Good morning from a chilly New York City, where schools of forage fish are swimming south of Queens, bringing an unexpected surge of feeding bluefin tuna. (We don’t generally see those beautiful animals so close to shore. Nature is wild!) Here’s what’s happening: The U.N. Security Council approved President Trump’s peace plan for Gaza, a major breakthrough toward rebuilding the enclave. And a federal judge in Virginia said that the case against James Comey could be in serious trouble because of apparent misconduct by the Justice Department. Save for the tuna, we’ll get to those stories, and others, below. Before we do, though, I’d like to draw your attention to a proposal the Trump administration released yesterday afternoon that would strip federal protections from millions of acres of wetlands and streams, making it easier to pollute them. Losing those protections could affect drinking water for millions of Americans.
Unclean waterThe proposal from the Trump administration, should it be finalized in the coming months, would deliver a victory to businesses and industries that want to scale back the Clean Water Act of 1972, which Congress passed to protect all “waters of the United States.” The beneficiaries could be real estate developers eager to build on shorelines, farmers with fields that run along waterways and manufacturers who make petrochemicals in vast factories set on tidal marshes. “Today’s proposal is going to be met with a lot of relief” from those businesses and landowners, Lee Zeldin, the E.P.A. administrator said. But what about the rest of the country? My colleague Maxine Joselow, a climate policy reporter, covered the announcement of the proposal, which could exclude from federal protection wetlands that sit beside what are known as “intermittent” or “ephemeral” streams. Those are the ones that sit dry for most of the year but fill up after rainfall or snowmelt, providing more than half of the water flowing through most river systems used in our drinking water. “Wetlands are sort of the unsung heroes of the planet because they store carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change,” Maxine told me. “They also provide food, shelter and breeding grounds for a variety of species, including endangered species like the Florida panther and the whooping crane.” They not only provide drinking water, but they also protect against flooding by absorbing tidal surges during storms. The environmentalist responseEnvironmentalists are ripping mad. The proposal could affect up to 55 million acres of wetlands — roughly the area of Utah. The disagreement comes down to a debate over what constitutes “waters of the United States,” which Maxine told me is known by water policy nerds as WOTUS. The Obama administration widened the scope of the Clean Water Act to protect the headwaters of rivers and smaller streams that aren’t always full of water. (A farmers’ advocacy group ran an ad campaign featuring rubber ducks to protest the E.P.A.’s definition: “If you can’t #FloatUS, it’s not a WOTUS,” the ads declared.) In Trump’s first term, the E.P.A. repealed that rule. Then, a Supreme Court ruling in 2023 made it hard again for Democratic administrations to strengthen the protections. The case was Sackett v. E.P.A. The Sacketts were an Idaho couple who wanted to build a house near what the E.P.A. said were federally protected wetlands. The Supreme Court ruling said the wetlands were not, in fact, federally protected. And now many more acres of waterways may not be either. The National Association of Home Builders cheered the possibility, Maxine said. The group’s chairman told her the administration’s proposal would help in “reducing regulatory red tape, cutting permitting costs and lowering the cost of doing business in communities across the country.” Beyond wetlandsTrump has repeatedly said he wants “clean air and clean water.” But several decisions are expected to have the opposite effect, Maxine said. Last month, the government said it would open the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska to oil and gas drilling. And just last week the administration announced that drilling would also be allowed in a pristine, remote stretch of tundra and wetlands in the northern part of the state that is among the Arctic’s most important wildlife habitats. Why? Officials say that environmental concerns should not necessarily supersede the needs of the nation’s economy. The decision to drill in Alaska, for instance, would “unlock Alaska’s energy potential, create jobs for North Slope communities and strengthen American energy security,” according to Doug Burgum, the secretary of the interior. Lowering environmental protections is one way to do that, it’s true. Now, let’s get you caught up.
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For the first time, researchers have devised a technique to track the world’s most famous insect migration. They’re outfitting monarch butterflies with featherweight radio tags, powered by the sun, to track their journeys to winter colonies in Mexico. The tags weigh just 60 milligrams (about as much as a grain of cooked rice). The tech could shed light on the poorly understood life cycles of hundreds of butterfly species, plus bees and other insects, at a time when many are declining. “There’s nothing that’s not amazing about this,” said Cheryl Schultz, a butterfly scientist at Washington State University. It’s good news for insect enthusiasts, too: A free app lets you follow the progress of individual butterflies. Many are coasting over cities and suburbs; they’re finding pollinator gardens and stopping in winter hideaways. The Times followed six of them. See where they went.
Elon Musk’s $1 trillion payment plan at Tesla isn’t a reward for his achievements. It’s a flex on those who’ve ever opposed him, William Cohan writes. Europe should ramp up military spending to show President Vladimir Putin of Russia why the continent isn’t worth targeting — and Trump why it is worth backing, Gabrielius Landsbergis writes. The Times Sale: Our best rate for readers of The Morning. Save now with our best offer on unlimited news and analysis as part of the complete Times experience: $1/week for your first year.
Pilgrimage: A village in China has become a time capsule for the country’s communist era under Mao Zedong. Tourists are flocking to it. An outrageous pair of pants: His jeans are gigantic. His internet fame is, too. Stuck: Many Americans rushed to buy homes during the pandemic. Now, some who want to move feel they’re handcuffed to their rock-bottom rates. What are you grateful for? For an upcoming newsletter, we want to hear what our readers are thankful for this year — in six words or less. Tell us yours.
$150 million— That’s Sotheby’s estimate for its auction tonight of Gustav Klimt’s “Bildnis Elisabeth Lederer (Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer),” from the collection of Leonard Lauder.
Last night, before their Monday Night Football game, the Las Vegas Raiders held a pregame ceremony for Marshawn Kneeland, a 24-year-old defensive end on the Dallas Cowboys who had only recently scored his first N.F.L. touchdown. He shot himself this month after leading the police on a chase, the authorities said. Kneeland died at a time when his life appeared to be going well. He had achieved his dream of playing in the N.F.L. and signed a multimillion-dollar contract. His girlfriend was pregnant. They had discussed marriage and buying a home. The Times’s Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs traveled to Kneeland’s hometown and spoke with Kneeland’s friends and family to report this story on his life and tragic death. More on sports
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