Affirmative action decision could derail environmental justice

ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE: The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn affirmative action in college admissions could encourage more lawsuits against the Biden administration’s environmental justice efforts, legal scholars say. (Inside Climate News)

POLITICS:
• The U.S. Senate returns from recess and resumes permitting reform negotiations as lawmakers say an agreement remains far off. (E&E News)
• An advocacy group pushing a politically unlikely carbon tax gives oil and gas giants ​“the opportunity to say that they’ve done something” on climate without actually being held accountable, advocates say. (Guardian)

CLIMATE:
• As record heat swamps the U.S., advocates and officials push the Biden administration to appoint a chief heat officer to manage its response. (Guardian)
• Meteorologists say they’ve faced increasing pushback and abuse as they link worsening storms and heat to climate change. (Associated Press)
• Minnesota will use a $3 million federal climate planning grant to help make sure the state’s climate strategies will benefit lower-income communities. (Energy News Network)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Tire and brake pollution is contributing to increasing numbers of heart and lung disease — a problem that could worsen as heavier electric vehicles wear down tires more quickly. (Washington Post)
• More than 92,000 electric vehicles are in stock throughout the U.S., more than triple the number available last year. (Axios)

OIL & GAS: An expert discusses a new study that finds U.S. oil and gas production is responsible for $77 billion annually in health impacts nationwide, with Texas among the states with the most health damages. (Texas Standard)

CLEAN ENERGY: A federal report finds a handful of Western states lead the nation for the number of solar and wind-related jobs per capita. (Canary Media)

GRID:
• Wind and solar are helping to prop up the Texas state power grid through record-breaking summer temperatures, but experts say grid constraints are limiting their output. (Inside Climate News)
• High temperatures and an electric grid in transition combine for a summer likely to influence future energy policy decisions in Texas and beyond. (E&E News)
• A utility industry report predicts Pacific Northwest electricity demand will increase by nearly 25% in the coming decade, primarily driven by data centers and semiconductor manufacturing. (OPB)

WIND: Wyoming’s Carbon County — historically a large coal, oil and gas producer — embraces an under-construction 3,000 MW wind power facility and associated transmission project. (Wyoming Public Radio)

CARBON CAPTURE: Democrats, Republicans, climate change deniers and environmental groups have aligned in their opposition to using eminent domain for carbon pipelines in South Dakota. (South Dakota Searchlight)

GRID: In New York, storms cause two separate lithium-ion battery energy storage systems to ignite on Long Island, rekindling safety concerns among local residents. (SI Advance)

COMMENTARY: A California editorial board says a new all-electric subdivision equipped with solar-plus-storage ​“offers a glimpse of the zero-emission future we should be hurtling toward.” (Los Angeles Times)