@festal

„The dispute came to a head earlier this month when the #SouthernEnvironmentalLawCenter revealed that #xAI had quietly moved in at least 35 portable #methane gas turbines without air permits to help power its #supercomputer. The group says this many generators have the capacity to #power an entire city and are enormous #emitters of #toxic and #carcinogenic #pollution. The law center made the discovery by taking satellite images of the xAI facility.“

Also from the same story...

"Advocates say federal government has a crucial role funding environmental projects

"One group that's been waiting on funding is #CollaborativeEarth. The organization is helping #NativeAmerican tribes in #Oklahoma develop more #sustainable grazing practices and small #farmers in the southeast reforest waterways to prevent #flooding and store carbon pollution.

"'It's strange that the payment of an invoice could make you wonder about the future of a democracy, but that's exactly what it feels like,' says Aaron Hirsh, organization lead at Collaborative Earth.

"Unless payments restart, Hirsh says his group is weeks away from having to lay people off — and potentially having to shut down entirely.

"'I don't know when we're going to get started again on finding these kinds of solutions that can benefit local communities as well as #ecosystems,' Hirsh says. 'This is the sort of funding that can support that kind of innovation. That's what it was supposed to do. And without it, I don't think we find those solutions.'

"Like a lot of organizations, Collaborative Earth doesn't receive grant funding in big upfront payments. Instead, it's compensated by the government for past expenses, like paying workers and buying equipment. In other cases, organizations can withdraw federal funding to cover about a week's worth of expenses. Unless groups have large cash reserves, even a brief interruption in government funding can cause problems.

"'When these projects get frozen and you let all that staff go, you lose momentum, and you might lose the project permanently, because the people can't afford to sit and wait,' says Campaigne of the #SouthernEnvironmentalLawCenter. 'You're between a rock and a hard place of trying to stay committed to the work that you are dedicated to and feeding your family.' "

https://www.southcarolinapublicradio.org/2025-02-12/trump-funding-freeze-could-leave-communities-on-their-own-as-climate-threats-grow
#USPol #FundingFreeze #ClimateChange #Infrastructure #ClimateThreats #Environment