US president Donald Trump has used his first day back in office to send a letter of withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, the Guardian reports. It says that the US will join Iran, Libya and Yemen as the only countries outside the accord. The newspaper notes that during his first presidency, withdrawal took three years due to extra rules related to the Paris Agreement having only just come into force. This time around, the New York Times notes, the US can leave the agreement within one year of submitting a withdrawal letter to the United Nations. The Associated Press reports that Trump signed an executive order saying the Paris accord is “among a number of international agreements that don’t reflect US values and ‘steer American taxpayer dollars to countries that do not require, or merit, financial assistance in the interests of the American people’”. However, it adds that according to recent polling, about half of Americans “somewhat” or “strongly” oppose Trump’s decision to pull the US out of the Paris Agreement, noting that “even Republicans aren’t overwhelmingly in favour”. The Financial Times says: “The US is the only country to have left the Paris Agreement.” Reuters reports that “the US is currently the world’s second-biggest greenhouse gas emitter behind China and its departure undermines global ambition to slash those emissions”. E&E News says that “this time, Trump’s repudiation of the worldwide climate effort could bite deeper by taking effect more quickly and at a time when the new president has more far-right allies overseas and at home”. It adds: “Activists and former Biden officials say the withdrawal would hurt the US by giving China and other competitors a leg up in its race to dominate clean energy manufacturing.” Politico, Agence France-Presse and Bloomberg also cover the news. Reuters has published reactions to the announcement, including from the UN climate change executive secretary. Bloomberg reports that “there are clear indicators that a climate sceptic in the White House can’t completely undo the nation’s roughly two-decades-long decline in emissions”, as there are “simply too many other factors contributing to decarbonisation inside and outside the country’s borders, from fluctuating economic growth to interest rates to the emergence of new technologies”.

Trump also used his first day back in office to declare a national energy emergency, “which his team has said would unlock additional powers to jump-start [energy] production”, the Hill reports. The outlet continues: “The order was invoked under the National Emergencies Act, which gives the president emergency powers. It directs the head of federal agencies to identify any emergency authorities they may have to facilitate the production or processing of energy. It also includes other directives, including telling the head of the agency to consider issuing emergency fuel waivers that allow for the year-round sale of gasoline that contains high ethanol content, which is typically restricted due to smog concerns.” The New York Times reports that Trump is the first president to announce a national energy emergency – although the US currently produces more oil and gas than any other country. The newspaper adds: “In a call with reporters, a White House official said that the emergency declaration was motivated by the idea that US energy costs were currently higher than they should be because of policy decisions by the Biden administration.” It adds that according to legal exports, there are around 150 emergency powers that a president could invoke under certain conditions, but “many of the powers are relatively limited”. The Guardian says that the emergency declaration “could be open to legal challenge” if the Trump administration “cannot firmly establish the existence of an actual emergency to justify the ability to circumvent environmental and other regulatory and permitting procedures”.

Trump announced his intention to declare a “national energy emergency” at his inauguration speech yesterday, Reuters reports. BBC News says Trump used the speech to pledge to “drill, baby, drill”. CNN says: “Trump views energy prices as central to his mission to address widespread frustrations with the cost of living. He has argued that slashing red tape will help drive down energy prices and fight overall inflation.” Politico says that in his speech, Trump “implicitly criticised Biden for tapping the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which the former president used to help bring down gasoline prices after the market shock when Russian invaded Ukraine in 2022”. Bloomberg says: “Oil swung between gains and losses as traders digested a slew of pledges and executive orders from president Donald Trump.”

Another of the executive orders signed by Trump on his first day “temporarily halt[s] offshore wind lease sales in federal waters and paus[es] the issuance of approvals, permits and loans for both onshore and offshore wind projects”, the Associated Press reports. The newswire continues: “The interior secretary will review wind leasing and permitting practices for federal waters and lands. The assessment will consider the environmental impact of wind projects on wildlife, the economic costs associated with the intermittent generation of electricity and the effect of subsidies on the viability of the wind industry, the order states.” Reuters quotes Trump saying: “We’re not going to do the wind thing. Big, ugly wind mills. They ruin your neighborhood.” The newswire adds: “The order is not expected to impact existing US offshore wind projects being advanced by companies including Ørsted, Avangrid, Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, and Dominion.” The Hill reports that the order “specifically directs the review to analyse offshore wind’s effects on bird and marine mammal life”, noting that Trump claims that offshore wind turbines kill birds and whales.

Trump has also lifted a moratorium on new US licenses to export liquefied natural gas (LNG), Bloomberg reports. The outlet continues: “The directive, included in a broad executive order on energy, orders the Energy Department to resume reviewing applications for new permits. That was halted by former president Joe Biden in January 2024 while his administration studied the climate, economic and national security implications of increasing US exports of the fuel”. Separately, Bloomberg reports that European LNG prices have “fluctuated” in response to Trump’s announcement. The Hill reports that Trump also signed an executive order last night “opening up drilling in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and National Petroleum Reserve”.

Meanwhile, Bloomberg reports that in his inauguration speech, Trump “reiterated a call for the European Union to buy more American oil and gas if the bloc wants to avoid tariffs”, when speaking to reporters after his inauguration. Politico reports that Republican officials and business lobbyists may “turn up the volume on their complaints that EU green laws threaten competitiveness and impose undue costs”. Separately, Bloomberg reports that Trump has named Mark Christie as chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission – the “agency responsible for overseeing US power grids and making key decisions on multibillion-dollar energy projects”. The outlet adds that “the role has become politically charged as the once-obscure agency plays a vital role in the energy transition”. 

Trump has revoked a 2021 executive order signed by Joe Biden, which “sought to ensure half of all new vehicles sold in the United States by 2030 were electric”, Reuters reports. The newswire says that Biden’s target was not legally binding, but had “won the support of US and foreign automakers”. MailOnline quotes Trump telling the crowd during his inauguration speech: “With my actions today, we will end the Green New Deal and we will revoke the electric vehicle mandate, saving our auto industry and keeping my sacred pledge to my great American auto workers…In other words, you’ll be able to buy the car of your choice.” The Guardian says: “He has also promised to roll back auto pollution standards finalised by Biden’s administration last spring – a rule Trump calls an ‘EV mandate’, though it did not directly require the production of electric vehicles.” Reuters reports that shares of Japanese automakers and South Korean battery makers declined on Tuesday after Trump revoked the previous administration’s executive order on electric vehicles. However, it says that “Chinese manufacturers bucked the trend, with stocks opening higher after Trump did not target China in his inauguration speech or immediately impose tariffs on Beijing as previously promised”.

Bloomberg reports that Trump has ordered federal agencies to “immediately pause” spending under the Inflation Reduction Act. It continues: “The directive, included in an executive order issued Monday, mandates agencies to review grants, loans and other payments associated with the Inflation Reduction Act, which Trump has derided as the ‘Green New Scam’.” However, the outlet notes that the Environmental Protection Agency has said it has awarded 93% of grant funding coming from the Inflation Reduction Act, adding that “clawing back the funds won’t be easy”. It says: “The broader energy directive signed by Trump [on] Monday terminated Biden’s American Climate Corps program – a New Deal-inspired jobs program to fight climate change around the US.”

In ongoing coverage of the Los Angeles wildfires, the Guardian reports that “fierce and gusty winds” and a “heightened risk of wildfire outbreaks” are set to return to Los Angeles. The National Weather Service issued a warning of a “particularly dangerous situation” for parts of Los Angeles from Monday afternoon through Tuesday morning “due to low humidity and damaging Santa Ana winds”, the newspaper says. It adds: “The warnings come as firefighters continue to battle two major blazes in the Los Angeles area, the Palisades and Eaton fires, which have destroyed more than 14,000 structures since they broke out during fierce winds on 7 January.” Bloomberg adds: “The threat will likely continue all week, as more winds are expected and the landscape remains parched. A so-called red-flag warning is expected to remain in effect until Thursday, according to a Los Angeles County statement.” The Washington Post reports that “the landscape is now so flammable, experts warned, that fires that spark during high winds are likely to be uncontrollable”. The Independent has published a piece on the link to climate change, which says: “Whipping winds are intensifying natural disasters fueled by climate change, stoking raging California wildfires and supercharging major Atlantic hurricanes.” Other outlets including the New York Times, Los Angeles Times and CNN also cover the fires. And in the Conversation, Prof Andrea Rigon from UCL writes: “It is important that a focus on Hollywood villas does not reinforce the false idea that we are all in the same boat when it comes to climate change.”

Separately, BusinessGreen covers analysis which finds that “extreme weather events and climate fuelled disasters experienced by Americans over the past 12 months have had the costliest and most widespread impact of any stretch of weather for almost a century”.

The UK government is preparing to approve expansions at three London airports as part of a push for “growth”, Bloomberg reports. The newspaper continues: “Ministers are set to publicly signal support for a long-sought third runway at Heathrow, sign off on plans to bring the second strip at Gatwick into full-time use, and allow an increase in the capacity at Luton Airport, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked for anonymity discussing plans that haven’t been finalised.” The outlet says that chancellor Rachel Reeves is “considering announcing some or all of the decisions in a speech about growth due to take place later this month”. However, it says that the announcements come with “political risk”, because “airport expansion decisions divide the Labour party and were delayed under the previous Conservative government amid controversy over the environmental impact and noise objections”. The Times reports that last week, Reeves said the government needs to go “further, faster” in driving economic growth. It continues: “Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, has strongly opposed the plans along with Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London. There is currently no application for a third runway, known as a development consent order, but Reeves is expected to say that she would be supportive if one were made. [Prime minister] Keir Starmer voted against a third runway in 2018, when Reeves backed it.”

In other UK news, the Financial Times reports that Pod Point – an electric-vehicle charging supplier that is majority-owned by EDF – has “warned that weak retail demand for EVs in the UK will hit annual revenues”. The newspaper says: “Motorists’ concerns around lack of charge-points and the higher upfront costs for many EV models are among the factors holding back the transition in the UK, experts say.” The Guardian adds that Pod Point’s share price “slumped by more than a third on Monday morning” due to the announcement. Reuters says: “Britain faces a dual challenge of striving to reduce emissions while grappling with slower-than-anticipated adoption of EVs, driven partly by concerns over limited charging infrastructure and high costs. In December, the country launched a consultation to review rules that force automakers to produce more electric vehicles, following industry warnings that the current plan could lead to factory closures and job losses. But Pod Point said the recent consultation on the zero emission vehicle mandate could further increase near-term uncertainty for the sector.” The Times and the Independent also cover the news. Meanwhile, BusinessGreen reports that Dominos will test out electric vans to deliver pizzas in urban areas of the UK. Elsewhere, Bloomberg reports that “European car sales barely grew last year as persistent inflation, higher borrowing costs and apathy toward electric models led consumers to hold off on buying vehicles”. 

State-run newspaper China Daily reports that China has “established a zone-specific environmental management system that includes a customised blacklist for project[s]…in each zone”, according to a Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) spokesperson. The communist party-affiliated newspaper People’s Daily reports that China is improving its use of a “1+1+N approach” to construct a “Beautiful China”, having recently issued three policies based on creating “Beautiful China pilot zones”, “beautiful cities” and “beautiful villages”. State news agency Xinhua also covers the story, saying that the first “1” refers to the “opinions on promoting the construction of a Beautiful China” policy, the second “1” refers to the policy for creating “Beautiful China pilot zones” and the “N” including other policies to create a “Beautiful China” as well as areas such as “clean energy, green manufacturing, green transportation and green finance”. On Monday, president Xi Jinping chaired a politburo meeting focused on environmental protection, Xinhua reports, which called for “promoting the development of a comprehensive green transformation of the development model”. Another Xinhua article says that “all countries should abandon zero-sum thinking and political bias, enhance mutual trust, strengthen cooperation, and jointly tackle climate change”.

Meanwhile, BJX News reports that in 2024, China’s total electricity consumption reached 9,852 terawatts-hours, up 6.8% year-on-year. Guangming Daily says that, according to a new report, the total energy consumption of buildings and construction in China reached 2.4bn tonnes of coal equivalent in 2022, accounting for 44.8% of the country’s total energy consumption. Business newswire Yicai says the “price of polysilicon materials in China has climbed mainly due to a drop in related output and producers consciously reducing shipments”. Bloomberg reports that China’s largest power producer, China Energy Investment Corp, “hit record coal output last year while also achieving its renewable buildout target ahead of schedule”.

China published the “green technology promotion catalogue”, which calls for China to promote and encourage application of more than 110 advanced green technologies from seven major areas, including energy efficiency, environmental protection, recycling, low-carbon energy and green infrastructure, Xinhua reports. Science and Technology Daily says that “the market generally believes” that direct air capture (DAC) is “about to explode and set off a new…climate gold rush”. China’s longest hydrogen transmission pipeline project is expected to begin construction in 2025, International Energy Net reports. Xinhua says that on Monday, China’s “artificial sun” has set a “new world record” by maintaining a steady-state high-confinement plasma operation for 1,066 seconds. Science and Technology Daily says China will support the “application of renewable resources and new-type energy storage technologies”.

Elsewhere, a “Xinhua commentary” argues that, “from trade to global security and climate change”, the way the US and China interact has global implications. An editorial in the state-supporting Global Times argues that the US must consider “the potential for cooperation in various fields such as climate change” as a reason to deepen relations with China. An opinion article under the byline “Jin Sheping” in the People’s Daily says that “China’s green products have not only enriched global supply, but also contributed greatly to the global response to climate change”. A China Daily editorial says that Davos, which executive vice-premier Ding Xuexiang will attend, is an important platform to “address key global and regional challenges…[such as] a just and inclusive energy transition”.

There is widespread media reaction to Donald Trump’s inauguration yesterday. An editorial in the Guardian says Trump’s return “signals a new era of upheaval in US politics, marked by authoritarian ambitions, glaring conflicts and polarisation”. It continues: “A flurry of Trumpian executive orders will accelerate the climate emergency, defy the US constitution over birthright citizenship and reduce the scope of legal protections…Where Roosevelt once inspired hope, Trump offered fear.” A Financial Times editorial says: “Trump’s confirmation that he would end Biden’s Green New Deal and that the US would withdraw from the Paris climate accord are blows to climate action. Some of his other orders are set to be unprecedented, radical, and legally dubious.” The Times has published an editorial that says: “He also pledged to ‘defeat’ inflation with cheaper energy prices through ramping up oil and gas supplies. The pledge to ‘drill baby, drill’ may be applauded by Trump’s heartland supporters, who will embrace the ‘liquid gold under our feet’. Yet it will do little to help tackle America’s climate change commitments. One of Trump’s first actions returning to office was to quit the Paris climate accord, which Trump exited in 2020 and President Biden rejoined. His decision to revoke the electric vehicle mandate confirms that his America will not be dashing for net-zero, regardless of what Ed Miliband and our government think.” A Sun editorial says: “we hope they [Labour] take heed as the new president bulldozes fashionable wokery and trans lunacy. That, plus tax cuts and the end of net-zero follies, will liberate US firms.” An editorial in the Washington Post says: “For the second time, Trump plans to pull the United States out of the Paris climate accord, again making it one of the only countries in the world not party to the global commitment to reduce carbon emissions. He also positioned himself in favor of loosening barriers to carbon-emitting projects, promising to ‘drill, baby, drill’. At the same time, he made clear his active opposition to clean energy. He was expected to pause all offshore wind leases, a step that might portend a broader ban, which would stop the United States from competing in this burgeoning industry.” A Daily Telegraph editorial says: “Many members of the establishment Trump so despises are attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, holding discussions about free trade and net-zero that the new US president rejects. Without America they are not achievable.” Journalist and former free-market thinktank head Mark Wallace writes in the i newspaper that “Keir Starmer should take note of Trump’s plans for cheap energy”, adding that “it would be far preferable to be producing more of our own energy”. Glenn Altschuler, an emeritus professor of American Studies at Cornell University, writes in the Hill that “try as he might, Trump can’t kill clean energy”. Altschuler notes that the majority of Americans “believe that climate change has already caused substantial damage to the country” and says that Trump is “fighting against market forces, technological innovation and pork-barrel politics”. 

Arctic “ice roads” – temporary roads formed from the build up of snow that act as lifelines of isolated communities – have reduced because of climate change and are likely to decline further this century, new research finds. The research uses an ice road assessment model to examine climate suitability for ice roads in the current and possible future climates. The research also looks at the impact of ice road decline on diamond and metal exploration activities, finding this sector is likely to face “access difficulties” because of ice road disappearance by 2050-2100.