Hello and welcome to Climate Change Solutions!

We’re happy to be back to our regular newsletter programming after an exciting two weeks covering all things COP29. While you work your way through our extensive coverage of the UN climate summit, we’re bringing you an issue packed with river resources from the EESI archives. EESI’s Healthy and Resilient Rivers briefing series, which kicked off with the Mississippi River in October, continues with the Tennessee River on December 11. As you check out our past coverage of river issues, you can look forward to a full 2025 slate of virtual briefings covering the Columbia, Colorado, Hudson, and Ohio Rivers… and more!

Senate Farm Bill Introduced: Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) introduced the Senate version of the Farm Bill, the Rural Prosperity and Food Security Act (S.5335). The bill includes the Rural Energy Savings Act (S.1821), which was introduced last year by Sens. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska). The House Committee on Agriculture passed its version of the Farm Bill, the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2024 (H.R.8467) in May. Check out EESI’s Farm Bill resources page and our Rural Energy Savings Program side-by-side to learn more.

New Law Shows Bipartisan Support for Beaches: The Senate passed, and President Biden signed, the Bolstering Ecosystems Against Coastal Harm (BEACH) Act (H.R.5490). Reps. Jennifer Kiggans (R-Va.) and Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.) introduced the bill in the House in 2023 to expand coastal conservation mapping mandated by the 1982 Coastal Barrier Resources Act. These maps will provide concrete data to understand the climate risk and vulnerability of coastal communities and ecosystems, and boost their resilience.

A Critical Bill for Understanding Minerals and Materials: The House passed the Critical Mineral Consistency Act of 2024 (H.R.8446), which would expand the number of critical minerals and materials eligible for clean energy tax credits. Rep. Juan Ciscomani (R-Ariz.) leads the bill in the House, and Sens. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) introduced an identical bill (S.5274) in the Senate in September.

Offshore Energy Bill RISEEs to Senate Floor: The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources advanced the Reinvesting In Shoreline Economies and Ecosystems (RISEE) Act of 2023 (S.373), led by Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.). The RISEE Act would redirect revenue streams from offshore energy production towards state projects that support coastal restoration and resilience. Rep. Lizzie Fletcher (D-Texas) introduced the bill’s companion (H.R.913) in the House.

We track all environmental, energy, and climate legislation and hearings happening on Capitol Hill. See the full legislative trackers for November 11-15 and November 18-22.

EESI is tracking recent announcements and updates about the implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Inflation Reduction Act.

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA)

• The Department of Energy (DOE) announced $2.2 billion in funding for two clean hydrogen hubs, located in Texas and the Midwest, as part of the H2Hubs program.
• The Department of the Interior announced $122.4 million in grant funding for landscape-scale conservation projects under the America the Beautiful Challenge, which supports locally led initiatives to connect and restore ecosystems.
• DOE announced $30 million in funding for artificial intelligence to expedite energy generation through the Artificial Intelligence for Interconnection program. Funding will ensure interconnection can keep pace with new energy generation, connecting energy sources to the grid in an efficient manner.

Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)

• The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced $147.5 million in funding to support climate-ready fisheries, including improved data collection, decision-making capacity, and ecosystem forecasting abilities.
• DOE announced $70.8 million in IRA and IIJA funding to support small- and medium-sized automotive, battery recycling, and smart manufacturing facilities.
• NOAA announced that communities can now apply to get technical assistance and up to $10,000 in funding to develop Heat Resilience Roadmaps, via the Center for Heat Resilient Communities.

The Tennessee River
Wednesday, December 11
2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Online only

In EESI's final briefing of 2024, join us for a discussion about strategies to improve biodiversity and water quality along the Tennessee River, which winds through Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky. Among the most biodiverse rivers in North America, the Tennessee experiences damaging issues ranging from chemical pollution to plastic pollution and PFAS (forever chemicals). Briefing panelists will explore ongoing efforts to restore river health and highlight the importance of effective enforcement of local, state, and federal clean water laws and regulations. RSVP here.

From now through spring 2025, EESI is hosting monthly virtual briefings on building river health and resilience in communities across the United States. RSVP and learn more about the full Resilient and Healthy River Communities series here.

Latest Media Coverage

• NPR’s Marketplace quoted EESI President Daniel Bresette in a story detailing the outcomes of the UN climate summit.
• EESI’s article on orphaned oil and gas wells was cited by CarbonCredits.com in a piece about a gas well remediation project in Oklahoma.
• Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) mentioned EESI’s briefing on carbon dioxide removal (CDR) in a press release detailing recently introduced legislation that would create a production tax credit to bolster the CDR industry in the United States.
• Environment News Service published an article about the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s latest efforts to address forever chemicals, citing EESI’s PFAS issue brief.