** Tuesday marked the Earth’s hottest day ever recorded, according to the University of Maine’s Climate Change Institute. Worldwide temperatures on July 4averaged 62.92 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the institute, which extrapolated from more than 40 decades of data from the U.S. National Centers for Climate Prediction.
** A new federal study estimates that toxic “forever chemicals” can be found in nearly half of U.S. tap water.
** Globs of asphalt binder that spilled into Montana’s Yellowstone River during a bridge collapse and train derailment could be seen on islands and riverbanks downstream from Yellowstone National Park a week after the spill occurred, witnesses report. Officials with the Environmental Protection Agency said cleanup efforts began on Sunday, with workers cooling the gooey material with river water, rolling it up and putting the globs into garbage bags.
** The Biden administration’s climate agenda is facing an unexpected challenge in drought-prone Corpus Christi, Texas, where a proposed clean hydrogen hub would require the installation of energy-intensive, expensive and potentially environmentally damaging seawater desalination plants.
** The EPA contends TPC Group’s Houston plastics plant is at risk of an explosion, similar to its 2019 explosion at its petrochemical plant in Port Neches, Texas…a fire that burned for more than a month.
** The federal government gave the go-ahead Wednesday for New Jersey’s first offshore wind farm to begin construction, clearing the way for the first of at least three — and likely many more — such projects in a state trying to become the East Coast leader in wind energy.
** High-ranking Senate Republicans are calling for the nation’s top energy regulator to immediately assess the impact President Biden’s crackdown on fossil fuel power plants will have on electric grid reliability. The two Republicans — Energy and Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member John Barrasso, R-Wyo., and Environment and Public Works Committee Ranking Member Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va. — penned a letter Wednesday to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) four members.
** Washington gasoline prices have surpassed those of California to become the most expensive in the country as drivers there bear the brunt of the state’s effort to cut carbon emissions. Gasoline prices in Washington have risen to $4.98 a gallon, according to data from auto club AAA. Until this summer, Washington prices have been below California for more than nine years.
World
** Cutting oil and gas production would be “dangerous and irresponsible”, the boss of energy giant Shell has told the BBC. Wael Sawan insisted that the world still “desperately needs oil and gas” as moves to renewable energy were not happening fast enough to replace it.
** A Canadian utility is starting early work to expand a nuclear plant, potentially building the world’s biggest facility as growing demand for clean energy spurs interest in atomic energy.
** Venezuela’s state oil giant is parting ways with an old ally who once helped to break a strike that was aimed at bringing down the regime of late president Hugo Chavez. PDVSA canceled a contract with Maroil Trading Inc., according to the trading firm’s owner, Venezuelan shipping magnate Wilmer Ruperti.
** Lamborghini is all sold out of gas-powered supercars, its CEO told the German outlet Welt. The Italian brand is electrifying its entire lineup, starting with plug-in hybrids. Lamborghini plans to launch its first electric vehicle later this decade.
** Japan warned Tuesday it will oppose any violations of World Trade Organization rules and other international agreements as China tightens export controls on two metals needed to make chips for the telecom and electric-vehicle sectors.
** 63 cruise ships owned by Carnival Corp. emitted more sulfur oxides than all the cars in Europe in 2022. That’s according to a recent study from The European Federation for Transport and Environment.
** Chevron Corporation CVX and its Israeli partners in the Leviathan project announced their plans to construct a third pipeline in order to increase production from the gas field. With an investment of approximately $568 million, this strategic move highlights CVX’s commitment to meeting growing energy demands.