The Department of Energy has agreed to comply with a request from watchdog American Oversight to begin producing records related to former Secretary Rick Perry’s communications with key figures in the Trump-Ukraine investigation, according to a joint status update filed Monday.
Why it matters: The agency will release its first batch of records on Jan. 28, which could coincide with the Senate impeachment trial.
China announced it will "not make significant cuts" this year to subsidies on new energy vehicles including electric vehicles, via Reuters, "signaling that its policy will remain relatively stable, state media quoted the country’s industry ministry as saying on Saturday."
Why it matters: EV sales in China, which has the world's largest auto market, dropped sharply after the Chinese government significantly cut industry subsidies in July.
We’ve had enough news in recent daysto suggest we’re 13 months, not days, into this decade.
Driving the news: President Trump pushes the biggest changes to environmental law in 50 years, the world’s biggest investor is going big on global warming and House Democrats are going it alone on climate policy. And this all just happened last week!
Australia's wildfires have devastated the koala population and could cause the unique marsupial listed as endangered, Environment Minister Sussan Ley warned Monday, per the Sydney Morning Herald.
The big picture: Over 1 billion animals are believed to have died in fires across the country since September. Ley announced a A$50 million funding plan to help protect and support affected wildlife. In New South Wales, wildlife workers dropped thousands of pounds of food for the endangered brush-tailed rock wallaby, state Environment Minister Matt Kean said.
At least 11 people have died in severe storms that brought tornadoes, high winds and rain through parts of the South and Midwest, AP reports.
Where it stands: Severe thunderstorms were still possible over Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi through Sunday morning, per the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "Sporadic damaging gusts" and tornadoes were possible for far eastern Georgia and parts of the Carolinas Saturday night, the National Weather Service said.
