns:
• Study reveals rapid shift in loggerhead sea turtles’ range (Stanford Univ):
  Between 1997 and 2024, endangered North Pacific loggerhead sea turtles shifted their foraging northward at a rate six times faster than the average for most marine species. The turtles face risks as they adapt to ocean warming caused by climate change.
• VIDEO: Stanford sea turtle study uncovers new effects of global warming in the Pacific Ocean (ABC-San Francisco):
  “The turtles are moving northward six times faster than the average for marine animals. So, our loggerhead, our sentinel loggerheads, are teaching us about this new ocean, this new warming ocean there. They’re able to respond to it, but they’re moving extremely rapidly,” Crowder said.
• OMB federal funding freeze targets ‘woke’ home heating assistance:
• White House still committed to freezing ‘woke’ funds despite rescinding OMB memo (Fox News)
• Federal Spending Freeze Could Have Widespread Impact on Environment, Emergency Management (Inside Climate News)
• EPA halts fund disbursement under OMB memo (The Hill)
• Leaked document: Instructions for Federal Financial Assistance Program Analysis in Support of M-25-13 [PDF] (Politico)
• GOP Senate confirms Lee Zeldin to head EPA:
• EPA Nominee Heads for Approval, Despite Inexperience (Transition Watch/SEJ)
• Senate confirms Zeldin to lead Environmental Protection Agency as Trump vows to cut climate rules (AP)
• Zeldin is confirmed as the new EPA administrator. What’s next? (Utility Dive)
• Trump’s scorched earth executive orders for the environment (Yahoo News)
• Senate confirms Sean Duffy for Transportation Secretary:
• Trump DOT Orders Reverse Of Miles Per Gallon Rule For Cars And Pickups (NY Times):
  Hours after being sworn in as the new U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Sean Duffy took aim at the main way the federal government regulates miles per gallon for cars and pickup trucks “” also a principal way that it regulates air pollution and addresses climate change. Duffy ordered the federal agency in charge of fuel economy standards to reverse them as soon as possible. The standards have been in place since the 1970s energy crisis and were intended to conserve fuel and save consumers money at the gas pump.
• Sean Duffy is confirmed by the Senate to lead the Transportation Department (AP)
• In First Action as Transportation Secretary, Duffy Rolls Back Clean Cars Rules (Public Citizen)
• Trump’s Transportation Secretary Reveals Plans to Roll Back Emissions Rules on His 1st Day (Road & Track)
• U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy Takes Action to Rescind “Woke” DEI Policies and Advance President Trump’s Economic Agenda (Transportation Dept.)

‘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

• Fires and windstorms caused at least $350 million in damage to L.A. public facilities, report says (LA Times)
• Lutnick says he won’t dismantle NOAA as called for in Project 2025 (The Hill)
• A.I. “DeepSeek” earthquake upends power forecasts (This Is Not Cool blog)
• EPA fires science advisers (E&E News)
• Clean energy firms remain upbeat (This Is Not Cool blog)
• Shipments of uranium ore can resume under pact with Navajo Nation (AP)
• Amid freeze fracas, uncertainty lives on for environmental programs (AP)
• Texas City approves new site for fracking near daycare and schools (Inside Climate News)
• 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)