Sign In or Create an Account.

By continuing, you agree to the Terms of Service and acknowledge our Privacy Policy

Homepage

Heatmap Turns 1

A look back at a year of distinct climate and energy coverage.

A slice of Heatmap cake.
Heatmap Illustration/Getty Images

I can’t quite believe it: Today is the one-year anniversary of Heatmap. And what a year it’s been.

When I left my old job as editor of The Week, climate change had a reputation among journalists as being the one scary subject that nobody wanted to read. It was too depressing, too technical, too boring to sustain dedicated coverage. That misperception is finally ending — and I like to think Heatmap put some nails in the coffin.

Heatmap’s mission is to tell the inside story of the race to fix the planet. We think this is the most important and interesting issue of our time, so we strive to make Heatmap punchy and personable as well as informative and trustworthy. It’s why you’ll find that Heatmap’s writers follow the facts where they lead and tell you — in hopefully engaging, elevated ways — what they see and hear.

Heatmap is also a bet that readers want to go deep into the nuances and tradeoffs at the heart of the energy transition. We love works in progress — how policymakers are thinking about a particularly thorny problem, how a geothermal company is trying to bring down costs fast, why a community is skeptical of a wind farm. It can be upsetting. It can be inspiring. We hope it’s always fascinating and helpful. After all, this is how the planet gets fixed.

But I’m preaching to the choir. If you’re reading this note, you are probably shaping the future of the planet yourself, whether through your work or the choices you make at home or both. I hope we’ve helped you understand what’s actually happening and make more informed decisions.

Over the next few weeks, you’ll be hearing from our writers about some of their favorite stories to get a behind-the-scenes look at the process behind them.

I hope you’ll also consider supporting our work if you haven’t already. Paid subscribers get full access to our two daily newsletters, our weekly podcast, and all the original reporting we publish on the site every day. They also receive the unending gratitude of our newsroom. (As a party favor for our birthday, you can also get 20% off an annual subscription with the code ANNIVERSARY.)

We know there are other outlets covering climate and energy, and we don’t take your trust or interest for granted. Thank you for your continued support.

Nico Lauricella
Founder and editor in chief

Green

You’re out of free articles.

Subscribe today to experience Heatmap’s expert analysis 
of climate change, clean energy, and sustainability.
To continue reading
Create a free account or sign in to unlock more free articles.
or
Please enter an email address
By continuing, you agree to the Terms of Service and acknowledge our Privacy Policy
Energy

The New Campaign to Save Renewables: Lower Electricity Bills

Defenders of the Inflation Reduction Act have hit on what they hope will be a persuasive argument for why it should stay.

A leaf and a quarter.
Heatmap Illustration/Getty Images

With the fate of the Inflation Reduction Act and its tax credits for building and producing clean energy hanging in the balance, the law’s supporters have increasingly turned to dollars-and-cents arguments in favor of its preservation. Since the election, industry and research groups have put out a handful of reports making the broad argument that in addition to higher greenhouse gas emissions, taking away these tax credits would mean higher electricity bills.

The American Clean Power Association put out a report in December, authored by the consulting firm ICF, arguing that “energy tax credits will drive $1.9 trillion in growth, creating 13.7 million jobs and delivering 4x return on investment.”

Keep reading...Show less
Green
Politics

AM Briefing: A Letter from EPA Staff

On environmental justice grants, melting glaciers, and Amazon’s carbon credits

EPA Workers Wrote an Anonymous Letter to America
Heatmap Illustration/Getty Images

Current conditions: Severe thunderstorms are expected across the Mississippi Valley this weekend • Storm Martinho pushed Portugal’s wind power generation to “historic maximums” • It’s 62 degrees Fahrenheit, cloudy, and very quiet at Heathrow Airport outside London, where a large fire at an electricity substation forced the international travel hub to close.

THE TOP FIVE

1. Trump issues executive order to expand critical mineral output

President Trump invoked emergency powers Thursday to expand production of critical minerals and reduce the nation’s reliance on other countries. The executive order relies on the Defense Production Act, which “grants the president powers to ensure the nation’s defense by expanding and expediting the supply of materials and services from the domestic industrial base.”

Keep reading...Show less
Yellow
Electric Vehicles

These States Are Still Pushing Public EV Charging Programs

If you live in Illinois or Massachusetts, you may yet get your robust electric vehicle infrastructure.

EV charging.
Heatmap Illustration/Getty Images

Robust incentive programs to build out electric vehicle charging stations are alive and well — in Illinois, at least. ComEd, a utility provider for the Chicago area, is pushing forward with $100 million worth of rebates to spur the installation of EV chargers in homes, businesses, and public locations around the Windy City. The program follows up a similar $87 million investment a year ago.

Federal dollars, once the most visible source of financial incentives for EVs and EV infrastructure, are critically endangered. Automakers and EV shoppers fear the Trump administration will attack tax credits for purchasing or leasing EVs. Executive orders have already suspended the $5 billion National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Program, a.k.a. NEVI, which was set up to funnel money to states to build chargers along heavily trafficked corridors. With federal support frozen, it’s increasingly up to the automakers, utilities, and the states — the ones with EV-friendly regimes, at least — to pick up the slack.

Keep reading...Show less
Green