The young carbon removal industry may be poised to weather Trump 2.0's climate policy u-turn as deep pockets keep backing the tech.

Why it matters: Both cutting present-day emissions and removing the planet-warming carbon dioxide that's already in the atmosphere are needed to bring emissions to net zero by 2050, and net negative thereafter.

Driving the news: With policies and technology deployment in the U.S. on the emissions-cutting side of the carbon ledger suddenly thrown fundamentally into question under this White House, the carbon removal sector is having a growth spurt.

• Companies, such as tech giants Microsoft and Google, have announced significant carbon removal agreements in recent months.

Zoom in: The Carbon Removal Alliance, an industry group seeking stronger state and federal policies to incentivize such technologies, is staffing up.

• Noah Deich, who most recently served as deputy assistant secretary of Energy for carbon management under President Biden, is joining the group's board, the group told Axios exclusively.
• Deich had previously co-founded the nonprofit Carbon180.
• The group is also creating a Science Advisory Board to help evaluate new members and bring additional scientific heft to its policy development work, the alliance said in a statement.
• The alliance advocates for projects that bring permanent and verifiable removal that is net carbon-negative.

The big picture: The Trump administration's spending freeze on the Biden climate law is calling into question numerous clean energy projects nationwide, many of which had received federal funding commitments.

• At the same time, questions are growing about the pace and intensity of global warming to date after January came in record hot, following extreme and as-yet not fully explained warmth during the past two years.
• This week, veteran climate scientist James Hansen warned in a new study that the rate of global warming has sped up during the past 15 years, and the higher temperature target of the Paris Agreement, which is 2°C of warming, will almost certainly be reached or exceeded.
• While other climate scientists question Hansen's new findings, it's clear that we are in a more rapid warming phase — the length and full causes of which aren't fully clear.

Reality check: Legitimate scientific disagreements remain about the recent rates and causes of faster warming. But there's no dispute about the leading cause — human emissions of greenhouse gases, such as coal, oil and natural gas.

Yes, but: While corporate enthusiasm for carbon removal may be heating up, the funding freeze is affecting major infrastructure projects for direct air capture, a key form of removal.

Trump officials are moving fast to halt Biden-era programs on environmental justice — that is, addressing higher pollution burdens that poor people and communities of color often face.

Why it matters: EJ was a priority for Biden's team, which crafted policies like "Justice40" to steer 40% of certain climate and environmental funds to disadvantaged communities.

• But Trump deputies call it part of DEI, inappropriate racially based policymaking, or both.

Driving the news: EPA is placing 168 workers from EPA's Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights on leave, said Molly Vaseliou, an EPA spokeswoman.

• She cited President Trump's executive order to end "radical and wasteful" DEI programs and "preferencing," and other memos.
• People placed on leave don't have "statutory duties or core mission functions," she said.

Separately, new AG Pam Bondi is ordering Justice Department divisions to ID and end environmental justice programs.

• It's part of a wider memo, titled "ending internal discriminatory practices," also targeting DEI efforts within the department.
• And the NYT reports that workers at DOE's office of energy equity were placed on leave last month.
• The Washington Post has an in-depth look at the changes.

The other side: Environmental groups bashed the moves.

• The EJ reversal is "in line with this administration's reckless strategy to tear down our basic health protections and make it easier for polluters to profit," Margot Brown, the Environmental Defense Fund's senior VP for justice and equity, said in a statement.

Catch up quick: While it got more focus under Biden, EJ work has been around for many decades from the grassroots to the federal level.

• For instance, President George H.W. Bush created an equity office at EPA in 1992, and President Clinton issued an EJ executive order in 1994.

What we're watching: The courts.

• Kierán Suckling, executive director of the Center for Biological Diversity, said the group will sue EPA because EJ is an "express part of its mission."

Researchers with Columbia's energy think tank have a lucid primer on tough choices facing Saudi Arabia and Russia under Trump 2.0.

The big picture: President Trump wants the Saudis and OPEC to lower oil prices (one of several internal tensions within his domestic "drill baby drill" push).

Why it matters: It puts Saudis in a delicate spot, given their market alliance with Russia via OPEC+ sitting alongside their interest in avoiding tensions with Washington.

• "OPEC+ has weathered internal disagreements before, but Trump's pressure on Saudi Arabia presents a unique stress test," write Karen Young and Tatiana Mitrova.

What they're saying: "If Riyadh prioritizes short-term political alignment with the US over its OPEC+ commitments, Russia and other members may reconsider the viability of the alliance."

• "Alternatively, if Saudi Arabia holds firm, it would reinforce OPEC+ cohesion at the cost of escalating tensions with Washington."
• But they see potential for "face-saving" compromise for everyone.

What we're watching: Trump's pressure adds intrigue to the looming OPEC+ decision on whether to start adding barrels in April as planned.

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The party is over for U.S. sustainable fund managers, who saw record outflows from the asset class in 2024.

Why it matters: The outflows coincide with fund managers leaving environmentally focused investor groups.

• That leaves open the question of whether they're doing so because of increased political scrutiny, or just because the business isn't growing any more.
• In the U.S., sustainable funds have now seen outflows for nine successive quarters.

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International Energy Agency head Fatih Birol praised Trump 2.0's emphasis on nuclear power and sees it among several areas ripe for collaboration.

State of play: Birol, speaking at an Atlantic Council event, also listed geothermal, energy efficiency and carbon capture and storage among "many other" topics.

• "IEA is an organization which looks at all fuels, all technologies and energy security is very important for us," he said yesterday.

Why it matters: The vibe between IEA and Trump 2.0 is worth watching as some Republicans accuse IEA of morphing into a climate NGO and criticize its analysis.

Catch up quick: IEA has defended its work, including projections of oil demand growth ending this decade.

• It also emphasizes the distinction between analysis based on current trends vs. other scenarios, like its net-zero path, which lays out policies and investment levels consistent with that goal.
• But critics say even its baseline projections rest too heavily on nations' aspirational goals.

What we're watching: Sen. John Barrasso, a top Republican, hopes to exert congressional pressure on IEA but hasn't provided details.

⚖️ Red state AGs and industry groups are suing to block a New York state law imposing fees on fossil fuel companies to help finance climate resilience projects.

• Why it matters: The law, which aims to collect billions of dollars, is among the most aggressive state-level climate efforts.
• State of play: The complaint in a New York federal court accuses the state of an unconstitutional, "extraterritorial shakedown" that could force companies to shutter. AP has more.

🚛 Via the WSJ, "Nikola, the much-hyped hydrogen-truck maker that was briefly valued more than Ford Motor, is nearing a bankruptcy filing, according to people familiar with the matter."

"Tesla's got the scale. Rivian's got lifestyle. Lucid's got the best technology. Not everyone recognizes this yet, but it will come to pass."

But he also acknowledged challenges as the company moves toward producing its planned $50,000 vehicle now dubbed just "Midsize."

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