December 2024 – Climate Desk

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High Country News

2024 set the stage for clean energy on public lands

Thanks to Biden administration policies, the momentum behind the energy transition could be hard to stall.

Erin X. Wong · December 31, 2024
Guardian

2024’s most costly climate disasters killed 2,000 people and caused $229bn in damages, data shows

Analysis of insurance payouts by Christian Aid reveals three-quarters of financial destruction occurred in US

Jonathan Watts · December 30, 2024
Vox.com

Want to fight climate change effectively? Here’s where to donate your money.

These are 11 of the most high-impact, cost-effective, evidence-based organizations. You may not have heard of them.

Sigal Samuel, Rachel DuRose, and Sam Delgado · December 19, 2024
Wired

US meat, milk prices should spike if Donald Trump carries out mass deportation schemes

The US meat and dairy industries rely heavily on unauthorized workers, which means prices will likely rise sharply if the Trump administration actually enacts its plans.

Matt Reynolds · December 12, 2024
Mother Jones

“Waging War on Science”: Researchers worry about their jobs under Trump 2.0

“There are a lot of days where I feel very much like just quitting all of this.”

Jackie Flynn Mogensen · December 11, 2024
Inside Climate News

Local tax breaks for LNG plants don’t benefit communities, report says

Researchers at the Sierra Club compiled tax break agreements between LNG developers and local governments in Louisiana and Texas in order to assess their financial impact.

Dylan Baddour · December 10, 2024
YaleEnvironment360

Will UN Carbon Market Work? Indonesia Will Provide First Test

A U.N. carbon market is expected to open as soon as next year, with carbon-rich Indonesia planning to generate billions of dollars in credits from its vast rainforests.

Fred Pearce · December 9, 2024
Guardian

‘It’s nonstop’: how noise pollution threatens the return of Norway’s whales

Recordings by biologist Heike Vester reveal how oil and gas exploration as well as cruises, fishing boats and even whale-watchers are adding to the din underwater

Miranda Bryant · December 8, 2024
Grist

New technologies could refine the copper the world needs — without the dirty smelting

Copper will play a central role in the energy transition. These startups are working on a cleaner way to extract it.

Maddie Stone · December 7, 2024
Guardian

‘Straight in harm’s way’: can Trump open up Alaska’s 19m-acre refuge for drilling?

Native leaders ready for a fight as Trump calls ANWR, one of the last truly wild places on Earth, the US’s ‘biggest oil farm’

Maanvi Singh · December 6, 2024
Vox.com

This is how many animals could go extinct from climate change

Even a single degree of warming can have devastating consequences for the natural world.

Benji Jones · December 5, 2024
Guardian

Small North Carolina town sues energy ‘Goliath’ in historic climate action

Carrboro officials say Duke Energy broke state laws waging decades-long ‘deception campaign’ about fossil fuels

Dharna Noor · December 5, 2024