Hello and welcome to Climate Change Solutions!

Even on a busy news day, you can trust EESI to bring you the key climate, energy, and environment takeaways and perspectives to navigate it all. Starting tomorrow, we are hosting our Congressional Climate Camp briefing series, where we will bring together expert panels to share essential information on topics like the budget and appropriations process and surface transportation policies and programs. The first Congressional Climate Camp briefing, Navigating Climate Information for Effective Policy-Making, will kick off tomorrow at 2 p.m. in the Gold Room (2168) of the Rayburn House Office Building. RSVP for the entire briefing series here.

Federal Programs Advancing Sustainable Commercial Aircraft and Engine Technologies
[5 min. read]

Federal agencies are a major part of the national effort to minimize the climate impact of the U.S. commercial aviation sector. The Sustainable Flight National Partnership connects the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to develop technology that would produce up to a 30% lower fuel burn relative to the current best-in-class aircraft and reduce engine and aircraft noise. This article examines three main projects currently underway in pursuit of this goal: the Continuous Lower Energy, Emissions, and Noise Program; the Center of Excellence for Alternative Jet Fuels and Environment; and NASA’s flight testing program. [click for more]

Tree Preservation Bill Embarks on Journey to Senate: The House passed Reps. Jill Tokuda’s (D-Hawaii) and Ed Case’s (D-Hawaii) Continued Rapid 'Ōhi'a Death Response Act of 2025 (H.R.375), which has since been sent to the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry for consideration. If passed, the bill would improve coordination between federal and state agencies to prevent the spread of Rapid 'Ōhi'a Death—a fungus that has decimated the 'Ōhi'a tree population, which is found only in Hawaii and has been key in protecting the state’s watersheds.

Putting Federal Water Access on the Map: The House passed Modernizing Access to our Public Waters (MAPWaters) Act of 2025 (H.R.187). Reintroduced by Rep. Blake Moore (R-Utah) and bipartisan cosponsors, MAPWaters would improve data collection on the recreational use of federal waterways and promote public access to federal waters. 

Grid Resilience Bill Shows POWER of Bipartisanship: The House passed the Promoting Opportunities to Widen Electrical Resilience (POWER) Act of 2025 (H.R.164). Reps. Val Hoyle (D-Ore.) and Mike Ezell (R-Miss.) reintroduced the bill to bolster the capacity of not-for-profit electric utilities to incorporate hazard mitigation and resilience measures when rebuilding grid infrastructure after major disasters.

Accelerating Disaster Recovery: The House passed the Federal Disaster Assistance Coordination Act (H.R.152) with a 405-5 vote. Led by Rep. Mike Ezell (R-Miss.), the bill would accelerate and improve disaster recovery efforts under the Federal Emergency Management Agency by streamlining disaster assistance application processes.

We track all environmental, energy, and climate legislation and hearings happening on Capitol Hill. See the full legislative trackers for January 13-17 and January 20-24.

Ready to make a difference in climate policy? But not sure where to start? You won’t want to miss EESI’s start-of-the-new-Congress briefing series, Climate Camp. We will go over the basics of the legislative process, highlighting key areas and opportunities for climate mitigation and adaptation policy. The briefings in this four-part series are:

Navigating Climate Information for Effective Policy-Making
Tomorrow! Wednesday, January 29
2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. EST
Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2168 (Gold Room) and online
RSVP here 

Understanding the Budget and Appropriations Process
Thursday, February 13
3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. EST
Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2168 (Gold Room) and online 
RSVP here 

The Process and Path Forward for a Bipartisan Surface Transportation Bill
Thursday, March 13
3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. EST
Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2168 (Gold Room) and online 
RSVP here

EESI’s Resilient and Healthy Rivers briefing series will continue in the new year, exploring challenges facing communities situated along U.S. rivers—from industrial pollution to flooding and drought. The briefings will highlight equitable solutions and policies that deliver multiple mitigation, adaptation, and economic benefits. The next briefing coming up in this series is:

The Colorado River
Wednesday, February 19
2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. EST
Online only
RSVP here

Latest Media Coverage

• The Cool Down used EESI resources in its content three times over the last two weeks!
  • EESI's article on no-till farming was cited in a story about a gardener who gave up tilling and shared her successful results on social media.
  • Also, our aviation issue brief was cited in an article about a French company's successful test flight of a lightweight electric aircraft.
  • Last but not least, our fact sheet on fossil fuel externalities was cited in an article encouraging homeowners to install rooftop solar while they can take advantage of tax credits through the Inflation Reduction Act.
• The San Luis Obispo Tribune, a local paper in California’s central coast, cited EESI’s article on iron-based batteries in an opinion piece questioning the safety of a proposed battery storage facility in Morro Bay following the recent Moss Landing fire, which broke out at a lithium battery plant.
• EESI’s energy storage fact sheet was cited by KJRH (a local NBC affiliate in Tulsa, Oklahoma) in a piece weighing the pros and cons of a proposed energy storage facility in Oologah.