California legislators late Monday approved extending the state’s tough measures to fight climate change to 2030, a major victory for Democratic Governor Jerry Brown. The “cap-and-trade” measure — which cuts greenhouse gas emissions by using free market methods — was approved by the state Assembly and Senate by a two-thirds majority. Brown, a 79 year-old … Read more
Indian conglomerate Mahindra Group plans to double its US investment in the next five years, where it is hoping to its two-wheel electric scooters will win over American millennials. “We’re very bullish,” executive chairman Anand Mahindra told reporters. “We’re going to double our bets here.” The company plans $1 billion in additional investment, executives said. … Read more
Wildfires roared Sunday across much of California, forcing thousands to evacuate homes as the most populous US state sweltered in record heat and flames menaced thousands of structures. Some 8,000 people were sent fleeing as thousands of firefighters were battling 14 large wildfires throughout the state, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire … Read more
Wildfires raged Sunday across much of California forcing hundreds to evacuate homes as the most populous US state sweltered in record heat. About 5,000 fire crew members were battling 14 large wildfires around the state, according to Cal Fire. Among the largest was the Alamo fire in San Luis Obispo county, about midway between San … Read more
The first major wildfires after the end of California’s five-year drought raged across the state Saturday as it was gripped by a record-breaking heatwave. Around 2,300 firefighters were battling several blazes with triple-digit temperatures recorded in valleys and inland areas. A wildfire in the Sierra Nevada foothills north of Sacramento was only two percent contained … Read more
As the United States was withdrawing from the Paris climate pact, China’s clean energy ambitions were being reflected in the launch of the world’s largest floating solar farm. The 40-megawatt power plant has 160,000 panels resting on a lake that emerged after the collapse of a coal mine in central Anhui province. It is part … Read more
China treated a US governor to a red carpet reception this week, while President Donald Trump’s energy chief received a low-key greeting, a signal that Beijing is ready to go around the White House in the battle against climate change. Since Trump’s decision to pull the United States out of the Paris climate deal, China … Read more
US Energy Secretary Rick Perry called for Sino-US cooperation on clean energy during a visit to Beijing Thursday, a week after President Donald Trump’s much-criticised withdrawal from the Paris climate pact. Trump’s decision has jolted the international community and could put China, the world’s top carbon emitter, in a position to fill the leadership void … Read more
Failure to step up action against global warming would be “disastrous”, California Governor Jerry Brown warned Tuesday as he seeks to fill the US leadership vacuum on climate change. Brown was speaking in Beijing where he is hoping to drum up Chinese support for his state’s aggressive efforts to curb emissions in the wake of … Read more
California stands poised to fill the US leadership vacuum in the battle against climate change, analysts say, as the state’s governor Jerry Brown headed to China on Friday for a high-profile visit largely centered on environmental issues. No sooner had President Donald Trump made his announcement on Thursday to pull out of the landmark Paris … Read more
The US exit from the Paris climate pact is a gift to China’s ambitions to become world leader on everything from trade to global warming, despite its own mixed record. Beijing appeared well aware of the opening that it was given as it vowed to uphold the deal to cut carbon emissions after President Donald … Read more
When President Donald Trump announced America’s abandonment of the Paris climate deal Thursday, saying he was elected to represent “Pittsburgh, not Paris,” several US cities and states responded with a defiant counter-declaration: We’re staying in. “As the Mayor of Pittsburgh, I can assure you that we will follow the guidelines of the Paris Agreement for … Read more
Democratic state governors from California, New York and Washington formed an immediate alliance Thursday committed to countering climate change, defying Donald Trump’s announcement that the United States was leaving the 2015 Paris accord. The three states represent more than one-fifth of US gross domestic product, are home to 68 million people, or nearly one in … Read more
One of the worst droughts in California history has officially ended, Governor Jerry Brown declared, but not before it strained the state’s farm economy and threatened water supplies for millions of residents. Governor Brown’s announcement on Friday covered the bulk of the state, leaving only the counties of Fresno, Kings, Tulare and Toulomne under restriction. … Read more
California Governor Jerry Brown declared Friday the official end of the state’s drought that lasted more than five years. Despite lifting the drought emergency in all but four counties, the governor kept in place water reporting requirements, as well as bans on practices like watering during or following rainfall and hosing off sidewalks. “This drought … Read more
California’s governor announced Friday a $437 million plan for flood control and emergency response following a recent crisis in which the tallest dam in the United States nearly failed, causing massive evacuations. Almost 200,000 people fled their homes more than a week ago after flooding and increased water levels at the Oroville Dam in northern … Read more
Almost 200,000 people were under evacuation orders Monday after damage to the auxiliary spillway of a dam in northern California raised fears the structure could fail and unleash torrential waters. The reservoir of the Oroville Dam, located 75 miles (120 kilometers) north of the state capital Sacramento, had been completely full after several weeks of … Read more
More than 180,000 people in northern California have been told to evacuate their homes after an overflow channel at the tallest dam in the US was weakened by heavy rainfall. The emergency spillway of the 770 ft (230m) tall Oroville Dam was close to collapse, officials said. The excess water has now stopped flowing. However, … Read more
A student at a top US university whose six-month jail sentence for sexually assaulting an unconscious woman in 2015 was widely criticised for being too lenient has been released from prison. Brock Turner, 21, who was a swimming champion, assaulted the woman outside a Stanford University fraternity house. He was freed from the Santa Clara … Read more