CLIMATE: Activists say U.S. international climate financing is “pitifully too low,” and that a recently approved $1 billion investment falls short of even the Biden administration’s “inadequate promises.” (E&E News, Climate Home News)

ALSO:
• Businesses and governments are embracing tree planting as a climate solution but are increasingly planting nonnative species in massive tracts that can actually worsen climate change’s dismantling of biodiversity. (New York Times)
• Virginia netted $74.2 million for flood protection and low-income energy efficiency programs from a regional carbon-trading market’s first auction of 2022, but its new Republican governor still seeks to withdraw from the program. (Virginia Mercury)

MINERALS:
• A 150-year-old law lets mining companies dig for rare earth minerals on public land without paying royalties or facing much oversight of their environmental impacts. (Inside Climate News)
• China’s dominance of the battery metals market sets up a geopolitical challenge for governments and companies looking to ramp up electric vehicle production. (NPR)
• U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden proposes a $50 million federal grant program to support domestic lithium and other critical mineral mining, processing and recycling. (OPB)

POLITICS:
• Congress is poised to focus on the Ukraine invasion and rising gasoline prices this week, once again delaying Democrats’ reconciliation plans. (E&E News)
• House Democrats send a letter to President Biden pushing him to restart Build Back Better negotiations with a focus on climate legislation. (Washington Post)

EMISSIONS: The U.S. EPA looks to crack down on harmful pollution that crosses state lines with a cap-and-trade program. (E&E News)

OIL & GAS:
• The Biden administration approved more oil and gas drilling permits in its first year than the Trump administration but has since sharply slowed approvals. (E&E News)
• In the ongoing court battle between Massachusetts’ attorney general and Exxon about misleading the public about the reality of climate change, the oil giant claims the suit violates its first amendment rights. (The Guardian)
• U.S. oil and gas producers face multiple challenges, including labor availability, amid calls to boost production to combat rising prices. (KCUR)

ELECTRIFICATION: Consumers and restauranteurs are slowly replacing gas ranges with induction stoves, which can provide a stepping stone toward electrifying one’s whole home. (New York Times)

HYDROGEN: New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham orders state agencies to pursue federal funding to establish hydrogen hubs after lawmakers denied similar legislative efforts. (Carlsbad Current-Argus)  

UTILITIES: Connecticut’s consumer advocate calls on regulators to investigate the state’s two investor-owned electric utilities for allegedly suing consumers for not paying their bills despite pandemic protections. (New Haven Register)

GRID: Some northern California residents frustrated by rising power bills, utility-sparked wildfires and power outages are defecting from the grid altogether. (New York Times)

NUCLEAR: Environmentalists say the Biden administration’s effort to accelerate domestic uranium production to offset Russian reactor fuel imports could harm Western uranium mining and milling communities. (Bloomberg)

Kathryn brings her extensive editorial background to the Energy News Network team, where she oversees the early-morning production of ENN’s five email digest newsletters as well as distribution of ENN’s original journalism with other media outlets. From documenting chronic illness’ effect on college students to following the inner workings of Congress, Kathryn has built a broad experience in her more than five years working at major publications including The Week Magazine. Kathryn holds a Bachelor of Science in magazine journalism and information management and technology from Syracuse University.