Last night, I wished someone a happy Friday. So that’s how my week is going. To make matters worse, the article on a highly toxic pesticide that kills bees is stuck in my head. Shared below but balanced out with the other news in my inbox today.
??EPA expands use of pesticide ‘very highly toxic’ to bees (The Hill): “The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Friday it would allow for the expanded use of a pesticide it considers toxic to bees, a move that comes just days after the Trump administration said it was suspending data collection on bee populations,” according to reporting by The Hill. “The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced last week it was suspending one of the few remaining government data sets that monitor bee populations and loss.” ??
??Republicans take an important step back into the environmental debate (National Review): “Widely associated with climate-change skepticism, unquestioning support of the fossil-fuel industry, and the blind harvesting of resources, the GOP’s record on conservation is a bit rocky. But as voters become increasingly worried about the environment, Republicans on the Hill have finally realized that there is no time like the present to show some concern for the fate of the natural world,” writes Kayla Bartsch, an editorial intern at National Review. She goes on the detail the new Roosevelt Conservation Caucus and its mission “to reclaim [Teddy Roosevelt’s] legacy and point American conservatism back toward conservation efforts.” ??
??Carbon tax proposal gaining steam on Beacon Hill (Associated Press): “Under the proposal, the state would set a fee based on each ton of carbon dioxide emissions produced by fossil fuels. The tax would start at $20 per ton and increase $5 a year until it reaches $40 per ton. The money would be collected by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue,” the article reads. “Thirty percent of all the revenue collected under the legislation about $400 to $600 million a year would be funneled into a Green Infrastructure Fund to help state agencies and cities and towns pay for transportation, resiliency, and renewable energy projects aimed at reducing carbon pollution. The proposal also calls for rebating 70% of the money to households and businesses to offset most of the increased fuel costs.”??
That’s what’s on my radar today. What’s on yours?