There is no denying that January 2025 was a sobering month for news about climate change. The month started with the devastating fires in Southern California, made worse by a warming climate, and ended with deconstruction of U.S. federal government agencies, funding, staff, websites, data, policies, and agreements related to climate change.

Yet, there was also encouraging news from around the world in that the momentum toward a more sustainable low-carbon greener global economy appears unstoppable by any one country, for which many Americans like myself can be ever so thankful. You can follow this progress in other posts, newsletters, and panel discussions from the PLM Green Global Alliance.

To see what climate news you might have missed in your own news feeds last month, read on in the latest Climate Change Chronicles which is presented below in approximate chronological order.

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The E.U. Copernicus Climate Change Service reported that using its data 2024 was the hottest year on record with temperatures some 1.6 degrees C above preindustrial levels. It was the second consecutive year that this heat record was broken. While other organizations, including the WMO and NASA, use slightly different data sets and analyses, most agreed 2024 was the first full year exceeding the Paris Accord threshold agreement of 1.5 deg C.

A separate announcement by a coalition of international climate organizations also confirmed that 2024 was the first year of consecutive months to exceed the Paris Accord threshold of 1.5 deg C warming. This somber news was not expected to occur for some years out, and at one time was hoped could be avoided all together.

Across large regions of the U.S. last year became the hottest year on record, blowing past previous temperature averages. As example, the St. Louis metropolitan area saw temperatures about 5 deg F warmer than the region’s 150-year record average. It was also one of the top 10 years for precipitation, confirming what researchers have predicted that the U.S. Midwest would see hotter, more moisture-laden weather.

Raging out of control wildfires devastated tens of thousands of urban acres across parts of the Los Angeles metropolitan area this month. Over ten thousand homes and other structures burned to the ground, displacing thousands and killing dozens across the region.  Neither the wealthy nor poor were spared from the destruction that turned neighborhoods and business districts into piles of rubble and ash.  Tens of thousands of residents were forced to evacuate from their homes, some seen fleeing in a panic, leaving their gridlocked cars left behind to burn in a rapidly approaching wall of fire. Hundreds of thousands in the region lost electricity, gas, internet, phone and other public services for days at a time. Thousands of firefighters from across the west as well as Canada and Mexico joined together to fight the fires in hurricane force winds with single digit humidity all while water supplies failed. National Guard troops were called up to help provide aid and security to overwhelmed local police and fire departments. The inferno is expected to become the costliest in California’s history, and one of the worst in the U.S., with estimates of direct damages of $30B plus and long-term economic, health, and employment costs to the region in excess of $100B. Many ask that with much of the state becoming uninsurable, will home and business owners ever be able to rebuild, or will only the wealthy be able to do so.

The fires occurred during the winter month of January which is normally rainy and not in the state’s historic fire season. The region was a tinderbox waiting to burn having received little to no precipitation since last summer which saw July the hottest month on record. Unusually dry landscapes combined with hurricane-force winds of over 100 mph to create an inferno that no amount of preparation or resources could have fought off. Scientists say that the LA fires grew larger, faster, and more intense because of climate change which drives more extreme weather across the U.S. west. As example, last winter Southern California received record rainfall amounts which caused not only flooding, but an explosion of vegetation growth which then became dried out in this summer’s heat to fuel the fires. While many across the country contemplate moving to safer regions, the events of his past year reminds us that few places are safe anymore from the ravages of a changing climate caused by the burning of fossil fuels from human activities.

Greenhouse gas levels in the atmosphere are reported to have risen more quickly last year than expected. Atmospheric CO2 again reached new highs of more than 424 ppm, bringing it to more than 40% higher than preindustrial times.

The Rhodium Group climate research firm reported that America’s decline in emissions stalled during 2024. The nation’s demand for electricity rose by about 3%, due in part to heat waves, transportation increases, and energy-hungry data centers that caused a rise in emissions from natural gas power plants. With a reduction of only 20% since 2005, policy experts say the U.S. remains far off path to reduce emissions by 50% by 2030.

As one of its last climate actions, the Biden Administration announced a ban on new oil and gas drilling on more than 600 million acres along the U.S. coast. The ban effectively means the only new exploration will be along the central and western Gulf of Mexico waters.  Incoming President Trump announced that he will immediately revoke the ban in addition to renaming the gulf the Gulf of America.

The Interior Dept. announced that it received no auction bids for new drilling leases on land in Alaska’s Arctic Refuge wilderness area. The sale was previously ordered by Congress as part of Trump’s first term legislation. Oil and gas companies apparently concluded the costs and risks too high, or more likely that they could get better terms from the incoming administration. Trump reacted by saying he would double down on opening up ANWR to produce “liquid gold.”

The U.S. Treasury Dept. issued final guidelines for the award of billions of dollars of tax credits and other subsidies to produce hydrogen from low-emission technologies. The new rules clarify how quickly and in what form the hydrogen industry needs to use energy to produce cleaner forms of green hydrogen.  Most hydrogen produced today is not green as it is created from the burning of natural gas.

Previously approved tax breaks and other incentives from the IRA, totaling $250B over 10 years, went into effect this month. This funding will be used to build wind, solar, nuclear, hydroelectric, fusion, geothermal, and other “moonshot” energy projects. While some $500M has been invested in new low-carbon energy and manufacturing, many worry that the Trump administration will freeze or rescind the funding.

Before taking office, President-elect Trump vowed that “no new windmills” will be created during his administration.  This despite the majority of green energy funding and subsidies has been spent in Republican states that overwhelmingly voted for Trump including Texas, Wyoming, North Dakota, and Montana.

In comments that shocked American allies around the world, Trump threatened to use economic or even military force to acquire Greenland and the Panama Canal. His fixation on Denmark’s Greenland is said to be the territory’s vast deposit of natural resources, many that can be used in battery production and are becoming more accessible as the island’s ice sheets melt. Ironically, as the globe warms due to climate change, which Trump denies, sea lanes around Greenland will open up as Arctic waters become more ice free and contested by other international powers. Panama is also under stress due to climate change as reduced rainfalls lower lake levels which feed canal operations.

As Trump nears taking office, more companies and banks are withdrawing from DEI, ESG, climate organizations and other so-called “woke” organizations. Most recently, a number of the largest U.S. banks have left the Net Zero Banking Alliance.

The use of hydroelectric power across much of South America is threatened by changing rainfall patterns and prolonged droughts that are drying up rivers which hydroelectric depends upon. Ecuador, once touted as a green energy leader, is facing a collapse of its national power grid that has already caused blackouts. Scientists warn that hydroelectric power, once promoted as a near-perfect low carbon source, will become less reliable as water scarcity risks rise with climate change.

The price of the world’s most consumed beverage, coffee, is soaring as coffee growing regions and its farmers experience a changing climate. Wholesale prices have recently jumped by more than 30%, breaking nearly 50-year-old records for some coffee beans. Coffee plants are less productive in rising temperatures and erratic rainfalls that go from drought to flooding.

Microsoft announced it will spend around $80B this upcoming year to build data centers that support the boom in Artificial Intelligence computing. Across the entire IT industry, data centers are projected to triple the energy they now consume, according to the Dept. of Energy. Climate policy experts worry that this increase will cause total energy demand to increase along with emissions to rise.

The reduced generation of solar and wind power this winter across Europe, due largely to calm gloomy weather, is roiling energy markets there. Much of Europe and Britain use dynamic pricing of energy that changes hourly as demand and supply fluctuates. As a result, residential and business electricity prices have surged during periods of low energy supply, causing many consumers to blame politicians for their green energy policies.

In better news from Europe, Germany reported that in 2024 renewable energy accounted for nearly two-thirds, 63%, of total public net energy generation. Wind energy provided nearly a third of total demand.

Climate tech startups are developing carbon removal technologies by experimenting with ocean alkalinity enhancements. These new technologies propose to use acid-neutralizing minerals in sea water to allow it to absorb more CO2. What could possibly go wrong…

A blast of frigidly cold air along with record snowfalls has blanketed much of the U.S. While climate deniers claim this is proof that global warming is a hoax, scientists know that a warming Arctic creates the conditions for Arctic air to escape into lower latitudes. The cause is an unstable circulating polar vortex that more frequently stretches and wobbles further southward as temperature differences shrink between the north pole and regions to the south.

The U.S. Center for Disease Control released data showing that deaths from cold weather have more than doubled since 1999, despite global warming. Even though winters are on average some 4 degree F warmer in the U.S., researchers say that bouts of extreme cold have increased which often take those unprepared by surprise.

Former President Carter was laid to rest this week with a National Day of Mourning much of the country observed. In eulogies the beloved ex-president was praised for his many environmental policies, including the placement of solar panels on the White House and other initiatives to make America less dependent on oil and gas imports.

The Supreme Court said it would not hear appeals from oil and gas companies that sought to block lawsuits wanting to hold them accountable for damages attributable to climate change. The ruling will now allow a state-based lawsuit to proceed from the city of Honolulu which argues that oil companies have used misconduct and deceptive marketing practices.

The aviation industry is reported to be responsible for about 4% of the world’s global GHG emissions. Industry manufacturers and airlines continue to promote their support of net-zero initiatives. This despite huge increases in air travel expected that include a forecasted doubling in European traffic by 2050. However, a new NGO report on aviation says that this projected growth in aviation is completely irreconcilable with international climate goals.  Other industry analysts argue that “green air travel” is a fantasy. They cite that to produce sustainable aviation fuels from agricultural sources would consume 30% of the world’s farmland.

Prior to the inauguration of President-elect Trump, the state of California withdrew its request of the Biden administration’s EPA to allow it to enact pollution limits on trucks, trains, and ferries that are stricter than federal standards. The once proposed regulation would have required operators achieved 100 percent zero-emissions vehicle fleets between 2035 and 2042.

The Federal Reserve Bank announced it was leaving an international network group on greening the global financial system. The U.S. joined the organization just four years ago after Biden was elected. Republicans complained that the organization was working to reduce lending to oil, gas, and coal companies by financial institutions.

Global insurance markets continue to be stressed by huge climate-related property damages which totaled over $300B in 2024. Climate activists now say these disasters should no longer be called natural, but instead unnatural disasters due increasingly to a human-induced warming planet with more extreme weather-fueled events. With an estimated cost of $30B from the LA fires this month, and over $100B in total economic losses, industry analysts worry we are entering into a bleak uninsurable future.

World leaders gathered once again this month at Davos for their annual conference. The meeting opened on the very same day that President Trump withdrew the U.S. from the Paris Climate Accords. Like the annual COP conference, many followers think that climate pledges being made at Davos are have become a PR greenwashing charade.

A Scotland court has blocked further work at two oil and gas offshore sites, saying the government should be given time to develop criteria to assess their effects on climate change. A ruling by Britain’s Supreme Court last year required assessments of oil and gas projects to include their impact on climate due to the burning of the fossil fuels produced.

European researchers report that climate change is increasing the strength and frequency of storms across the Mediterranean region. More rainfall is falling from extreme rainfall events, creating catastrophic flash flooding disasters. The Mediterranean Sea that is warming fast is said to be a contributing factor as regional temperatures by the end of the century are projected to rise 6 def C above preindustrial times.

Immediately upon his swearing in, President Trump began issuing executive orders to dismantle years of environmental progress, funding, and legislation. On day one he declared a National Energy Emergency to help expand drilling for oil and gas, promising once again the U.S. would become energy independent, which it already is as the largest producer of oil and natural gas. Trump did this as real emergencies and disasters due to the burning of fossil fuels and climate change are right now harming Americans across the country. While visiting victims of North Carolina flooding and California fires Trump discredited FEMA, saying he was considering getting rid of it and threatened withholding disaster aid from states who resisted his other policies such as voter registration. Trump said he wanted the country to build new power plants to power AI data centers using “good clean coal.‘

To no one’s surprise Trump withdrew the U.S. from the Paris Agreement for the second time. An alliance of 24 state governors immediately responded by announcing they remain committed to the Paris Accord goals. In an about face of federal support of electric vehicles, and to the likely dismay of Trump oligarch pal Elon Musk, the new administration paused tax credits for the purchase of E.V.’s and funding of charging stations. He froze grants, aid, and funding both domestically and foreign, including that to help other countries fight climate change. This included disbursement of funds already approved by Congress as part of Biden’s climate and infrastructure legislation. The new administration dismissed members of the EPA’s advisory committees in one of many purges of agencies across the federal government agency websites went dark as data was removed from public view.

Trump’s new Energy Secretary, Chris Wright, the founder of a fracking firm, was confirmed by the Senate, despite having once said there was no climate crisis and calling renewables unreliable and costly. Trump’s pick to head the EPA, Lee Zeldin, addressed senators about his lack of environmental expertise, previous objections to the IRA funding, and desire to roll back environmental regulations.  Trump’s nomination to head the Interior Department, Doug Burgum, was confirmed, saying that he would reverse Biden’s policies that attempted to reduce oil and gas development on public lands and waters, calling them part of America’s asset balance sheet.

Switzerland approved new climate goals by cutting emissions by 65% by 2035, over 1990 levels. The government had previously pledged to reduce emissions by 50%. This came after the country was rebuked last year by an EU human rights court as not doing enough to combat climate change.

The same European Court of Human Rights court issued another similar ruling on a case brought by Italian citizens, saying that environmental pollution threatens the right to life and that governments must proactively address or be in a breach of human rights law.

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Whew, indeed, what a gut-wrenching month of climate news that I conclude with the following quote from Reinhold Niebuhr’s Serenity Prayer. I often recite this in my personal meditations as inspiration to do what I can, even if it is only bearing witness during a time when some in the U.S. are attempting to muzzle climate news and rewrite the history of what we are experiencing.

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First featured image credit is of global fossil fuel emissions from Inside Climate News and the Global Carbon Project at https://insideclimatenews.org/news/29122024/these-graphics-help-explain-what-climate-change-looked-like-in-2024/.