Economy & Business

"Wearing a lab coat, Eve Vitale asked a chemistry class at Warren Mott High School if anyone had heard anything bad about plastics. Hands shot up. It doesn’t degrade, said one student. It hurts the environment, said another. But “that’s not really the plastic’s fault,” said Vitale, chief executive of the Society of Plastics Engineers Foundation, a group of industry professionals. “That’s the fault of humanity.”"

"After a year of record-breaking air pollution from wildfire smoke, real estate brokerage Redfin has begun publishing air quality data in its home listings. Now, buyers can see how many days a year on average a particular area will experience poor air quality, and whether that number is projected to increase over time."

"Climate activists led the charge against LNG exports, but they’re not the only ones celebrating Biden’s pause."

"As states across the country roll back how much they pay rooftop-solar owners for the surplus electricity they send back to the grid, Puerto Rico is bucking the trend, protecting its generous solar credits until at least the end of the decade."

"A federal bank that finances projects overseas is set to vote on Thursday on whether to use taxpayer dollars to help drill oil and gas wells in Bahrain, a contentious decision that prompted two of the bank’s climate advisers to resign, according to people with knowledge of their decisions."

"Clean electricity alone won’t get us to a fossil-fuel-free society — we’ll need other tools to fully decarbonize. ​“Clean” hydrogen, for all of its hype and baggage, might be the most promising way to cut carbon from difficult sectors like aviation and steelmaking. It could also be a boondoggle or a bust — it all depends on how the gas is made and how it’s used."

"They vowed to fix water woes and save cities millions. But a Times investigation found the deals racked up debt and left many worse off than before."

"The changes come as Republican lawmakers step up efforts to punish businesses that consider climate change and the environment in their operations."

"A group of 25 California counties have sued Elon Musk's Tesla, claiming the electric vehicle maker mishandled hazardous waste at its facilities across the state."