The New York Times reports that the Trump Administration is going to dismantle an important ocean-monitoring network operated by the National Science Foundation. The system was installed in 2016 and was expected to operate for at least 25 years. Buoys and associated drones collect data that track greenhouse-gas absorption by the ocean, marine heat waves, impacts on weather and fisheries and coastal flooding along the East Coast. ‟A station in the Irminger Sea has been key to understanding changes in the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Current, a global conveyor belt of water that some scientists are concerned may be weakening as a result of climate warming. A collapse of the current could have severe weather effects.” Moorings on the Pacific Coast measure data that is ‟key to predicting climate-related environmental changes as well as the health of the region’s commercial fishing industry.”

Scientists told The Guardian that the decision will ‟‘severely degrade’ the accuracy of weather predictions and El Niño forecasts, with economic consequences for the US.” A recent research paper, anticipating the Trump Administration’s action, concludes that ‟removing US observations alone would produce a 163% increase in error for annual ocean heating rates,” reducing the accuracy of forecasts and early-warning systems for storms. Losing this system means we will struggle to track the climate system as a whole, which appears to be Trump’s goal (the Administration’s stated purpose is a word salad that means nothing). Another scientist noted that the $48 million operating cost is a fraction of the many billions in damages from hurricanes and storms that hit the country. ‟The US suffered more than 400 climate and weather disasters where damages exceeded or reached $1bn, between 1980 and 2024. In 2024 alone, the costs of such disasters amounted to $177bn.”

The New York Times notes that Democratic members of Congress have expressed outrage over this decision, and plan to fight back to keep the system operating. ‟Defunding a program that helps researchers and scientists track these conditions is shortsighted and, ultimately, will end up costing American taxpayers more not less,” said Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen. Democrats see this as part of a broader effort by the Trump Administration to eliminate knowledge that documents climate change. Senator Edward Markey of Massachusetts noted: ‟the Trump administration thinks that burying the data will help them kill our momentum to take climate action.”

Meanwhile, The New York Times notes that the European Union recently announced a $107 million increase in funding for ocean-observing programs. This was long planned, rather than a response to the Trump Administration, but it shows how vital the EU considers ocean-monitoring data to its economic and political security.

Another step in Trump’s ‟Make America Poisonous Again” campaign: The New York Times reports that the Trump Administration will abandon the country’s first drinking-water standards for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS (also known as ‟forever chemicals”). ‟The Biden administration established the standards in 2024, after the EPA determined that long-term exposure to PFAS was linked to kidney cancer, immune system suppression, developmental delays in infants and children and other issues.” EPA Administrator Zeldin claims the procedure used by the previous Administration to create the regulations was flawed and the EPA would have lost a pending lawsuit. I would prefer the EPA to instead fight for the health of Americans before a judge.

Meanwhile, The New York Times notes that ‟President Trump announced on Thursday that his administration is easing restrictions on the potent planet-warming chemicals used in air-conditioners and refrigerators — restrictions put in place because of a bipartisan law Mr. Trump signed during his first term.” The phase-out of controls on hydrofluorocarbons is supposedly to lower grocery prices, but this appears to be totally bogus (gee, what a surprise). ‟Analysts said the move would do little to lower grocery costs, which are elevated because of tariffs, extreme weather and soaring fuel prices since the start of the conflict in Iran.” A Michigan State professor noted that ‟we’re talking about refrigeration, and that’s a very small share of the overall cost of food.”

The New York Times reports that April auto-sales data indicate a shift towards EVs in Europe, but not in the U.S. European sales of EVs rose 27% compared to last year, while sales of new electric vehicles in the U.S. were off 23% for the same time period. There was a slight rise in April EV sales in the U.S. compared to January/February, which indicates an impact of the rising costs of gasoline and diesel on consumers’ decisions. Sales of used EVs jumped 17%, ‟a sign that many buyers prefer the technology when they can afford it.” Grist reports that American auto buyers are responding to higher gas prices by purchasing hybrid cars rather than EVs. The main reason appears to be the higher upfront cost (about $6,000) of the EVs. This is a clear indication of the damage being done by the Trump Administration’s elimination of the EV rebate.

Canary Media notes that, while sales in the U.S. are lagging, EVs are taking over the world. ‟A record-breaking 28% of new cars sold this year will be battery-powered, according to new data from the International Energy Agency.” While many new cars are EVs, it’s worth remembering that they make up just about 5% of the global car fleet. Still, we’re well past the peak for gasoline car sales, and the trends greatly favor EVs. By 2035, ‟the IEA expects half the new cars sold worldwide to be EVs. In China and the E.U., 90% of new cars could be EVs by that time.”

Grist visits Michigan, where ‟flooding across northern Michigan last month pushed rivers to record levels, testing the limits of the state’s aging dams so severely that officials in one city nearly ordered evacuations as water threatened to spill over the top of a key barrier — a close call that highlights the growing risk that intensifying storms pose to similar infrastructure around the country.” The average age of dams in the U.S. is 64 years, and virtually all of them were constructed to operate in a climate that no longer exists. About 18% of the nation’s 92,000 dams are considered high-hazard. Repairing ‟all of these aging structures will cost more than $165.2 billion. In Michigan, that estimate is $1 billion.” The Guardian notes that, in addition to flooding, Michigan is experiencing a much higher frequency of tornadoes.

It is essential that new public infrastructure be built for the changing climate. As an example, the California State Water Resources Control Board describes the development and implementation of the Orestimba Creek Recharge and Recovery Project. This $16 million project captures and stores stormwater to protect against flooding, and uses the captured water to refill a critically over-drafted groundwater basin. ‟Already this winter, the project has moved more than 9,000 acre-feet of water underground, leading to groundwater levels that are higher than at any time since 2014.” One local expert notes: ‟For decades in this area we focused on moving water through our canals, reservoirs, major infrastructure. Now we are managing water in place. That’s what this really represents. It’s building long-term stability. So, when you look at this project, don’t just look at infrastructure. This didn’t happen by accident. We are adapting to the future.”

The New Yorker examines how climate change is altering the distribution of bacteria, including the ‟flesh eating” species Vibrio vulnificus. Since so many bacteria are undescribed or unstudied, we don’t even know how microbes will change as the world warms. We do know, however, that these changes will occur relatively quickly because of how fast microorganisms reproduce. Says one expert: ‟The gap between the rate of human evolution and the rate of microbial evolution is like the difference between a drifting tectonic plate and an F-16 fighter jet.” Another expert notes: “the real question is: How are we going to coexist with microbes that have adapted to the new world? In the near future, someone you know could be infected with climate-changed microbes.” Lovely.

In addition to forcing uneconomic, outdated coal-fired power plants to stay open, the Trump Administration is now making $700 million available to support these plants and to build new ones. This is kind of like building clipper ships to improve our trade with Europe. The New York Times reports that ‟Mr. Trump claims the move would help lower consumers’ energy bills with the power of clean, beautiful coal,” which is total malarkey. Trump took this action by invoking ‟a Korean War-era law called the Defense Production Act, which gives the president sweeping powers to bolster domestic industries deemed essential to national security.” The Department of Energy also announced that ‟it would use emergency authority to prevent the closure of a coal plant in Florida that had been slated to retire in June,” and Trump also announced $75 million for a new coal-export terminal in Oakland, California, a move that is opposed by local elected officials and other groups. Meanwhile, AP notes that, ‟in May, for the first time, solar supplied more of the nation’s electricity than coal, or 12.8%… Coal supplied 12.2%, its fourth-lowest monthly share ever.”

In a new low of censorship and oppression, ‟several diabetes experts were escorted out of an influential medical conference by the police on Friday after they handed out copies of an editorial criticizing the Trump administration’s attacks on scientific research.” As The New York Times reports, the incident took place at a meeting of the American Diabetes Association (ADA) in New Orleans, shortly before a Trump official was scheduled to speak. ‟The researchers were handing out copies of the editorial, recently published in the association’s flagship journal, which detailed the effects of N.I.H. cuts and other Trump administration actions on diabetes research and outcomes, when security staff asked them to step outside and tried to take away the papers.” Event organizers asked for the assistance of the Louisiana State Police, claiming ‟the distribution of materials was not permitted.” The researchers thought they were removed because the ADA feared retribution by the Trump Administration.

The editorial in Diabetes Care states: ‟It is no longer enough to stand idly by or work behind the scenes with lawmakers. It is no longer appropriate to fret about political backlash. Now is the time to recognize and fight to reverse the spiraling fall of the United States of America’s status as the foremost nation in health care innovation. As a nation, we must continue to believe in ensuring better health for all. A few brushes of a pen, some clearly visible through budget requests, others less so through internal machinations, are rapidly destroying what generations have built. We can no longer afford complacency and fear. We must all act now!” The editorial quotes Dr. Francis Collins, who served as Director of the National Institutes of Health under three Presidents. ‟Mix politics and science, you get politics. You kind of lose everything else.”

Three cheers for scientists in action! And for Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), whose interview in Yale e360 calls out the fossil-fuel industry’s deceit as the insurance crisis in Florida and Louisiana gets more severe. Florida is losing real-estate value annually, while large portions of Louisiana are being overtaken by the Gulf of Mexico (Bill McKibben reviews the great deceit of the fossil-fuel industry while considering the passing of Lee Raymond, former CEO of Exxon-Mobil and one of the architects of this deceit). Whitehouse delivered his 307th speech about climate change on the Senate floor last month. It’s an excellent summation of how the Trump Administration is costing Americans money by striving to prevent renewable energy from displacing fossil fuels.

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