The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is planning to cut requirements for industrial facilities to collect and report their greenhouse gas emissions, ProPublica reports. Data from the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program is used to guide policy decisions and constitutes a large part of the nation’s international emissions reporting, the article explains. As it stands, around 8,000 facilities have to report their emissions data, but EPA officials under the Trump administration have “asked programme staff to draft a rule that will drastically reduce data collection”, ProPublica explains. Under new requirements, only around 2,300 facilities in certain sectors of the oil and gas industry would need to report their data, it adds. Bloomberg picks up on ProPublica’s reporting, noting that, under Donald Trump, the administration “has launched a sweeping overhaul of US environmental policy”, with EPA administrator Lee Zeldin emerging as a key figure opposing climate action. The New York Times also has the story, reporting that, according to sources, EPA staff “were told they had one month to write a new regulation repealing most of the programme”.

Meanwhile, following “weeks in limbo after being dismissed in late February”, hundreds of workers at the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have been informed for the second time that their jobs have been cut, the Guardian reports. Probationary employees at the US climate research agency had been re-hired and put on administrative leave following a court order, the article explains. Reuters also covers the story, adding that “the agency last week moved to reclassify some of its career workforce to a job category that makes them easier to fire”.

Separately, the US Department of the Interior has announced that it will no longer require the Bureau of Land Management to provide an environmental impact statement for thousands of oil and gas leases in western US states, the Santa Fe New Mexican reports. The move, which is a response to one of Donald Trump’s executive orders aimed at boosting US energy development, is a reversal of a Biden-era policy, the article explains. It will affect more that 3,200 fossil-fuel leases, including parts of the Permian basin, one of the biggest oil and gas regions in the country, the article adds. Under former president Joe Biden, the Bureau of Land Management had set out to prepare the analysis following lawsuits by environmental activists challenging the leases, Reuters explains. The latest move aligns with the Trump administration’s “efforts to lift hurdles on drilling”, it adds.

In other news, tariffs are “clouding the global economic outlook and could weigh heavily on oil prices in the months ahead”, according to oil demand forecasts published by the US Energy Information Administration and covered by Reuters. The organisation has lowered its projections for US and global oil demand for 2025 and 2026, the article notes. The Wall Street Journal has an article about how Trump’s trade policies and the potential for a global recession are “poised to reduce international sales and domestic output of fossil fuels”. The Daily Telegraph notes that Trump’s pledge to “revive” the US fossil-fuel industry is “already at risk of falling apart after the president’s tariff blitz triggered the biggest oil crisis since the pandemic”. In more tariff news, analysts tell Semafor that Chinese clean tech companies “may actually emerge stronger as a result of increased isolation from the US market”, in an article headlined: “China can win an energy trade war with the US.” Finally, Reuters reports on analysis by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) that concludes Trump’s plan to revive decommissioned coal plants makes “no economic sense”.

Australian shadow climate minister Ted O’Brien has confirmed that the right-leaning Coalition he is part of remains committed to the Paris Agreement, shortly after he refused to rule out withdrawing if they win the upcoming federal election, ABC News reports. Nevertheless, O’Brien described Australia’s chances of hitting its emissions target under the agreement of a 43% reduction by 2030 as “pure fantasy”, the article says. O’Brien’s comments “indicated the Coalition favoured lower targets, which would require repealing or amending Labor’s climate laws and submitting new goals to the UN”, the Guardian says. The Coalition is not setting out either a 2030 or 2035 climate target at the election, stating that it will only do so when in power, based on an assessment of the economy, the newspaper explains. The Labor government is due to submit a 2035 climate target, but is awaiting advice from government advisors at the Climate Change Authority, the article notes. It adds that, despite the Coalition claims that Labor is misleading the public about the chances of reaching the 43% goal, the most recent government analysis “showed emissions were projected to fall at least 42.6% on 2005 levels by the end of the decade”. An article in the Conversation by Tony Wood, energy programme director at the Grattan Institute, says Australia will “have to work hard” to meet the target. He writes: “The government’s projection assumes it achieves its target of 82% renewable electricity generation by 2030 – possible but very challenging from about 45% today.”

Meanwhile, Dutton has vowed to end Labor’s “car and ute tax”, meaning he will get rid of fines for companies that sell too many high-emissions vehicles, the Australian Daily Telegraph reports. The policy involves an annual cap on emissions across a manufacturer’s fleet of new cars “to incentivise manufacturers to ship electric cars and hybrids to Australia”, the Guardian explains. The newspaper says Labor prime minister Anthony Albanese “mocked” the announcement, suggesting it contradicted his push to lower fuel costs for motorists, given the policy’s role in promoting more fuel-efficient vehicles.

In other news, Bloomberg reports that “just four days” before calling the federal election last month, Albanese’s government “quietly pushed back” a decision on whether or not to extend the life of the country’s biggest and oldest liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facility. With a decision either way bound to trigger a “backlash”, the North West Shelf project “has become a symbol of the difficult choices facing one of the world’s largest energy exporters”, the article says. Meanwhile, the Guardian reports on BOC, a major industrial gas company in Australia, which plans to shift its power use away from fossil fuels and “instead meet nearly half its electricity needs across three states from solar”. The Financial Times reports that Australian mining companies are well placed to provide rare Earth metals needed for many energy sectors, amid the escalating trade war between the US and China. Finally, Felicity Wade, a co-convenor of the Labor Environment Action Network, has a comment article in the Guardian calling on Labor to prioritise the “Australian extinction crisis” and general environmental decline, as well as climate change.

Four Republican senators are calling to preserve energy tax credits included in the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in the upcoming budget reconciliation bill, according to a letter seen by Bloomberg. The letter, sent to Senate majority leader John Thune by senators from Utah, Alaska, Kansas and North Carolina, urges the consideration of factors such as “domestic manufacturing, reduction of utility bills and certainty for businesses”, the article notes. The IRA, which supports renewable energy and electric vehicles, has been “a target for Republicans hunting for ways to pay for extending President Donald Trump’s tax cuts”, the article notes. However, it explains that “Republicans effectively won’t be able to pass their tax agenda” without these four senators, as the party’s majority means it “can have no more than three defections”. The letter follows a similar letter by 21 Republicans in the US House of Representatives that “urged Congressional leaders and the White House to protect certain clean energy tax credits”, Reuters notes.

Meanwhile, a comment article in the Washington Post by Francis Rooney, a former Republican congressman from Florida and US ambassador to the Holy See, praises the Trump administration’s efforts to cut “wasteful green spending” through “Elon Musk’s US DOGE Service”. He says he supports climate action and suggests that the government “should streamline federal climate programmes and push to replace them with a simple carbon tax”.

“Sources” have told BBC News that the UK government has offered to buy the coking coal that is essential to keep steel production going at the British Steel site in Scunthorpe. The company has been warning that it is on the verge of running out of the coal needed to keep its two blast furnaces running, according to the news outlet. The government’s offer to purchase the raw materials is “a way for it to buy time” while negotiations with British Steel’s Chinese owner Jingye over the future of the plant continue, it explains. The article adds that the government “has not ruled out nationalising British Steel, which employs 2,700 people, saying all options remain on the table”. The Financial Times says that, last month, Jingye rejected a £500m support package from the government “to help it move to greener forms of production”. The story is covered in a double-page spread in the Daily Mail, which states in its headline: “Millions on coal from Japan to save our steel: Net-zero ‘madness’ as taxpayers foot the bill to keep furnaces burning.” The article points out that the news comes “just months” after energy secretary Ed Miliband “declared he had banned new coal mines in Britain to ‘send a signal to the world’ on climate change”.

In more UK news, the Times reports that prime minister Keir Starmer is set to approve investment for the construction of the Sizewell C nuclear plant in Suffolk ahead of the June spending review. The newspaper says Starmer will also announce the outcome of a competition to develop mini nuclear power stations, as part of plans to build a “fleet” of them alongside larger projects. The Independent also has the story.

Finally, the Guardian reports that the UK government is “considering expanding the boiler upgrade grant scheme for England and Wales” so that it covers sources of low-carbon heating for domestic homes other than heat pumps, such as heat batteries.

There is continuing coverage of the coalition agreement that has been finalised to form Germany’s next government. According to Frankfurter Rundschau, the deal between the CDU/CSU (Union) and SPD – formed 45 days after the federal election – prioritises economic growth and “technological optimism” over climate protection. The newspaper explains that the Building Energy Act (GEG) is to be revised to become “more technology-neutral, flexible and simpler”, rather than pushing for a rapid transition to renewables in buildings. The coalition also plans to support the construction of 20,000 megawatts of new gas-fired power plants, reduce electricity prices and accelerate legislation on carbon capture and storage (CCS), notes the outlet. Table.Media details that the CDU/CSU and SPD have devoted eight out of 144 pages to energy and climate. While the new government commits to net-zero by 2045 and the European Green Deal, its approach emphasises “market instruments, technical solutions and reduction of bureaucracy”, says the outlet. 

Meanwhile, Der Tagesspiegel reports that CSU leader Markus Söder “has abandoned his demands for a return to nuclear energy in Germany” following the coalition negotiations. “Nuclear energy could no longer be made possible,” said Söder yesterday in Munich, summarising the negotiations with CDU and SPD.

Finally, Handelsblatt reports that the German economy and climate action ministry “is preparing” for a possible “US demand” to bring the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines back into operation. 

China’s total coal consumption will “enter a peak plateau period” around 2028, according to China National Coal Association (CNCA) spokesperson Zhang Hong, business newswire Jiemian reports. The outlet quotes Zhang as saying that this does not mean consumption will “directly decline” after this period as there may still be “fluctuations over the next 5-10 years”. Zhang said coal consumption will “only enter a stage of significant decline” by 2035 or 2040, it adds. Another CNCA representative said the power industry in China will “witness a continued uptick in coal consumption”, estimating an increase of 100,000 gigawatt-hours (GWh) in 2025, according to state-run newspaper China Daily. China’s oil imports from Iran surged to an “all-time high” last month amid fears that further US sanctions on Tehran could “tighten supplies”, Reuters reports.

Meanwhile, industry news outlet BJX News says that, as US tariffs on China reach “104%” [the current figure is now 145%], overseas markets are trying to “reshape the global solar landscape” through tariffs and subsidies. BJX News says major Chinese wind turbine manufacturers will “not be impacted” by US tariffs. Business news outlet Yicai reports that exports from China’s leading wind-turbine maker, Goldwind, “reached a record high last year”. Jiemian reports that China will include “high-purity quartz”, used to make solar cells, in its “national strategic mineral resource catalogue”, adding that China is “highly dependent” on importing the material. Financial news outlet Caixin publishes a commentary by Transition Asia analyst Chen Yunyou and Shuang Tan newsletter editor Liu Hongqiao arguing China’s aluminum industry can turn challenges such as the US tariffs into decarbonisation “opportunities”.

Elsewhere, International Energy Net reports that National Energy Administration (NEA) head Wang Hongzhi told South African minister of electricity and energy Kgosientsho Ramokgopa that China is willing to “share [its] technology” and experience in renewable energy development. The St Kitts & Nevis Observer says Barbados’ government “welcome[s]” Chinese investment in “green energy”. Dialogue Earth says the issuance of Chinese green sovereign bonds in London could “spur international investment in green projects in China”.

In other news, the Paper quotes Chinese climate envoy Liu Zhenmin saying climate change is a “challenge and an opportunity”, adding that environmental-protection industries are the “core engine of the green transition”. Research on “risk control for hydrogen transportation via pipelines” must be enhanced, China Daily cites experts as saying. Finally, state news agency Xinhua reports that Chinese researchers have conducted a new study on the potential risks of “snowmelt floods” in north-western China, adding that “global climate warming” has increased the damage of snowmelt floods.

An editorial in the Guardian calls for the UK government to nationalise British Steel to preserve the last remaining steel manufacturing in Scunthorpe. “Launch a green steel transition – with public oversight, investment in new technologies and workforce planning,” it urges the government. The editorial notes that closing the last remaining steel blast furnaces would mean the UK is the only G7 country without a virgin steel industry. It notes that making virgin steel is “carbon intensive” and says moving to using electric arc furnaces (EAFs), with lower emissions, “seems imperative”. The article explains that “the UK steel industry faces a structural crisis, not just a climate one…The global shift to EAFs reflects not just lower emissions but far higher productivity”. At the same time, it points out that this new technology is not a direct substitute for blast furnaces, as they use scrap to make steel rather than virgin iron. It concludes: “Britain risks losing competitiveness and industrial sovereignty. A genuine green transition means rethinking steelmaking from the ground up – not simply shutting furnaces.”

According to a Daily Telegraph editorial about the potentially imminent closure of British Steel, “this story encapsulates the sheer madness of modern British industrial strategy hamstrung as it is by the pursuit of unfeasible green targets”. The editorial also argues that the UK should have gone ahead opening up more coal mining to provide coking coal for steel production, rather than relying on imports. Ultimately, however, the Daily Telegraph agrees with the Guardian, stating that “green” steel from EAFs will not be sufficient for the UK’s needs and that the end of primary steelmaking in the country “cannot be allowed to happen”.

The Sun blames the troubles facing the Scunthorpe facility on the “eco lunacy of energy ­secretary Ed Miliband”. Specifically, it points to Miliband’s “ban” on a proposed new coal mine in Cumbria, which was intended to produce coal for steelmaking. “When will [prime minister] Keir Starmer wake up to this menace at the heart of his cabinet?” it asks, referring to Miliband. Similarly, the Daily Mail has an editorial titled “Miliband must be hauled over the coals”, in which it stresses the “sheer lunacy” of Labour’s energy policy.

New research finds that heatwaves below the surface of lakes have been increasing in frequency, intensity and duration since 1980. Researchers use models to study subsurface heatwaves in more than 16,450 lakes around the world, then select around 100 lakes to focus their analysis on. They find that bottom heatwaves have increased in frequency by 7.2 days per decade and in duration by 2.1 days per decade. They add: “By the end of the century, changes in heatwave patterns, particularly under high emissions, are projected to intensify.”

European bird species with narrower “climatic niches” – meaning a smaller range of climates they can tolerate – are more likely to be in decline than species with broader climatic tolerance, according to a new study. Using the ranges of 159 European bird species, scientists determine the climatic niche of each species and investigate the interplay between the climatic niche and long-term population trends. They find that a combination of range size and climatic niche breath “can help predict which species may be more vulnerable to population declines”.