News & Commentary

Taxpayers Still on Hook for Oil and Gas Clean-up, Despite New Rule

September 25, 2023 Expert BlogTexas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, AlaskaRebecca Ramirez

BOEM's proposed rule falls short in requiring oil and gas companies to demonstrate they are financially able to fully remove and clean up platforms & pipelines.

DOE Shrugs as U.S. Natural Gas Exports Surge

August 11, 2023 Expert BlogLouisiana, Texas, Florida, Alaska, New Jersey, PennsylvaniaGillian Giannetti, Morgan Johnson

A decade-long expansion of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminals has transformed American energy policy, altered the domestic and international gas market, and raised serious questions for climate health and communities. Yet when the U.S. government weighs these critical…

N.C. Offshore Wind Surveys Advance with Protections for Right Whales

August 11, 2023 Expert BlogNorth CarolinaDr. Francine Kershaw

NRDC is pleased to see that initial offshore wind planning surveys close to right whale calving habitat will be undertaken with protective measures in place.

North Carolina's Opportunity for Clean and Equitable Transportation

August 8, 2023 Expert BlogNorth CarolinaCoral Lin

How North Carolina can leverage the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act (BIL) to secure climate, health, and economic benefits for all

Mapping Urban Heat Islands Is Helping These Neighborhoods Adapt

August 1, 2023 DispatchRaleigh, North Carolina, United StatesCourtney Lindwall

The Urban Heat Island mapping campaign is the largest national effort of its kind to identify why one section of a city can feel so different from another on any given summer day.

Winter Storm Elliott Report Highlights the Risk of Natural Gas Failures

July 20, 2023 Expert BlogUnited States, East, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, TexasDana Ammann

PJM’s report on Winter Storm Elliott found that gas generators were responsible for 70 percent of forced outages during December 2022. Climate change will only intensify future severe weather. 

Extreme Heat Costs North Carolina Employers and Workers

July 6, 2023 Expert BlogNorth CarolinaJuanita Constible

North Carolina workers urgently need formal standards to protect them from the costly health consequences of extreme heat.

Renewables and Storage Hold Their Own in the Texas Heat Dome

July 5, 2023 Expert BlogTexasJohn Moore

No fossil fuels, no problem? Texas investments in wind and solar pay off, generating record-breaking renewable power to meet all-time high electricity demand during nearly 10-day heat dome—despite fossil fuel plant failures.

Community Science Is Changing How People Can Fight Pollution

May 23, 2023 PerspectivesHouston, Texas, St. Louis, Missouri, Chicago, IllinoisCourtney Lindwall

Grassroots groups are collecting their own pollution data to increase accountability and demand environmental justice.

Study Shows 14,000 Unplugged Oil and Gas Wells in Gulf of Mexico

May 23, 2023 Expert BlogTexas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, FloridaRebecca Loomis, Rebecca Ramirez

Industry has neglected thousands of unused oil and gas wells in the Gulf of Mexico. They will cost an estimated $30 billion to plug and decommission.

Rate Increases and Blackouts: Duke Energy’s Strategy for 2023

April 6, 2023 Expert BlogNorth Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, EastLuis Martinez

Duke failed to keep the lights on last December, but it is now pursuing enormous rate increases of more than 30 percent to help pay for fossil fuels and huge executive salary raises.

Holding Interior to Account on Gulf Oil and Gas Leasing

March 6, 2023 Expert BlogAlabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, TexasIrene Gutierrez

Continuing to extract oil and gas in the Gulf of Mexico will have a steep price for the environment and coastal communities in the region. That's why NRDC and our partners took BOEM to court.

Cover Crops for Every Climate

February 17, 2023 Expert BlogWest, Midwest, East, Maine, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Idaho, New Mexico, TexasLara Bryant, Dr. Daniel Rath

Cover crops are adaptable, valuable, and effective enough that farmers can benefit from them in every region of the United States—even cold or dry areas.

North Carolina Advances Right to Know Flood Disclosure

February 15, 2023 Expert BlogNorth CarolinaJoel Scata

Smart action by the North Carolina Real Estate Commission will empower home buyers to make fully informed decisions about where to live and how to best protect their families.

North Carolina’s First Carbon Plan is a Dud—What Now?

January 30, 2023 Expert BlogNorth CarolinaLuis Martinez

The North Carolina Utilities Commission tries to make a decision without making any decisions in its new North Carolina Carbon Plan.

The Clean Energy Future: How We Get There Matters

November 21, 2022 Expert BlogNorth Carolina, United StatesDr. Anna Reade, Dr. Katie Pelch

A clean and sustainable energy future is needed for addressing climate change, but how we get there matters. In the midst of global efforts to clean up and eliminate the use of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (“PFAS”), Chemours is doubling…

Recent Chemical Disasters Impel Stronger Federal Safety Regs

October 25, 2022 Expert BlogUnited States, New Jersey, Louisiana, North CarolinaSahana Rao

It’s Time to Transition Away from Offshore Oil Leasing

October 6, 2022 Expert BlogAlaska, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, FloridaIrene Gutierrez

Compost, Rodents, and Bears—Oh My!

October 5, 2022 Expert BlogNorth CarolinaDarby Hoover

The Heat Was On and Our Power Grid Held: But Will It Next Time?

October 4, 2022 Expert BlogCalifornia, TexasChristy Walsh

It wasn’t easy, but the U.S. power grid defied record-breaking heatwaves and doomsday warnings to survive the summer without major service interruptions.