President Joe Biden is expected to announce new steps his administration will take to combat climate change at an event in Massachusetts today, but will stop short of declaring a national climate emergency that would unlock new tools for driving down greenhouse gases, the White House said Tuesday.
Biden’s announcement will take place six days after the collapse of negotiations aimed at getting a climate bill through Congress due to the intransigence of West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, and while millions of Americans suffer a sweltering triple-digit heat wave and Western states struggle with the worst drought in more than 1,000 years.
Center for Western Priorities executive director Jennifer Rokala said in a statement, “The time for vague policy commitments or under-defined statements of principles is long over. We need to hear specifics from the president about how he will reduce emissions from public lands, expand renewable energy projects, and accelerate protections of America’s public lands as national monuments and wildlife refuges.”
Transformer at Hoover Dam catches fire
An alarming video posted to Twitter shows a transformer near the base of the Hoover Dam releasing a large plume of black smoke shortly after catching fire yesterday around 10 a.m. Pacific time. The fire was put out by firefighters within 30 minutes and did not injure any visitors or employees, according to a release from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the federal agency that operates the dam and power station. The Hoover Dam stores water from Lake Mead, and is the largest reservoir in the country by volume when full. The dam’s generators help power public and private utility companies across Nevada, Arizona, and California.
Quick hits
Climate change makes weather disasters five times more common
Upper Basin states lay out plan to help Colorado River, urge Lower Basin states to chip in more
Report: U.S. prioritizes oil over renewables on public land
Two privately owned Colorado 14ers are open to hikers thanks to a unique partnership—will it last?
Biden to announce climate actions but stop short of declaring an emergency
Hidden gems and roads less traveled in five national parks
Wildland firefighter reflects on how climate change has transformed the Gila National Forest
Opinion: Public lands belong to all of us
Coeur d’Alene Post Falls Press
Quote of the day
Declaring a climate emergency doesn’t lower any emissions. You have to move on to acting like it’s a climate emergency, and I’m looking forward to those steps.”
Picture this
Rare image of a bison stepping on a Lego. Be careful out there. Photo @GrandTetonNPS
(featured image: President Joe Biden delivers a statement during the COP26 U.N. Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland. Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz)