Media Center

Governor Newsom Stands Up to Big Oil, Protecting California Communities and Taxpayers

October 7, 2023 Press ReleaseSacramento

In a strong move to hold oil companies responsible for the economic and public health dangers of oil wells left idle and unplugged, Governor Gavin Newsom has signed AB 1167, the “Orphan Well Prevention Act,” into law. This bill, authored…

EPA Cuts HFC Use in Air Conditioning, Supermarket Refrigerators

October 6, 2023 Press ReleaseWashington, D.C.

WASHINGTON – In a move supported by both environmental groups and industry associations, the Environmental Protection Agency finalized standards that will phase out the most climate-warming hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) in key applications -- from aerosols to heat pumps; supermarket refrigerators to…

EPA Launches Civil Rights Investigation into Alabama Department of Environmental Management Over Sanitation Inequity in Black Communities 

October 4, 2023 Press ReleaseAlabama

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) yesterday opened a federal civil rights investigation to examine whether the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) has discriminated in its distribution of funding for wastewater infrastructure and withheld resources from communities of color that…

CA Department of Transportation Investments Fail to Align with State Climate Goals, New NRDC Report Finds

October 4, 2023 Press ReleaseSacramento

Analysis from Closing the Climate Investment Gap, a groundbreaking new report from NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) on California’s state transportation infrastructure investments, shows a distinct misalignment between budgetary allocations and the state’s overarching climate goals.

Laphonza Butler a “Values-Driven Leader”

October 3, 2023 Press ReleaseWashington, D.C.

WASHINGTON – Laphonza Butler is scheduled to be sworn in to fill the U.S. Senate seat formerly held by the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California.

President Biden Can Take Action to Eliminate Shipping Emissions and Advance Environmental Justice

October 2, 2023 Press ReleaseWashington, D.C.

In a letter sent to President Biden on World Maritime Day, 32 organizations called for an Executive Order to decarbonize maritime shipping. The Biden administration has already made significant commitments to eliminate emissions from the shipping industry, as well as…

Exposing Even More Gulf Waters to Drilling “is the last thing we need – and the last place we need it.”

September 29, 2023 Press ReleaseWashington, D.C.

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration announced plans to expand the waters available in the Gulf of Mexico to oil and gas drilling, as part of the new five-year leasing plan that will take effect in 2024.

California Could Lose Hundreds of Millions of Dollars for Lead Contamination Protections (Again)

September 29, 2023 Press ReleaseSacramento

Public health and environmental organizations urged stronger State leadership in efforts to remove lead from drinking water infrastructure throughout California. In a support letter, the organizations called on the California State Water Resources Control Board to address the state’s disturbing…

NRDC: Feinstein Sounded a “Clarion Call” for Climate Action

September 29, 2023 Press ReleaseUnited States

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-CA., has died.

Asm. Carrillo and Over 100 Organizations Call on Governor Newsom to Sign AB 1167, the Orphan Well Prevention Act

September 27, 2023 Press ReleaseLos Angeles

Today, Assemblymember Carrillo and over a dozen advocates with climate, community and environmental justice organizations held a press conference to call on Governor Gavin Newsom to hold oil companies accountable by signing the Orphan Well Prevention Act, AB 1167, into law…

FERC Demands Gas Reliability Legislation following “Unprecedented” Gas Outages in Winter Storm Elliott

September 21, 2023 Press ReleaseWashington, D.C.

WASHINGTON – Today the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and North American Reliability Corporation (NERC) released a much-awaited report assessing the failures of gas generators throughout the eastern U.S. during Winter Storm Elliott, concluding that Congress and state legislatures need…

NRDC Digital Tool Tracks Political Opposition to Offshore Drilling

September 21, 2023 Press ReleaseWashington, D.C.

WASHINGTON – NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) is launching an updated digital tool today to help people track where their Members of Congress stand on offshore oil and gas drilling. The Biden administration is expected to release a final five-year plan for federal…

Conservation Corps Represents a New Generation of National Service

September 20, 2023 Press ReleaseUnited States

WASHINGTON – President Biden announced the creation of a new American Climate Corps—20,000 strong—to train a new generation in the skills required to confront the climate crisis.

Incredible Beast Omnimedia and NRDC Team Up to “Face Plant” Nick Offerman

September 20, 2023 Press ReleaseUnited States

NEW YORK —Actor, author and woodworker Nick Offerman takes on his dirtiest role to date, starring in an NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) campaign created and produced by Incredible Beast Omnimedia in which Offerman, who hails from a farming family in Minooka…

Green Banks Hold Promise for Equitable Climate Solutions in US and Globally

September 19, 2023 Press ReleaseUnited States

NEW YORK – The United States and countries around the world are poised to exponentially increase investments to accelerate the clean energy transition, according to participants at a Climate Week green bank event today in New York City, featuring a…

Sustainability Is Disrupting the Toilet Paper and Tissue Market, Finds NRDC’s “Issue with Tissue” 2023 Report & Scorecard

September 19, 2023 Press ReleaseWashington, D.C.

NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) today released the fifth edition of its Issue with Tissue report and sustainability scorecard (grading at-home toilet paper brands from “A+” to “F”).

EPA Ensures States, Tribes Can Protect Their Waterways from Harm

September 14, 2023 Press ReleaseWashington, D.C.

WASHINGTON – The Environmental Protection Agency finalized a rule today that restores the ability of states and authorized Tribes to weigh in on federally permitted projects that could pollute or harm their waters, and to limit their adverse impacts. EPA…

Minnesota Declares Sept. 14 “Clean Grid Day”

September 14, 2023 Press ReleaseMinneapolis

MINNEAPOLIS (September 14, 2023) – Today, as members of Minnesota’s grid operator Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) meet in Minneapolis to discuss the future of the Midwestern grid, Gov. Tim Walz declared September 14 “Clean Grid Day.” At the beginning…

Orphan Wells Bill Advances One Step Closer to Governor's Desk

September 14, 2023 Press ReleaseSacramento

California’s senate has approved AB 1167, a bill a by Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo called the Orphan Well Prevention Act, which NRDC and Environment California are sponsoring. The act is designed to intervene before oil wells become “orphaned” without a financially…

House Majority Fiddles While Climate Crisis Burns

September 14, 2023 Press ReleaseWashington, D.C.

WASHINGTON – After months of climate-fueled disasters around the nation and facing a deadline in just a few weeks to pass a budget, the House Majority instead wasted time today voting on a measure to try and prevent states from…