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ClientEarth argues that current Trade and Sustainable Development (TSD) chapters in EU FTAs are often insufficient and lack effective enforcement. The document proposes a 'blueprint' to integrate core environmental principles into the general chapters of agreements, make ratification conditional on multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs), and introduce a robust system of sanctions for non-compliance. It specifically advocates for the systematic inclusion of the precautionary principle and the creation of reciprocal complaint mechanisms for civil society. The briefing also details specific legal obligations the EU should seek regarding climate (1.5°C limit), biodiversity (30% protected areas), deforestation-free products, and the elimination of harmful fisheries subsidies.

The document examines the expansion of transnational corporations (TNCs) in Latin America and the Caribbean, specifically within the energy and agriculture sectors. It argues that neoliberal reforms, free trade agreements, and the dismantling of state institutions have enabled TNCs to control territories, leading to widespread dispossession, environmental degradation, and human rights violations. The report highlights a systemic pattern of anti-democratic governance and a specific, severe impact on women's rights and land tenure. It concludes by proposing strategies for resistance, including the promotion of food sovereignty, agroecology, and the establishment of a UN Binding Treaty on Human Rights and Transnational Corporations.

Six NGOs sued TotalEnergies, alleging the company failed to adequately assess human rights and environmental impacts of its Tilenga oil project in Uganda and Tanzania, in violation of France's 2017 Duty of Vigilance Law. The project involves drilling 400 boreholes—some in Murchinson Falls National Park—and is expected to displace approximately 100,000 people. After lower courts ruled the case belonged in a commercial court, the Court of Cassation overturned those decisions on December 15, 2021, ruling that the NGOs, as non-commercial claimants, have the right to choose between a commercial or civil court. The court reasoned that the duty of vigilance is not a commercial act, meaning the case can be heard by a judicial court, which is viewed as less sympathetic to corporate interests than a commercial court.

The document argues that new investment in US gas-fired power plants is becoming uneconomic due to the rise of Clean Energy Portfolios (CEPs)—combinations of wind, solar, energy efficiency, demand response, and battery storage. As of late 2021, 88 GW of gas capacity was proposed, but over 50% of proposed new gas plants have been cancelled prior to construction in the last two years. The analysis finds that CEPs are a cheaper option in more than 80% of sites where gas plants are proposed for service by 2030, and at least 70 GW of proposed gas could be economically avoided, potentially saving $22 billion and 873 MMT of CO2. The report highlights significant stranded cost risks, noting that in a central analysis case, 40% of proposed combined cycle gas plants would cost more to operate than a new CEP costs to build within 10 years.

The report finds that most of the 88+ GW of proposed US gas power plants are economically uncompetitive compared to Clean Energy Portfolios (CEPs), which combine wind, solar, storage, energy efficiency, and demand flexibility. At least 70 GW of proposed gas capacity could be avoided using CEPs, potentially saving $22 billion and reducing CO2 emissions by 873 million metric tons over 20 years. The analysis highlights six key headwinds—including declining renewable costs, rising gas prices, and public health impacts—that increase the risk of project cancellations or stranded assets. Specifically, in a central analysis case, 40% of proposed combined cycle (CC) plants would cost more to operate than a new CEP would cost to build within 10 years, a figure that could rise to 80-90% under certain economic scenarios. The report also notes that CEPs create more jobs and avoid significant health costs, particularly in low-income communities and communities of color.

The document argues that the more than 10,000 closed and inactive landfills in the United States represent a significant opportunity for solar development, as these sites typically have good sun exposure and limited other reuse potential. It aims to provide policymakers and developers with analysis and a set of incentives to integrate landfill solar into broader clean energy and environmental justice strategies.

The report details how systemic racism in Kansas City has led to the disproportionate siting of polluting industries in communities of color and low-income areas, resulting in severe health disparities. It highlights the failure of federal and state air monitoring networks to capture local pollution 'hot spots' and describes the efforts of CleanAirNow to implement community-based monitoring. The document concludes with recommendations for stricter emissions standards, real-time fenceline monitoring, and the transition to zero-emissions transportation to protect vulnerable residents.

The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) asserts that the government must shift from risk management to a hazard prevention paradigm to protect public health. Key recommendations include eliminating fossil fuel subsidies, reforming the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA), implementing a just transition for workers and Indigenous peoples, and adopting a planetary health lens to integrate climate adaptation and mitigation.

Based on a September 2021 survey of 898 registered voters, the report finds broad support for various climate-friendly policies, including energy efficiency incentives and renewable energy research, though levels of support vary significantly by political affiliation. While a majority of voters believe clean energy will boost economic growth and job creation, there is a notable gap between the willingness of voters to support climate actions and their actual engagement in political activism over the preceding year.

The Private Equity Stakeholder Project supports the Stop Wall Street Looting Act to curb the negative impacts of the private equity industry. The organization highlights that private equity assets grew from less than $1 trillion in 2004 to over $7.5 trillion, often utilizing high debt levels that are shifted onto acquired companies. The document asserts that this model leads to job losses, substandard healthcare, and the funding of fossil fuel infrastructure, specifically noting $1.1 trillion invested in energy assets since 2010.

The policy brief highlights how the current design of the residential solar investment tax credit (ITC 25D) disproportionately benefits high-income and White residents, as it requires federal income tax liability to be useful. RMI argues that transitioning to a 'direct pay' model—similar to proposed provisions for business-scale renewables—would enable over 100 million American households without sufficient tax liability to access incentives. Such a change would double the number of states where LMI families could use solar loans to reduce energy bills (from 19 to 38 states) and potentially generate an additional 1.2 GW of annual residential solar activity, creating over 26,400 jobs and $4 billion in economic activity within LMI communities.

Ethylene oxide (EtO) is a colorless, flammable gas used primarily for sterilizing medical equipment and as a chemical building block. Classified as a carcinogen by the EPA and other bodies, chronic inhalation is linked to white blood cell cancers and breast cancer. The document highlights that EtO emissions disproportionately affect low-income communities and people of color, with some areas in Louisiana experiencing cancer risks over 200 times the EPA's acceptable levels. While the EPA has updated the Miscellaneous Organic Chemical Manufacturing (MON) rule, the document argues that current regulations fail to require fenceline monitoring or a complete phaseout of the chemical, calling for stronger enforcement and the adoption of less toxic alternatives.

The report details a multi-decade pattern of environmental degradation, safety failures, and human rights abuses by the Formosa Plastics Group (FPG) across Taiwan, Vietnam, Cambodia, and the United States. It highlights specific disasters, such as the 2016 marine life catastrophe in Vietnam and toxic dumping in Cambodia, alongside chronic pollution and safety lapses at US facilities in Texas, Louisiana, and Delaware. The document specifically critiques FPG's planned 'Sunshine Project' in St. James Parish, Louisiana, as an act of environmental racism. It concludes that the petrochemical industry's inherent risks, combined with FPG's corporate obfuscation and history of noncompliance, necessitate a halt to new plastics plants and a shift away from fossil-fuel-based petrochemicals.

The document argues that expanding the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) is essential to combat illegal nitrogen dioxide (NO2) levels in London, which are nearly twice the legal limit. It details the expansion's scope, the specific vehicle emission standards required to avoid charges, and the projected health benefits, including the avoidance of 250,000 new cases of air pollution-related disease. The guide highlights that road transport, particularly diesel cars, is the primary source of NO2 pollution and emphasizes that low-income and minority communities are disproportionately affected by poor air quality. It also advocates for further measures, such as expanding the ULEZ to all of Greater London and adopting stricter World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for particulate matter (PM2.5).

The analysis finds that the 'Infrastructure Bills' could reduce annual greenhouse gas emissions by 1,067 to 1,510 million metric tonnes by 2030, potentially putting the U.S. on track to meet its NDC of 50-52% below 2005 levels. The most critical drivers are the Clean Electricity Performance Program (CEPP) and clean energy tax credits, which together could drive the power sector to 70-85% clean generation. Additional benefits include the creation of 449,000 to 638,000 job-years and the avoidance of 4,600 to 7,000 premature deaths annually by 2030, with health benefits concentrated in communities of color.

The report analyzes how multidimensional inequality and poverty in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) intersect with environmental risks and policy. It finds that marginalized groups—including Roma communities, women, the elderly, and persons with disabilities—face disproportionate exposure to pollution and hazards, while social norms limit their access to natural resources. The document argues that environmental policies can either exacerbate these inequalities (e.g., through energy taxes) or mitigate them (e.g., through energy efficiency in social housing). It recommends collecting disaggregated data, increasing the representation of disadvantaged groups in decision-making, and implementing gender-responsive budgeting to ensure a more inclusive and effective environmental strategy.

The Union of Concerned Scientists documents how the fossil fuel industry in Colorado employs four primary disinformation tactics—The Fix, The Diversion, The Screen, and The Fake—to maintain political control and undermine public health and safety. The report details the industry's use of front groups, lobbying, and misleading economic claims to thwart regulations and ballot initiatives, while highlighting the disproportionate impact of pollution on communities of color and low-income residents. It concludes with recommendations for state regulators to prioritize science and community voices over industry profits.

The report analyzes how Highland Park, Michigan, can transition to 100 percent locally generated clean energy to achieve energy sovereignty. It identifies a total average annual electricity demand of approximately 86,200 MWh and proposes a mix of rooftop solar, community solar, energy efficiency, distributed solar, and a community water and energy resource center (CWERC) to meet this need. The analysis highlights that current utility restrictions and state policies create long payback periods for solar investments, but a proposed policy scenario—including full retail-rate net metering and state tax credits—could increase rooftop solar's contribution from 13 percent to nearly 30 percent of the city's energy needs. The document concludes with recommendations for Michigan policymakers to eliminate distributed generation caps and for Highland Park leaders to enact solar ordinances and establish local financing mechanisms.

The document examines the environmental and health risks of coal ash, one of the largest industrial waste streams in the US, and advocates for 'clean closure' (full remediation and excavation) over limited cleanup plans. Using case studies from the J. M. Stuart plant in Ohio and the Sebree Generating Station in Kentucky, the authors demonstrate that comprehensive cleanup generates significantly more jobs and economic output than utility-proposed plans. The report highlights that coal ash sites disproportionately affect low-income communities and communities of color, particularly in the Ohio River Valley, and recommends stronger EPA enforcement, polluter-pays funding, and the prioritization of dislocated workers in hiring.

The report examines the hazards of coal ash disposal, particularly in the Ohio River Valley, and advocates for 'clean closure' (excavation) over 'cap-in-place' methods. Through case studies of the Sebree Generating Station in Kentucky and the J. M. Stuart Station in Ohio, the authors demonstrate that comprehensive cleanup generates significantly more jobs and economic output than utility-proposed plans. The document highlights the disproportionate impact of coal ash pollution on low-income communities and people of color, and calls for stronger EPA enforcement and state-level regulations to ensure the safe removal of toxic waste.