Zack Colman
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zcolman.bsky.social
Zack Colman
@zcolman.bsky.social
5K followers 870 following 160 posts
POLITICO climate & energy reporter
SIGNAL: zcolman.75
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zcolman.bsky.social
Trump is no longer content to stand aloof from the global alliance to combat climate change. His new goal is to demolish it.

@karlmathiesen.bsky.social⁦‪‬⁩ & I explored Trump’s multi-prong strategy to instead build a coalition reliant on US fossil fuels.

www.politico.com/news/2025/11...
Trump’s fossil fuel crusade confronts the climate faithful
Pulling out of the Paris climate agreement was not enough, an ex-aide to the U.S. president says on the eve of a summit in Brazil: "You have to potentially destroy it."
www.politico.com
November 6, 2025 at 1:23 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
"A new survey of nine middle-income nations finds widespread concerns about climate change. Large majorities in these countries say global climate change is affecting the area where they live."

via @pewresearch.org

www.pewresearch.org/global/2025/...
People in Middle-Income Countries Say Climate Change Is Affecting Their Community
Large majorities in nine middle-income countries say global climate change is affecting their community. About half or more in Argentina, Brazil and Mexico see a great deal of impact.
www.pewresearch.org
November 5, 2025 at 7:23 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
"their work has proven less durable than they expected.”

Kelsey Tamborrino & Jessie Blaeser cover a Biden alumni autopsy of the admin's failure to protect its green legacy, which echoes many of the issues @politico.com uncovered in our Biden's Billions series.

www.politico.com/news/2025/11...
Slow rollout throttled Biden’s big clean energy ambitions, former staffers say
An “executive branch machinery that defaulted to caution, process, and reactive strategies” undercut the ex-president’s massive energy and infrastructure programs, a report by his former staffers deta...
www.politico.com
November 4, 2025 at 2:53 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
Nations remain far off-track of Paris climate agreement goals, with the planet almost certainly seeing long-term warming exceeding 1.5 C as soon as this decade, per the UN.
www.politico.com/news/2025/11...
UN: Nations well off-track of Paris climate agreement goals
U.S. withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement would erase another 0.1 C of progress.
www.politico.com
November 4, 2025 at 2:45 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
NEW: Trump won't send "high level representatives" to COP30 climate talks, WH confirms.

It remains unclear if career staff from agencies will attend.

subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2025...
POLITICO Pro: White House: Trump won't send 'high level' officials to climate talks
The news comes as diplomats from around the world wonder how and whether President Donald Trump will disrupt the COP30 negotiations in Brazil.
subscriber.politicopro.com
October 31, 2025 at 4:59 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
Trump's ability to delay a vote imposing a carbon emissions levy on global shipping is already scrambling negotiations for next month's COP30 climate talks in Brazil, @ziaweise.bsky.social reports.

www.politico.eu/article/trum...
Trump’s anti-climate crusade crashes EU’s COP30 preparations
A Greek veto prevents the EU from reendorsing a global carbon price on shipping in its position for next month’s climate summit.
www.politico.eu
October 21, 2025 at 9:08 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
Tensions are rising between Energy Sec. Chris Wright & the WH over a series of political missteps and policy disputes.

w/ @benlefebvre.bsky.social

www.politico.com/news/2025/10...
‘It just seems so messy’: How Chris Wright went wrong with the White House
Missteps in cutting clean energy spending and friction between staffers has led to questions about whether the former fracking company CEO will remain in the Cabinet.
www.politico.com
October 17, 2025 at 5:26 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
Trump & his Cabinet say wind & solar are making electricity more expensive.

Federal data say the opposite.

Our analysis showed states w/ > avg wind/solar generation & > avg acceleration of wind/solar since ‘21 were likelier to have < avg power prices.

www.politico.com/news/2025/10...
The government’s own data rebuts Trump’s claims about wind and solar prices
The Trump administration has targeted renewable energy for driving up electricity prices, but POLITICO’s analysis shows states that are growing their wind and solar power typically have lower power co...
www.politico.com
October 7, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Reposted by Zack Colman
politico.com
Green power is sometimes the cheapest power — despite what Trump says.

The Trump administration has targeted renewable energy for driving up electricity prices, but our analysis shows states that are growing their wind and solar power typically have lower power costs.
Green power is sometimes the cheapest power — despite what Trump says
The Trump administration has targeted renewable energy for driving up electricity prices, but POLITICO’s analysis shows states that are growing their wind and solar power typically have lower power co...
www.politico.com
October 7, 2025 at 1:56 PM
Reposted by Zack Colman
bkingdc.bsky.social
Scoop by @zcolman.bsky.social for @politico.com: A Trump administration plan to boost civilian nuclear power would harvest the plutonium "pits" manufactured for nuclear weapons — raising concerns about the impact to U.S. defenses:

www.politico.com/news/2025/09...
Trump’s nuclear power push stirs worries about US weapons stockpile
The scramble to build new reactors to supply power to AI data centers may include plutonium from the nation’s nuclear deterrent.
www.politico.com
September 29, 2025 at 6:54 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
The Trump admin has considered diverting plutonium that supports the nation's nuclear weapons arsenal to energy companies, raising national security concerns within the government.

I've got exclusive details here:

www.politico.com/news/2025/09...
Trump’s nuclear power push stirs worries about US weapons stockpile
The scramble to build new reactors to supply power to AI data centers may include plutonium from the nation’s nuclear deterrent.
www.politico.com
September 29, 2025 at 6:45 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
Now on the Energy Dept’s banned words list: “Climate change,” “green” and “emissions.”

subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2025...
POLITICO Pro: Energy Dept. adds ‘climate change’ and ‘emissions’ to banned words list
It is the latest in a series of Trump administration efforts to dispute, silence or downplay climate change.
subscriber.politicopro.com
September 28, 2025 at 3:33 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
Trump admin is planning to expand its use of emergency orders requiring coal, oil and gas power plants to run past their retirement dates.

Details here:

subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2025...
POLITICO Pro: Trump Energy Department eyes new must-run orders for power plants
The White House is concerned the retirement of any power plant able to produce round-the-clock “baseload” power would harm President Donald Trump’s economic goals.
subscriber.politicopro.com
September 25, 2025 at 6:34 PM
Reposted by Zack Colman
joannalewis.bsky.social
China NDC for 2035
-Net economy wide GHG emissions by 7-10% from peak levels
Increase share of non-fossil fuels in total energy consumption to over 30%
-Expand installed capacity of wind and solar power to over 6x the 2020 levels, striving to bring the total to 3600 GW
September 24, 2025 at 6:38 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
Energy Sec. Chris Wright said Trump admin will "probably" provide credit support to $44B Alaska LNG project that has struggled to attract private investors.

subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2025...
POLITICO Pro: Wright: DOE likely to offer Alaska LNG credit support
The Trump administration is exploring ways to bring the Alaska project to fruition given its struggles to attract funding
subscriber.politicopro.com
September 24, 2025 at 6:04 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
Trump's election and rapid-fire dismantling of environmental rules stunned the climate movement into inaction.

Green groups are now re-emerging with contrasting visions for activism that will look different than the Resistance era.

My latest here:

www.politico.com/news/2025/09...
Shell-shocked green movement searches for how to counter Trump
Environmental groups that have watched President Donald Trump shred their climate victories are beset by internal divides, slumping fund-raising and a debate on how to fight back.
www.politico.com
September 22, 2025 at 4:46 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
DOE dissolved the Climate Working Group that wrote a report criticizing long-established climate science.

Department argued in court the move should shelve a lawsuit that the group violated federal law.

subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2025...
POLITICO Pro: DOE says it dissolved research group that wrote its controversial climate report
The department said the end of the Climate Working Group means environmental groups' complaint over alleged Federal Advisory Committee Act violations is no longer valid.
subscriber.politicopro.com
September 10, 2025 at 12:14 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
Former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski is personally reviewing FEMA contracts, where his virtual veto power is slowing routine decisions & operations, admin officials told @myahward.bsky.social and I.

www.politico.com/news/2025/08...
Lewandowski’s veto power over DHS contracts frustrates admin officials: ‘Corey is part of the problem’
His involvement has contributed to a bottleneck at the agency that has rankled members of the administration.
www.politico.com
August 27, 2025 at 1:33 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
Trump pledged to help Appalachia recover from Hurricane Helene.

But projects to build housing & lower utility bills there have been downsized & paused as his EPA withholds $20B of Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund grants.

Read more here: subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2025...
POLITICO Pro: How Trump's move to kill clean energy cash is stunting Helene recovery
EPA's termination of a key grant program has forced the scaling back of programs to address housing shortages and reduce energy bills in rural Appalachia.
subscriber.politicopro.com
August 22, 2025 at 12:44 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
Solar faces fresh headwinds as Trump ramps up enforcement of a trade law intended to keep goods made w/ Chinese forced labor out of the US.

It's already slowing some imports -- CBP is holding Qcells polysilicon cells at Port of Long Beach.

subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2025...
POLITICO Pro: Solar imports caught in Trump crackdown on Chinese forced labor
U.S. Customs and Border Protection data showed a sharp uptick in detentions of solar cells, modules and other electronics under a law intended to block goods linked to human rights abuses.
subscriber.politicopro.com
August 8, 2025 at 6:59 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
A Republican governor has joined the intraparty conflict over the Trump's wind & solar policies.

NV Gov Lombardo told Interior Sec Burgum his order has "frozen" solar projects on federal, state & private land -- and urged Burgum to soften restrictions.

subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2025...
POLITICO Pro: Interior’s restrictions have ‘frozen’ solar projects in Nevada, Republican governor tells Burgum
Gov. Joe Lombardo’s letter is one of the first public examples of Republican state leaders echoing Senate GOP moderates’ complaints about the Trump administration’s clampdown on clean power.
subscriber.politicopro.com
August 6, 2025 at 4:04 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
27 of 69 tasks for building solar & wind now requiring Interior Sec. Burgum's personal approval affect projects on private land, American Clean Power Association analysis says.

subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2025...
POLITICO Pro: Interior order would disrupt wind, solar projects on private land, industry finds
The analysis by a clean energy trade association shows Secretary Doug Burgum’s actions will have a far greater impact than initially thought.
subscriber.politicopro.com
August 6, 2025 at 1:43 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
Natural gas is one of the strongest bonds linking the US & EU in the Trump era. A decade ago, that sentence would have seemed ludicrous.

We dove deep into how this relationship emerged -- and how Trump's relative openness to Russia threatens it.

www.politico.eu/article/euro...
Europe learned to love American gas. This is how Trump wrecks it.
Backroom deals, embassy contacts and brown liquor built a booming export trade. Now, the lobbyist who saw it all says the U.S. president’s dalliances with Vladimir Putin are an incoming “aste…
www.politico.eu
July 31, 2025 at 1:33 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
EPA will move tomorrow to revoke the endangerment finding, the foundation for all US climate regulations, and emissions limits for cars and trucks.

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin will make the announcement in Indiana.

w/ @chemnick.bsky.social

subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2025...
POLITICO Pro: EPA to launch plan Tuesday for undoing climate rule cornerstone
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin is planning to announce the move at an Indiana transportation facility.
subscriber.politicopro.com
July 28, 2025 at 6:49 PM
zcolman.bsky.social
Republicans long said government should stay out of the energy market. They slammed Dem & Biden policies favoring clean energy.

But the GOP under Trump has learned to stop worrying and love picking winners and losers -- and they're picking fossil fuels.

www.politico.com/news/2025/07...
Republicans once said the free market should decide how the US uses energy. No more.
Much like Joe Biden, President Donald Trump is wielding money and federal leverage to reshape the U.S. energy supply — but this time, it’s in support of fossil fuels.
www.politico.com
July 22, 2025 at 5:57 PM