So Much Solar: List of Every US Power Plant That Went Online This Year
"Utility-scale solar leads by a mile, followed by batteries. Fossil fuels, not so much."
Source: Inside Climate News, 08/14/2026
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White House Reviews Expanding Hunting And Fishing In Wildlife Refuges
"A proposal to expand hunting and fishing access within wildlife refuges advanced this week to the White House review stage." "The Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed opening 14 refuges to new hunting or sport fishing access."
Source: E&E News, 08/14/2026Tropical Storm Lala Brings Hurricane Watch To The Big Island Of Hawaii
"Tropical Storm Lala formed Thursday in the Pacific Ocean and a hurricane watch has been issued for the Big Island of Hawaii, where it could bring heavy rain and flooding this weekend, forecasters said."
Source: AP, 08/14/2026Two Fossil Fuel Companies Are Driving the Data Center Boom
"Chevron and Williams are big winners in the race to power artificial intelligence as they build out gas-fired power plants and pipelines."
Source: WIRED, 08/14/2026Trump Cancels Biden-Era Bid To Speed Power Line Construction
"The Trump administration is canceling a Biden-era effort to speed up power line construction in parts of Pennsylvania, Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Nebraska and the Dakotas."
Source: The Hill, 08/14/2026Scientists Warn Senate TSCA Overhaul Could Put Children At Greater Risk
"A group of over 30 scientists, health professionals, and public health advocates is urging the Senate not to weaken the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), a move they say will put children in harm’s way from toxic chemicals and pollutants."
Source: The New Lede, 08/14/2026What You Need To Know About The Water Crisis In Puerto Rico
"U.S. citizens in San Juan, Puerto Rico, are spending hours waiting for water trucks after water rationing went into effect amid drought on the island archipelago. Puerto Rico Gov. Jenniffer González declared a state of emergency in late July as the water in key dams dropped below levels that can support communities."
Source: Yale Climate Connections, 08/14/2026AI Push in Rulemaking Adds New Legal Risks for Federal Agencies
"The US government’s experimentation with AI in rulemaking carries the risk that actions associated with the technology may be overturned in court, former federal officials warn."
Source: Bloomberg Environment, 08/14/2026Meet The Man Circumnavigating The Arctic Ocean, Alone
"When sailing alone, even sleep is dangerous. Matt Rutherford knows this all too well. As he travels the Arctic, far from his home port of Annapolis, Md., the moments Rutherford does get to rest are precious. "It just becomes extremely difficult to get any sleep because if you hit the ice, you essentially die," he said."
Source: NPR, 08/14/2026Utility, Tech Firms ‘Educate’ Regulators With Donations, Secret Retreats
"As a pink-and-gold sunset faded over the waterside Ben Hotel, Republican state utility officials streamed out of a reception where they had been imbibing with executives from the industries they regulate."
Source: Washington Post, 08/13/2026This Year’s El Niño Is Huge and Already Changing the World
"The recurring climate phenomenon is expected to peak later this year, but it is already causing dry spells and crop failures on three continents."
Source: New York Times, 08/13/20261000s Flee Long Drought In Somalia As Hunger Deepens And Aid Shrinks
"After nearly two weeks on the road with her five children, Luul Mohamed finally arrived in the southwestern Somali city of Baidoa with no food and little sense of what would happen next."
Source: AP, 08/13/2026Huge Oil Slick Hitting Oman's Shoreline As Agencies Warn Of Disaster
"A vast oil spill from a leaking tanker has started to hit Oman's coastline, its environment agency confirmed on Wednesday, in what threatens to become one of the world’s worst in years after spreading largely unchecked for weeks."
Source: Reuters, 08/13/2026Trump’s ‘Energy Emergency’ Could Speed Expansion Of La. LNG Terminal
"Less than two years after opening, a liquefied natural gas terminal near New Orleans is seeking a multi-billion-dollar expansion under a new Trump administration “emergency” permitting process that shortens environmental review and may weaken protections for surrounding wetlands and waterways."
Source: Verite News, 08/13/2026Calif. Scrambled as Spring Wildfire Neared Former Nuclear Reactor Site
"As a wildfire in May approached the site of one of the worst nuclear meltdowns in U.S. history, state and local officials scrambled to respond to the blaze and to establish proper real-time radiation and air monitoring to protect Southern California families, internal emails show."
Source: Inside Climate News, 08/13/2026
