Message From the Editor
Corporate welfare: Ransacking community services to line the pockets of fossil fuel companies.
It’s an evergreen topic, but particularly relevant right now. Last week, President Trump proposed slashing $163 billion from the U.S. federal budget, which would devastate social services for low-income communities.
Yet, tax breaks for fossil fuel projects remain a top priority for the administration, as Sharon Kelly points out in her latest article for DeSmog.
Australia’s Woodside Energy is the corporation that will reap the benefits of this colossal tax giveaway, to the tune of $2.8 billion, for opening a new LNG export terminal in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana — a low-income community blighted by health issues from environmental damage.
The deal goes down as one of “the largest single local tax giveaways in U.S. history,” as Sharon writes, at a dire moment when local parish budgets are already in desperate need of tax revenue to fund schools, libraries, and roads – even before Congress negotiates Trump’s budget.
Does this seem like a fair trade to you?
Read the full story to hear how the property tax law is taking money from beleaguered residents to build wealth for fossil fuel CEOs.
Meanwhile, north of the border, Canadians have their own pro-carbon corporate welfare to contend with. Last week, the nation held its largest hydrogen industry gathering in Edmonton, Alberta. Environmental Defence Canada has called federal government funding for hydrogen projects, which use carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology, a “terrible use of taxpayer money,” DeSmog’s Danielle Paradis writes.
Despite government and industry claims of “clean hydrogen,” critics argue that the term has become a catch-all that obscures continued fossil fuel reliance.
Not only that. “Transporting hydrogen overseas is incredibly challenging and expensive — and has never been successfully done at scale,” said Julia Levin of Environmental Defence. Canada, along with the U.S., Norway, the Netherlands, and the European Union, accounts for 95 percent of global public spending on CCS and hydrogen projects, according to The Guardian.
And who foots the bill for the fragile promise of hydrogen as a clean fuel? That’s right — taxpayers. Politicians and CEOs are betting on public dollars to keep paying for faulty energy solutions that make climate change that much worse, while making fossil fuel corporations that much richer. For more, read Danielle’s story here.
Have a story tip or feedback? Get in touch: [email protected]. Want to know what our UK team is up to? Sign up for our UK newsletter.
Thanks,
Brendan DeMelle
Executive Director
P.S. DeSmog continues to keep you informed about threats to our climate across the globe — from up-to-the minute reporting to essential database profiles that help others fight climate denial and delay. Can you donate $10 or $20 right now to support more of this essential work?
Credit: DeSmog collage.Gage Skidmore / Thames Water / KKR
Louisiana LNG Tax Break Could Cost Local Communities $2.8 Billion
— By Sharon Kelly (6 min. read) —
Australia’s Woodside approves $17.5 billion LNG project just days before Trump social services budget cuts, leaving locals facing “harsh economic reality.”
Hydrogen Developers Call for Government Cash While Key Projects Collapse
— By Danielle Paradis (4 min. read) —
Even as the mood at Edmonton’s annual expo turned cautious, industry still bet on public dollars to keep its net zero dream alive.
Thames Water’s Prospective New Owner Donated $1 Million to Trump’s Inauguration
— By Sam Bright and Adam Barnett (5 min. read) —
The U.S. private equity firm KKR contributed to the president’s swearing-in ceremony.
Breaking: Alleged Exxon Hacker-for-Hire Loses Extradition Fight In London Court
— By Rebecca John (5 min) —
Amit Forlit, who is accused of conducting hacking operations against 128 targets, faces up to 45 years behind bars if found guilty.
What Have Reform’s Key Candidates Said About Climate Change?
— By Adam Barnett (7 min. read) —
Despite widespread public support for clean energy and climate action, Nigel Farage’s party is running on an aggressively anti-net zero ticket.
From the Climate Disinformation Database: Ian Clark
Ian D. Clark is an emeritus professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at the University of Ottawa. He was a science advisor to the Natural Resources Stewardship Project (NRSP), and was once listed as an “Arctic specialist” by the Competitive Enterprise Institute. In 2023, Clark notably claimed, “We find no evidence in the geological record and in the historical record that changes in CO2 concentrations are affecting temperature or climate,” in a short video for Friends of Science. He went on: “Depends on the time scale. We find very strong correlations between CO2 and warming. The interesting point though is that the warming starts first. So warming drives CO2.” In October 2023, during a presentation at the Friends of Science’s 20th Annual “climate science” event, Clark said, “Everybody overlooks the fact that CO2 really is the essence of life.” He added, “it bears repeating that we’re talking about something which is not a pollutant. It’s not a contaminant, although the EPA has declared it such. It’s good for us. It’s essential.”
Read the full profile and browse other individuals and organizations in our Climate Disinformation Database, Ad & PR Database, and Koch Network Database.
