More than 140,000 people have been evacuated in north-western Morocco as “heavy rainfall and water releases from overfilled dams led to flooding”, reports the Associated Press. The newswire says that, in the last six months, Morocco has recorded 150mm of rainfall, exceeding the country’s annual average by 32.5%. It continues: “Long-awaited after seven years of drought, the heavy rains brought relief to the North African nation, ending a dry spell and securing at least a year of drinking water by filling reservoirs. But it also overfilled some dams, damaged crops such as avocados, potatoes and olives, disrupted port operations and delayed shipments.” Tunisia and Algeria have also faced flooding in recent weeks, reports Africa News.

MORE ON EXTREME WEATHER

• A tropical storm triggered floods and landslides in the Philippines, killing at least four people, says the Associated Press.
• The Guardian says dozens of people are dead following record snow in Japan.

The Guardian reports that the UK government is planning to cut climate finance by more than a fifth. It continues: “Ministers plan to cut climate finance for the developing world from £11.6bn over the past five years to £9bn in the next five. In real terms, accounting for inflation, this would represent a cut of about 40% in spending power since 2021, when the £11.6bn budget was agreed.” The newspaper adds: “In addition to the headline cuts, the Guardian has learned that civil servants are scrambling to ‘rebadge’ existing projects focused on issues such as education or health under the climate finance umbrella.” In response to the Guardian’s story, a government spokesperson said: “The UK is on track to deliver £11.6bn in international climate finance by the end of this financial year. We are modernising our approach to ensure we focus on greater impact – ensuring every pound delivers for the UK taxpayer and the people we support.”

MORE ON UK

• UK emissions fell by 3% in 2024, according to government figures covered by the Press Association. [Carbon Brief analysis from last year had the figure at 3.6%.]
• Airlines and booking websites should give customers more information about the environmental impact of their flights, the UK aviation regulator has said, according to the Guardian.
• The Independent: “Weak climate targets mean UK banks risk missing out on ‘enormous opportunity’ of Africa’s renewable energy boom.”
• The climate-sceptic Daily Telegraph focuses in on how new electric vehicle registrations increased by only 0.1% last month, claiming this shows the market “going into reverse”.

Federal enforcement against big polluters fell to a record low in 2025, the first year of Trump’s second presidency, reports Reuters. It continues: “Just 16 complaints were filed in civil court by the justice department on behalf of the Environmental Protection Agency, down 76% from the first year of the Biden administration, down 81% from the first year of Trump’s first term and down 87% from the first year of former president Barack Obama’s second term, an analysis by the Environmental Integrity Project found.” The newswire adds that the results come as the “Trump administration has rolled back an unprecedented number of environmental rules aimed at protecting public health, slashed staffing levels at the EPA and sought to fast-track permitting of projects to expand fossil fuel production”.

MORE ON US

• Climate Home News: “Congress rescues aid budget from Trump’s ‘evisceration’, but climate misses out.”
• The US is to auction drilling rights for the Arctic in March, says Reuters.
• The state of Michigan has launched a “first-of-its-kind complaint” accusing four big oil companies of climate misinformation, reports the Guardian.
• E&E News: “Illinois defies Trump by launching climate superfund fight.”
• An “anti-ESG” law in Texas was ruled “unconstitutional” by a US judge, reports Reuters.
• Inside Climate News reports that states are “running out of time and snowpack” on reaching an agreement on sharing water from the Colorado river.

Brazil has “ended a temporary tariff exemption” allowing electric and hybrid vehicles assembled using imported parts from China to enter the country at sharply reduced costs, reports the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post (SCMP). The exemption “fuelled months of confrontation between the government, Chinese carmaker BYD” and other automakers operating in Brazil, the article explains. The exemption “expired on 31 January and was not renewed”, which means that Chinese companies will “once again have to pay import taxes on vehicle kits brought from abroad for assembly in Brazil”, the article says. The exemption had faced significant opposition from other international car manufacturers, it notes. Meanwhile, Chinese automaker BYD aims to “produce and source 50% of its vehicle components locally at its new Brazilian factory” by the end of this year, Reuters cites a senior company executive as saying. 

MORE ON CHINA

• A “study” article by Xinhua says that development of “distributed energy” should primarily be focused on areas such as zero-carbon industrial parks and villages.
• A “GT Voice” commentary by Global Times claims that coverage of new research on coal plants equates “coal power expansion” with slowing “green energy adoption”, which “ignore the structural changes taking place in [China’s] energy system”.
• China’s global outbound investment reached $124bn as firms focused on “energy and raw materials projects in low and middle-income regions”, says SCMP.
• Dialogue Earth says that energy storage companies will likely rely on “spot markets”, “ancillary services” fees and “capacity payments” for income in China.
• Jiemian cites a China Photovoltaic Industry Association saying the space solar sector is not “practical”, with the technology still in the “early stages” of development.
• A Reuters commentary says China has “tightened its clean tech grip” with growing electric vehicle exports.

The Sunday Times explores how batteries for storing power at home have reached a “tipping point” where they can save consumers money. Martina Lees, senior property writer, says: “Their prices have come down to a level where they not only break even in as little as five years, but save you money even if you don’t have solar panels. With a battery you can store electricity when it is cheapest at off-peak times, then use it – or sell it back to the grid – when rates spike in the evening peak. The maths now adds up to such a degree that, for the first time, you can fit a battery without any upfront cost. Britain’s first battery subscription promises a battery for £35 a month – and a net saving of about £450 a year, claims Wondrwall, the British start-up launching the service this week.”

MORE COMMENT

• A Lex opinion in the Financial Times: “As software sinks, US oil majors are regaining their lustre.”
• An editorial in the Economist commends Republicans in Congress for undoing some of Trump’s attacks on funding for scientific research, but urges them to go further.
• Bloomberg climate columnist Mark Gongloff says extreme cold remains a “billion-dollar problem”, even as the world heats up.
• A comment in the i newspaper accuses King Charles of being an “environmental hypocrite”.

This edition of the Daily Briefing was written by Daisy Dunne, with contributions from Anika Patel and Henry Zhang. It was edited by Robert McSweeney.

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