1.  On Thursday, February 12, 2026, the federal government announced the repeal of the scientific finding that climate change endangers human health and the environment (the 2009 endangerment finding).  By removing limits on CO2, methane and four other greenhouse gases that supercharge heat waves, droughts, wildfires and other extreme weather, the U.S. EPA will no longer enforce the fuel efficiency of America's cars and trucks, even though transportation is the largest single source of greenhouse gases in the U.S.  Gas guzzlers cannot be sold in Europe or China, so the U.S. risks ceding automotive technology to Chinese electric vehicle giants while increasing U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by 10% over the next 30 years,  according to an advocacy group, the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).  The way is now cleared for the EPA to repeal limits from other sources of pollution, such as power plants and oil and gas wells, a process that it has begun.  The decision is expected to face fierce legal challenges, to which you can add your voice.

2. Overwhelming scientific evidence shows that burning coal, the dirtiest of the fossil fuels, is harming public health and driving dangerous levels of global warming; yet in mid-February, 2026, the U.S. EPA weakened pollution limits for coal-burning power plants by repealing the stringent limits set in 2012 and updated in 2024 that made it much more expensive to burn coal.  The burning of coal releases mercury into Earth's atmosphere, where it can settle in waterways and accumulate in fish, other aquatic organisms, and in humans.  Mercury can cause heart disease and severe damage to the brain and central nervous system, and in babies and fetuses it can cause significant developmental delays, lower IQ scores and impaired motor skills.  In addition to mercury, heavy metals released by burning coal include cadmium, chromium, lead, and nickel, all of which are linked to health risks including cancer, infertility, and neurological damage.  The most marginalized members of our society live nearest to the source of pollution and suffer the worst consequences, making this a social justice issue as well.

3.  State law requires Minnesota's electric utilities to reduce their carbon emissions to zero by 2040, and additional statutory goals aim to cut overall emissions by 30% in 2025, 50% by 2030, and 100% by 2050.  Minnesota failed to hit the 2025 target, although state carbon pollution fell by one-fifth between 2005 and 2023, according to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.  Progress has largely been driven by the power sector (emissions cut in half)  and the transportation sector (emissions reduced by 9%), but emissions from agriculture, industry, and residential and commercial buildings all went up between 2005 and 2023.  Minnesota and other states struggle with the February 2026 repeal of federal authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, which is delaying the roll out of several state-administered programs, such as a rebate for Minnesotans to install heat pumps and a federal program to weatherize buildings.  Share your concerns with your state and federal representatives.

4.  In January 2026, the U.S. pulled out of the Paris agreement, the international treaty aimed at keeping global warming below 2 degrees Celsius, while rescinding billions of dollars in federal climate spending.  In February 2026, the endangerment finding of 2009 that gave the U.S. EPA the authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions was also repealed.  According to the MN Dept. of Commerce, the state will now find it more difficult to help Minnesota farmers cut their emissions, which have risen by about 1 million metric tons, or 1%, between 2005 and 2023.  Federal grants, now rescinded, had been awarded for farmers to install solar or buy electric farm equipment, as well as expanding programs to help farmers adopt cover crops and other practices that can improve soil health and reduce carbon emissions.  But state legislators hope to help the state cut emissions by, for example, proposing funding for homeowners to install heat pumps, and a bill setting new energy efficiency standards for existing buildings that would encourage investing in electric appliances.

5.  The environmental nonprofit Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy (MCEA) is tracking at least 21 potential data center proposals in Minnesota alone, a fast-moving industry built as part of a drive for generative AI, funded by huge corporations that often describe a project as a "technology park" or "light industrial development."  With data centers known for their considerable use of electricity, water and metals, as well as being noisy and brightly lit at all hours, MCEA urges the development of a statewide strategy on this new industry, which has no permitting protocols in our state.  As yet, there is no government agency that can impose guardrails on water use, energy use, or the cumulative effects that multiple facilities would have on our resources.  The U.S. already has 10 times as many data centers as any other nation in the world, so concerned Minnesotans can demand that we create a framework for rational development that respects our natural resources.