Free Republic

The Biden administration announced Thursday that it is giving Native American tribes across the country a total of $120 million to fight climate change.

Two activists accused of throwing a red powder on the U.S. Constitution display case at the National Archives last month are now facing felony charges, the Justice Department (DOJ) announced Friday. Donald Zepeda, 35, of Maryland, and Jackson Green, 27, of Utah, were charged with felony destruction of government property for dumping the fine red powder all over the display case in an indictment that was unsealed in District Count on Thursday, per the DOJ. Conservationists worked to clean up the building’s rotunda after the protestors dumped the powder as part of a stunt intended to draw attention to climate...

State officials have threatened legal action against nonprofit climate alliances and banks’ participation, highlighting the contentious relationship between environmental initiatives and economic interests.

Starting this month, 145,000 Wyoming ratepayers will make a down payment on what's projected to add up to billions of dollars in additional costs. Regulators recently approved Black Hills Energy's new $1.1 million surcharge on utility bills to research the viability of adding controversial carbon capture technologies to coal-fired power plants. Rob Joyce, acting director of the Wyoming Chapter of the Sierra Club, said the rate increases are due to the state's mandate for utilities to continue burning coal. "The people who benefit from these kinds of policies are the legislators who are connected to legacy fossil fuel companies, utilities...

Conservative pundit and radio host Mark Steyn has been ordered by a jury to pay a former Penn State professor and "climate scientist" $1 million in damages in a defamation lawsuit about blog posts, published in 2012, criticizing the professor's work. via AP:The jury in Superior Court of the District of Columbia found that [think tank fellow Rand] Simberg and Steyn made false statements, awarding Mann $1 in compensatory damages from each writer. It awarded punitive damages of $1,000 from Simberg and $1 million from Steyn, after finding that the pair made their statements with “maliciousness, spite, ill will, vengeance...

@LeadingReport BREAKING: The House Oversight and Accountability Committee has launched an investigation into the office of Joe Biden’s so-called “climate czar,” John Kerry. Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer has revealed that lawmakers are investigating Kerry over his apparent frequent consultations with shady environmental activists and eco groups.

Walkers enjoying a quiet stroll in the Welsh countryside captured a shocking sight on Sunday, after a wind turbine burst into flames before exploding. Nick Blasdale, 61, and his wife Alison, 59, were left stunned when they saw burning parts of a turbine fall more than 100ft to the ground. Firefighters were called to the blaze at Blaen Bowi Wind Farm near Newcastle Emlyn, Pembrokeshire at 11.46am, but could only watch and make sure passersby didn't get too close. Alison said: 'We watched the top section burst into flames then drop off whilst still burning then explode when it hit...

United States exporters of thermal coal earned more than $5 billion in 2023 as they shipped out more than 32.5 million metric tons ... The thermal coal export earnings were the second-highest since 2017, following 2022's $5.7 billion. The total volumes were the highest since 2018 and came as U.S. power producers cut the amount of coal used in electricity generation to the lowest this century, ... The diverging trends between shrinking domestic coal use and robust coal exports open the United States to charges of hypocrisy .... Between 2013 and 2023, U.S. coal-fired power generation dropped by 57.5% from...

There is currently a war being waged against America that threatens the very liberty of our nation — and it’s one you might not expect. It's not the war on free speech or freedom of religion. It's the war on beef. Who better to discuss this war than American cattle rancher Shad Sullivan? Shad is the R-CALF USA Private Property Rights Committee chair. In this episode of "The Glenn Beck Podcast," Shad and Glenn discuss the “war on beef” and why it matters to everyday Americans. Shad explains the issues with California’s Prop 2 and Prop 12 and how they...

A criminal justice professor who has worked at various California colleges pleaded guilty Thursday after being charged with setting a series of blazes near the massive Dixie Fire in 2021. Gary Stephen Maynard, 49, pleaded guilty to three counts of arson to federal property in Sacramento federal court before U.S. District Judge Daniel J. Calabretta. Maynard, who is being held without bail in the Yuba County Jail, was arrested in August 2021 after a three-week investigation that included the use of a tracking device hidden on his vehicle by authorities who followed his movements throughout Northern California for hundreds of...

Dr. Wyner is a professor, statistician, and, oh, chair of the undergraduate program in statistics and data science. His specialty is probability models. He has worked with ESPN (Money Ball anyone?) and has received grants from the National Science Foundation, the very same NSF of which we've heard so much about the two last weeks. Dr. Wyner knows numbers.

White House adviser John Podesta will replace John Kerry as the nation’s lead climate diplomat, the White House announced on Wednesday. “We need to keep meeting the gravity of this moment, and there is no one better than John Podesta to make sure we do,” White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients, in a written statement shared with reporters. Podesta will remain at the White House and will get the title of senior advisor to the president for international climate policy. In that role, he will lead the Biden administration’s international climate policy agenda and will coordinate with other officials...

In November, Orsted nixed two major wind farm projects planned off the coast of New Jersey, citing the same problems that the company cited for the Skipjack Wind project.. Danish wind developer Orsted has canceled another contract on a planned offshore wind farm in the Atlantic Ocean. The company said the 966-megawatt Skipjack Wind project, planned to be constructed off the coasts of Delaware and Maryland, would no longer be commercially viable at the contract prices due to inflation, high interest rates and supply chain issues. “Today’s announcement affirms our commitment to developing value creating projects and represents an opportunity...

A 38-year-old Quebec man has been found guilty for starting a series of devastating forest fires - which lead to hectares worth of damage and displaced hundreds. Brian Paré has plead guilty to staring 14 forest fires, including fires in Chapais and Lake Cavan, at a courthouse in Chibougamau in Quebec. Paré, who has been detained since his arrest, said little during the hearing, only responding 'yes' to a series of questions from the judge. He had been charged 13 counts of arson and one count of arson with disregard for human life. It is unclear if the court has...

Higher power demand and efforts to boost energy security pushed China’s coal production to a record-high level in 2023, ... Chinese coal output rose by 2.9% year-over-year to 4.66 billion metric tons in 2023 ... Coal imports also rose last year, as some domestic mining operations were suspended for some time in 2023 ... Higher demand after the COVID restrictions were lifted and higher domestic coal prices led to record-high coal imports into China, which soared by 61.8% year-on-year to 474.42 million metric tons in 2023, ... In the latter part of 2023, China ramped up coal and natural gas...

CHICAGO () - When temperatures drop to bone-chilling levels like we’re experiencing now, railroads use open flames to keep the trains moving.. According to Metra spokesman Michael Gillis, they’re using natural gas to heat switches. “It looks like the tracks are on fire, but what it is, there are gas burners next to the switches, and we light them to keep the switches warm, so the switches can move,” said Gillis. “If they freeze up, then our trains can’t change tracks and that leads to congestion…It’s really essential to keep the switches operational so that we can keep our trains...

John Kerry is stepping down as the president’s special envoy for climate this spring, according to two people familiar with the decision. The change comes weeks after Kerry, 80, played a key role during a climate conference in Dubai helping to forge a compromise among nearly 200 countries aimed at reducing fossil fuels. The White House didn’t immediately comment on Kerry’s decision. Kerry, whose departure will come as President Biden is intensifying his re-election campaign, is one of the few top officials to depart an administration that has had historically low turnover. Kerry has held the post for three years...

A wind turbine at a northern Colorado wind farm folded in half and caught fire Thursday morning, startling neighbors who heard banging noises prior to the collapse. The incident was reported at 8 a.m. No injuries were reported. Oil and grease from the generator caught fire after the tower's collapse. ... Personnel from the Peetz and Crook all-volunteer fire departments responded. Employees from Invenergy - a Chicago-based company which first owned the wind turbine field and now operates it for the current owner, ClearWay Energy - were already at the site when firefighters arrived, according to Peetz Fire Protction District...

Officials today launched an investigation after one of Sadiq Khan's electric buses exploded during today's rush hour. Terrified residents in Wimbledon described a massive 'bang' after a double decker burst into flames during this morning's commute, sparking chaos on the roads as black smoke filled the streets. Astonishing video obtained by MailOnline shows the dramatic moment firefighters battled to put out the inferno. Transport for London (TfL) today launched an investigation after the blaze destroyed the rear and blew out the back windows ... 'It took a long time for them to get it under control with flames flying out...

Actor and director Sean Penn rescued Variety’s Marc Malkin, the pre-show host of the Golden Globes, after he was left stranded with an electric car that wouldn’t charge .. Penn ran into Malkin when he was left stranded on the way to Los Angeles from the Palm Springs Film Festival... Malkin’s electric car ran out of juice and needed a recharge, so he called a tow truck to get him to a charging station in Cabazon, California... Unfortunately, he ran into even more trouble when it failed to charge properly and he was officially stranded. That’s when Penn swooped in...