This year, Los Angeles will implement a ban on natural gas in new buildings. That’s thanks to an ordinance unanimously approved last month by the City Council which requires that new buildings within city limits be constructed with all-electric appliances. Currently, buildings account for some 43 percent of the city’s overall climate pollution.

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New York Governor Kathy Hochul has signed new legislation to protect disadvantaged communities from pollution. The law requires proposed polluting facilities such as power plants, wastewater treatment facilities, and bus depots to undergo a comprehensive environmental justice assessment before being sited in low-income communities and communities of color.

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The Biden administration finalized a new rule last week clarifying which of the country’s waterways qualify for federal protection under the 1972 Clean Water Act. The rule attempts to end years of political back-and-forth over the term “waters of the United States,” which determines which bodies of water are eligible for federal programs to prevent contamination.

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ARTICLES BY JOSEPH WINTERS

Hello and thank you for reading the Beacon! I’m Joseph Winters, Grist’s Newsletter Reporter, in charge of delivering your daily dose of good climate news. I’ve been writing for Grist since 2020 and am most interested in plastics, greenwashing, and corporate accountability.