Michael Freeman

Trump May Target Environmental Nonprofits in Executive Orders - Inside Climate News Environmental groups say they are preparing for the worst—and preparing to fight back.

This Earth Day, you're going to see an Executive Order which will attempt to strip orgs which work on climate/nature of their c3 non-profit status. This affects a huge portion of non-profit orgs (including my entire career, obviously), not just those which are strictly climate or conservation orgs.

This poppycock from EPA head Lee Zeldin. In other words, instead of setting and enforcing binding health and environmental standards as required by law, we’ll just ask the big polluters “pretty-please”(except when we don’t even do that) and call the result “clean.”
www.wsj.com/opinion/lee-...

Trump fires NOAA scientists helping whales and offshore wind coexist Scores of employees working to ensure offshore wind has a low impact on whales, birds, and other wildlife were cut in a major round of layoffs at the…

Misinformation campaigns have gotten a lot of mileage out of false claims that offshore wind kill whales.

Well, Trump's NOAA layoffs included dozens of scientists working to ensure wind and whales can coexist.

@fieseler.bsky.social has the scoop:

#energysky

www.canarymedia.com/articles/off...

Looks like the @waybackmachine.bsky.social has not archived all of NOAA’s digital library. Thanks for checking @katycroffbell.bsky.social!

Has anyone else taken on this science-saving job?

Your regular reminder that the US air & water pollution laws passed in the 60s & 70s -- and the elaborate federal bureaucracy created to administer them -- constitute one of the most successful gov't interventions in history. WILDLY successful. The envy of the world.

Graph of federal employees over time showing a flatline trend since the late 1960s

When the dismantlists talk about "trimming the fat" or "bloated" whatever relating to the federal government, remind them that there have been about the same number of federal employees since the 1960s.
Meanwhile US population has increased by ~70% and GDP has increased 29-fold.

NOAA does so much more than just telling you if it’s going to rain tomorrow. This will be devastating for so many industries and communities.

It feels like no one should have to say this, and yet we are in a situation where it needs to be said, very loudly and clearly, before it’s too late to do anything about it: The United States is not a startup. If you run it like one, it will break.

🔗 www.wired.com/story/the-us...

The admin is flagrantly ignoring court orders too, so really “illegal” has lost all meaning anyways.

I’m no big city lawyer, but this feels super duper illegal

NOAA Employees Told to Pause Work With ‘Foreign Nationals’ An internal email obtained by WIRED shows that NOAA workers received orders to pause “ALL INTERNATIONAL ENGAGEMENTS.”

By definition, numerical weather models require international data. The atmosphere knows no geopolitical boundaries: any model that begins and ends at its country’s border is unable to generate reliable predictions until after a weather system crosses its boundaries. Which defeats the purpose!

Doge staffers enter Noaa headquarters and incite reports of cuts and threats Members reportedly sought access to IT systems at agency that Project 2025 has called ‘harmful to US prosperity’

As the ocean heats at unprecedented rates, gutting NOAA isn’t efficiency—it’s chaos. Coastal communities, jobs, and lives depend on its vital work. #ProtectNOAA #OceanHealth

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

So many studies, even those unrelated to classic right wing culture war nonsense, could be pulled for using any of these words. The book burning has come to NSF.

Yes exactly. Avasarala 2028

Oh she’s even better in the books. A true sailor’s mouth.

On Monday, President Trump issued an Executive Order to halt offshore wind development in the U.S. until further notice.

This decision could have serious ripple effects on an industry that's supporting coastal communities and setting us on a path to protect the future of our ocean. 🧵⤵️

Physics does not care about our politics, and ultimately the world will continue to warm until we get global emissions of CO2 to (net) zero.

Great analysis, and a helpful map! Do you plan on looking at the west coast leases as well? They’re much further behind but also will be delayed (or worse)

Simultaneously declaring an energy emergency yet being picky about energy sources is the epitome of hypocrisy. The offshore wind industry brings thousands of good paying careers and is a necessary tool to combat climate change. We cannot simply drop it because one man thinks turbines are ugly.

I exhaled quickly through my nose

Misinformation is becoming increasingly rampant as clean energy, which shouldn’t be political to begin with, starts to show serious effort in decarbonizing our communities. Make sure you’re being a vigilant and skeptical reader!

We also have a shorter, less weedy version good for non-expert audiences!

oceanconservancy.org/wp-content/u...

Hear hear 😉
For real though, we put a lot of work into this. Please read and keep all of this in mind as you start to hear a whole lot of nonsense about offshore wind.

Drilling Into the Differences Between Offshore Oil Drilling and Offshore Wind - Ocean Conservancy It’s no secret that offshore drilling is risky business. Offshore wind doesn't come with the risks from offshore oil drilling. Read more.

Here are the facts:

👎 Offshore drilling for fossil fuels is dirty, dangerous & pollutes our air and ocean.

👍 Harnessing the power of our ocean for clean energy alternatives can provide for communities and help us protect our ocean.

oceanconservancy.org/blog/2024/11...

WATCH: Our own Senior Director for Climate Policy Anna-Marie Laura highlights the critical need to move *away* from dangerous fossil fuels *toward* responsible clean renewable energy like offshore wind.

The future of our ocean and planet depends on it.

I’m certain they sent this straight to van Drew immediately. He’s likely workshopping it with his oil & gas, fishing, and shipping industry friends to cut out the bits that would affect them, and the rest will appear unchanged in the final version on Trump’s desk.

Anti-Offshore Wind-Against the Wind Map | CDL Home

Nail on the head. Most of the organized opposition is fake grassroots orgs who are funded or run by oil & gas and right wing think tanks www.climatedevlab.brown.edu/services-1

Any of these individually would be a huge blow to our toolbox of options to fight climate change. I am certain van Drew is listening, so we’ll likely be seeing some of these in print.

It’s too bad REACT doesn’t actually care about whales, or they’d do something about shipping and fishing gear 🙄

Luke, I am your isopod.

Safer streets, less congestion, and importantly, lower emissions 🥰