Maybe it’s buyer’s remorse. After Louisiana officials welcomed hyperscale data centers with extractive tax rebates and secretive dealings, a bipartisan wave of resistance is brewing to restrict the very artificial technology the facilities were built to create. At least three major data centers are coming to Louisiana, the largest being the Manhattan-sized Meta “Hyperion” project […] The post In Louisiana, Data Center Hype Faces AI Regulation and Community Resistance appeared first on DeSmog.

The UAE’s ruling royal family is benefiting from tens of millions in EU subsidies to grow crops destined for the Gulf, it can be revealed. A new cross-border investigation, shared with The Guardian, found that subsidiaries controlled by the Al Nahyans collected over €71 million (£61 million) in just six years for farmland it controls […] The post Gulf Royal Family Banks Over €70 Million in EU Farming Funds appeared first on DeSmog.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has banked more than £2 million in earnings and gifts since becoming an MP, DeSmog can reveal. Farage has come under fire in recent days for failing to declare a £5 million gift from major Reform donor Christopher Harborne prior to the 2024 general election, potentially in violation of parliamentary […] The post Nigel Farage Has Accepted £2 Million Since Becoming an MP appeared first on DeSmog.

For years, Canadian officials and oil industry backers have pitched carbon capture and storage (CCS) as the solution that would allow Alberta’s oil sands — and the nation’s proposed west coast pipeline — to proceed with a lower climate impact. Now, in a speech at this year’s Canada Strong and Free Network (CSFN) conference in […] The post Former BC Premier Gordon Campbell: Carbon Capture ‘Doesn’t Work’ appeared first on DeSmog.

Hosted by Covering Climate Now Thursday, May 7 12:00 p.m. EDT In April, a climate denial conference hosted in Washington, D.C., and boasting US Environmental Protection Agency head Lee Zeldin as a keynote speaker signaled a new era in US politics: from a slow but growing embrace of climate science in federal policy to outright […] The post Event | How Climate Denialism Is Evolving With Trump in Office appeared first on DeSmog.

A prominent ultra-conservative think tank with a long history of climate denial and close ties to the Trump administration is questioning whether all Americans should be allowed to cast ballots in elections. “Look, I’m going to say something very controversial: Not every adult over the age of 18 should have the right to vote,” Jim Lakely, […] The post Heartland Institute Podcast Questions Whether All Americans ‘Should Have the Right to Vote’ appeared first on DeSmog.

In mid-April, Indigenous leaders from British Columbia traveled to Ottawa to protest against the federal government’s aggressive support for fossil fuel expansion. Mark Carney’s Liberal government is fast-tracking multiple LNG projects in British Columbia, including the recent approval of Enbridge’s $4 billion natural gas pipeline expansion. Securing Indigenous support for fossil fuel projects has been […] The post How Canada’s LNG Push is Benefiting Trump and Shortchanging Indigenous People appeared first on DeSmog.

Senior executives, directors, and major investors from the world’s largest fertiliser and grain companies have sold shares worth more than $66 million (£49 million) during price hikes linked to the Iran war, DeSmog can reveal. Since the outbreak of the conflict in February, provoked by a U.S.-Israeli bombing campaign in Iran, fertiliser prices have increased by […] The post Fertiliser and Grain Bosses Bank $66 Million Selling Shares During Iran War appeared first on DeSmog.

Reform UK has received £24 million from oil and gas interests, accounting for more than two thirds of its total income, DeSmog can reveal. Led by Nigel Farage, the party is calling for new North Sea oil and gas drilling ahead of UK-wide elections in May on the ill-founded claim that it will cut energy bills. […] The post Revealed: Reform’s £24 Million from Fossil Fuel Interests appeared first on DeSmog.

For years, advertising executives have largely escaped criticism for glossing the images of major polluters. But as climate protestors turn up at ad agency offices and dozens of U.S. states file lawsuits accusing oil companies of deliberately spreading disinformation, the industry is coming under increasing scrutiny. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has called ad execs working with the fossil fuel industry […] The post ‘Mad Men Fuelling the Madness’: Meet the Advertising CEOs Boosting Big Oil appeared first on DeSmog.

British advertising conglomerate WPP has helped oil companies ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, and BP spend an estimated $1 billion on ads in the United States since the 2015 Paris Agreement to tackle climate change, a new report shows. The figure is nearly twice the respective amounts linked to U.S. rivals Omnicom and Interpublic Group (IPG), which merged in November. London-based WPP was the leading advertising group serving America’s oil industry over the past decade, […] The post Revealed: British Ad Giant’s Billion-Dollar Greenwash of U.S. Oil Industry appeared first on DeSmog.

As the UK and EU debate how to source the vast quantities of electricity they’ll need to power their grand visions of home-grown artificial intelligence (AI), the gas turbine sector is confident that governments will soon follow the lead of the United States – by clearing the way for Big Tech to embrace natural gas. […] The post Inside the Plot to Cover Europe with Gas-Powered AI Data Centres appeared first on DeSmog.

Is Premier Danielle Smith betraying her base? Her United Conservative Party (UCP) swept almost every riding outside of Calgary and Edmonton in the last election but the love does not seem to be mutual. Smith is bulldozing the interests of small town property owners as she plows forward with aggressive plans to attract $100 billion […] The post Danielle Smith Is Betraying Rural Alberta To Build Gas-Powered Data Centres appeared first on DeSmog.

A major right-wing political funder has dramatically increased his fossil fuel investments this year, DeSmog can reveal. Jeremy Hosking, who owns the hedge fund Hosking Partners, donated £1.7 million to Reform UK between 2019 and 2024. The party, led by Nigel Farage, campaigns to scrap the UK’s flagship 2050 net zero emissions target, remove environmental […] The post Reform Donor Expands Fossil Fuel Portfolio to £300 Million appeared first on DeSmog.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is the highest-paid Member of Parliament. In less than two years as the MP for Clacton, Farage has racked up £2 million in personal income and gifts, on top of his £94,000 a year parliamentary salary. As DeSmog has revealed, a substantial amount of Farage’s income has come from overseas […] The post Who Funds Nigel Farage? Mapping His Millions appeared first on DeSmog.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has accepted more than half a million pounds from foreign companies, governments, and donors while serving as an MP, DeSmog can reveal. Since July 2024, when he was elected as the Member of Parliament for Clacton, Farage has received almost £2 million in income and gifts, with £675,000 coming from […] The post Nigel Farage Has Personally Accepted £675,000 from Foreign Sources appeared first on DeSmog.

At the right-wing Heartland Institute’s International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC) held in Washington, D.C., last week, speakers mocked their usual cast of environmental targets: Greta Thunberg, John Kerry, and of course, Al Gore. But the fringe climate denial movement that Heartland represents and promotes might be facing a new threat, this time from within […] The post ‘Get Rid of MAHA’: Trump Alliance Cracks as Climate Denialists Turn on RFK Jr.’s Movement appeared first on DeSmog.

“The silent majority demands: restart domestic production – drill, refine, create British jobs, lower costs, secure supply,” reads the caption of an AI-generated image from the Facebook page “Lovely UK” – an account managed from Sri Lanka. The image, along with dozens like it, shows a generic AI-generated scene of cars packed into a petrol […] The post Sri Lankan ‘Grifters’ Pumping Out AI ‘Energy Policy Rage Bait’ on UK Facebook Feeds appeared first on DeSmog.

In the wake of global uncertainty caused by Donald Trump’s war on Iran, Fraser Institute analysts recently took to the pages of the Winnipeg Sun to lament that Carney is “clinging to Trudeau-era policies” like the oil tanker ban and industrial carbon pricing when he should instead “adopt reasonable, predictable and competitive policies”. That is […] The post Canadian Media Platforms Atlas Network Groups Pushing Fossil Fuels in Response to Iran War appeared first on DeSmog.

A pro-Orbán “propaganda” group close to Reform UK was granted £57 million in dividends from Hungary’s state oil company in the days before Sunday’s election. At its annual general meeting on 10 April – two days before Hungary’s parliamentary elections, which ousted prime minister Viktor Orbán – national oil company MOL decided to award HUF 241 […] The post Orbán Allies Awarded £57 Million from Hungary State Oil Giant Days Before Election appeared first on DeSmog.

Reform UK politician Matthew Goodwin was taken to task over his financial links to Viktor Orbán’s ousted government at a post-election event in Budapest yesterday. Despite offering no commentary on the election result online, Goodwin travelled to Hungary’s capital to headline an event hosted by Orbán’s in-house think tank and training school, Mathias Corvinus Collegium […] The post Reform’s Matthew Goodwin Challenged on Orbán Funding Ties at Budapest Event appeared first on DeSmog.

A few weeks ago, Viktor Orbán reminisced about the election of the current American president before a cheering crowd at a conference in Budapest organized by ultra-conservative American political operatives. “I remember one year ago, we jointly celebrated the victory of President Donald Trump. It was a fabulous success for the patriotic forces of the […] The post Revealed: The MAGA Plan to ‘Take Out’ Progressive Leaders Worldwide appeared first on DeSmog.

Elbows up. This defiant sentiment of decoupling Canada from our newly hostile neighbour propelled Prime Minister Mark Carney to his electoral upset last year. So why is Carney’s Minister of Natural Resources Tim Hodgson now signaling that Canada plans to deepen our ties to Donald Trump by providing natural gas to American data centres powering the artificial […] The post Carney Government Wants To ‘Provide’ the Fossil Fuels for Trump’s AI Strategy appeared first on DeSmog.

“Viktor Orbán is the strongest leader in Europe and the EU’s biggest nightmare.” These were the words posted on Twitter by Reform UK leader Nigel Farage about the prime minister of Hungary in April 2018. Since returning to power in 2010, Orbán has used a network of state-backed think tanks, media outlets, and conferences to […] The post Mapped: The Reform-Orbán Network appeared first on DeSmog.

Jacqueline Lassetter wanted to see America’s biggest data center. So one day in July last year, at the age of 78, she jumped into a car with her daughter, Daphne, and headed west across the muddy Chattahoochee River, leaving their wooded Georgia home for the Nevada desert. A week later, she was standing in front of the […] The post How Data Center Developers Staked Their Claim in Rural Georgia appeared first on DeSmog.

James Orr, until recently a relatively obscure academic theologian, now ranks among Reform UK’s most influential politicians, having been appointed as the party’s head of policy in February, following a four-month stint as a senior advisor to leader Nigel Farage. Orr’s friendship with U.S. Vice President JD Vance is widely known. However, there are many details […] The post Eight Things You Should Know About Reform’s Policy Chief James Orr appeared first on DeSmog.

“Do governments have to do more? Absolutely,…without question. There is a gap between ambition and policies that’s large. It needs to close.” – Mark Carney, United Nations Climate Action & Financial Special Envoy. Now-Prime Minister Mark Carney spoke those words in 2021, commenting on news that the six largest Canadian banks had joined the Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA) […] The post Mark Carney Pledges $1B in Taxpayer Money for a ‘Carbon Bomb’ Project appeared first on DeSmog.

In the wake of the fossil fuel crisis created by Donald Trump’s war in Iran, a host of influential figures and groups in the UK have been calling not for the rapid rollout of renewable energy, but a growing reliance on oil and gas. They have been calling for ramped up exploration of the UK’s […] The post The Vested Interests Lobbying for North Sea Oil and Gas Expansion appeared first on DeSmog.

Council members in Archbald, Pennsylvania, have voted down Texas-based Provident Realty Advisors’ application to build a giant data center after months of growing public outcry against plans to build several of the computing facilities in the borough of about 7,500 people. About 200 local residents showed up for the March 27 special meeting held at 1 […] The post Pennsylvania Town Votes Buzzer-Beater ‘No’ on Data Center Mega-Project appeared first on DeSmog.

The BBC has been accused of creating “propaganda films” for Saudi Arabia, the state behind the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, DeSmog and The Guardian can reveal. The broadcaster has accepted money to produce a series of “glossy” films on behalf of the country’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), which is controlled […] The post BBC Under Fire for Producing Paid ‘Propaganda’ for Saudi Arabia appeared first on DeSmog.

Under cover of Trump’s “drill, baby, drill” mantra and “shock and awe” style of government, major fossil fuel companies are taking the opportunity to roll back key elements of their energy transition strategies. Now, a growing number of oil and gas professionals are confronting a difficult personal question: Will my conscience allow me to continue […] The post As the Oil Majors Retreat on Climate Promises, Industry Insiders Are Asking: Should I Stay or Should I Go? appeared first on DeSmog.

Reform UK’s head of policy James Orr spoke alongside a white nationalist politician at a conference in Hungary last weekend (21 March), DeSmog can reveal. Orr made an appearance at CPAC Hungary, a political festival closely associated with Donald Trump’s MAGA (Make America Great Again) movement. CPAC has also lent its support in recent years […] The post Reform Policy Chief James Orr Shared Stage With White Nationalist appeared first on DeSmog.

Ofgem has rejected calls from MPs to force energy companies to write off £1 billion of customer debt after intense energy industry lobbying, DeSmog can reveal. In October, MPs sitting on the Energy Security and Net Zero Committee told the regulator that excess returns made by the industry from soaring energy prices since 2021 should […] The post Energy Firms Dodge £1 Billion Debt Relief Bill After Corporate Lobbying appeared first on DeSmog.

Late in the run-up to last year’s federal election, an open letter signed by 33 business leaders ran as a full-page advertisement in newspapers across the country. Representing industries that ranged from from banks and investment firms to mining and oil-and-gas companies, they demanded more support for pipelines, mines, and energy projects, and ended the […] The post How ‘The Charles Koch of Canada’ Created a $9.5 Million Influence Machine appeared first on DeSmog.

This piece is co-published by DeSmog and ExxonKnews. ExxonKnews is a reporting project of the Center for Climate Integrity. Major oil and gas lobby groups are leveraging energy shortages during the U.S. and Israel’s war on Iran to call on the European Union to pause its regulations on methane, a powerful climate pollutant. If successful, […] The post As War on Iran Continues, a European Climate Law Could Be at Risk appeared first on DeSmog.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch enjoyed a £7,500 getaway in February at the home of an influential anti-climate donor, DeSmog can reveal. New records show that Badenoch and four members of her family spent six days at a residence owned by Neil Record, a former currency trader who chairs Net Zero Watch, one of the UK’s […] The post Kemi Badenoch Accepted £7,500 Retreat from Chair of Climate Denial Group appeared first on DeSmog.

An Israeli private investigator wanted by U.S. law enforcement for allegedly orchestrating an illegal “hacking-for-hire” operation on behalf of oil and gas major ExxonMobil has been denied permission to appeal against his extradition to the United States in the UK High Court of Justice. As previously reported by DeSmog, Amit Forlit, who was arrested at […] The post Breaking: UK Court Paves Way for Alleged Exxon Hacker-for-Hire’s Extradition to U.S. appeared first on DeSmog.

Never let a good crisis go to waste. That seems to be the strategy of fossil fuel interests trying to leverage the oil-related conflict in the Persian Gulf to lock in another chapter of oil extraction. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith flagged the unfolding war as a rationale to fast track bitumen export infrastructure, telling a […] The post Canada’s Oil Industry Is Trying to Cash in on Iran War appeared first on DeSmog.

Four of the world’s biggest oil and gas companies have spent the last four years systematically shifting away from climate-friendly advertising to push a new message: fossil fuels are here to stay, a report has found. Campaign group Clean Creatives analysed 1,859 communications from BP, Shell, ExxonMobil, and Chevron published between 2020 and 2024, spanning paid advertisements on Facebook, YouTube, […] The post ‘You Can’t Live Without Us’: How Big Oil Pivoted from Climate-friendly Messaging to Normalise Dependence on Fossil Fuels   appeared first on DeSmog.

This piece is copublished by DeSmog and ExxonKnews. ExxonKnews is a reporting project of the Center for Climate Integrity. Scott Eustis is doing what he can to keep Louisiana afloat. As a veteran wetland and fisheries researcher and lifelong resident, he says he is sure of what caused the damage to the state’s delicate marshlands and drowning coast: the […] The post Big Oil Knew It Was Wrecking Louisiana’s Coast, Records Show appeared first on DeSmog.

The Scottish National Party (SNP) has selected Hannah Mary Goodlad, a senior figure at Norway’s state oil company, Equinor, as its candidate for the Shetland Islands’ seat in parliamentary elections this May. Locals and political opponents have accused Equinor, which has given Goodlad a leave of absence to campaign, of attempting to influence British politics. […] The post The SNP’s Oil Executive Holyrood Candidate appeared first on DeSmog.

On a chilly Monday just before Thanksgiving, residents of Archbald, Pennsylvania hurried from work in the fading autumn light to snag seats in the old brick Borough Building for a 5 p.m. council meeting. After the roughly 50 seats quickly filled, people continued to pack the room, standing along the walls or wedging themselves into the remaining floor space. […] The post Data Centers Are Poised to Engulf a Pennsylvania Town appeared first on DeSmog.

The EU’s flagship water law is under threat amid a concerted lobbying blitz from the mining industry. New analysis by DeSmog reveals sector meetings with EU officials tripled in the year before the release of a European Commission strategy document pledging to “review and revise” the Water Framework Directive. The Commission’s ResourceEU Action plan, which […] The post Europe’s Waterways Under Threat from Mining Lobby appeared first on DeSmog.

This story is published in partnership with The Lens. Dasha pushed a lock of wavy purple hair out of her eyes and turned a knob — and at last, the generator on the sidewalk before her roared to life. Finally, she could return to the light and heat of the hemp cafe where she works near […] The post As Russia Bombs Ukraine’s Power Plants, Gulf Coast LNG Companies Win Big appeared first on DeSmog.

The only ice factory in Bubaque is out of service. Local fishermen, like Pedro Luis Pereira, are forced to source ice from factories on the mainland in Guinea-Bissau, West Africa, some 70 kilometres away – a six-hour round trip by boat. “The machines have been broken for months,” Pereira explains, as he pulls in his […] The post How the ‘Galapagos of West Africa’ was Plundered by Floating Fishmeal Factories appeared first on DeSmog.

It has been three months since Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith signed their memorandum of understanding (MOU) for a new bitumen oil pipeline to the west coast. With an April 1 deadline for a final deal with the oil industry only a month away, how are negotiations for this “grand bargain” […] The post Mark Carney’s Pipeline MOU With Danielle Smith Has Been A Disaster appeared first on DeSmog.

The Daily Mail’s parent company (DMGT), which is attempting to buy The Telegraph newspaper, makes a quarter of its money hosting events in Middle East petrostates. DMGT has made a £500 million bid to purchase the Telegraph Media Group. A previous offer backed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was blocked by the UK government […] The post Telegraph Bidder Daily Mail Cashing in from Oil Industry Events appeared first on DeSmog.

This story is published in partnership with The Guardian. As Donald Trump assaults the legal foundation of America’s ability to regulate global warming emissions, climate deniers have been privately celebrating what they claim is the “silent” acquiescence of billionaires, Democrats, climate activists and even reporters to the president’s aggressive pro-fossil fuel agenda. “In my 26 years of being focused on climate, […] The post Climate Deniers Expected More Resistance to Trump’s Fossil Fuel Blitz appeared first on DeSmog.

In a Prince Rupert board room in mid-January, the British Columbia-based Indigenous alliance Coastal First Nations-Great Bear Initiative (CFN), Lax Kw’alaams and the Haisla Nation met with Prime Minister Mark Carney and reaffirmed their opposition to a new oil pipeline to the northwest coast of the province. “It’s loud and clear. That’s a no, and our interest […] The post Why the Haisla Nation Is Fine With LNG But Not Mark Carney’s New Oil Pipeline appeared first on DeSmog.

Nigel Farage is preparing to fly more than 3,000 miles from his UK constituency to address an anti-climate U.S. think tank with close ties to Donald Trump, DeSmog can report. For an estimated 12 hours’ work on Saturday (7 March), the Reform UK leader will collect £27,856.88 from Club for Growth, a conservative anti-tax lobby group based in Washington D.C. that has vowed “to work closely […] The post Nigel Farage Paid £27,000 to Speak at Pro-Trump U.S. Think Tank appeared first on DeSmog.