ALEXA ST. JOHN

Vehicles for export are parked at a port in Pyeongtaek, South Korea, Tuesday, April 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
As Trump considers auto tariffs pause, parts exemptions could be key for US industry
President Donald Trump is considering a delay of auto tariffs. A temporary pause won’t be enough for automakers to adjust their vast global supply chains but exemptions on parts could be key to the industry.
 
Zum electric buses are parked before a news conference announcing the Oakland Unified School District as being the first major school district in the country to use 100% electric school buses at the Zum/OUSD bus yard in Oakland, Calif., on Aug. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
Schools lined up for help getting cleaner school buses. Then came the EPA freeze
Hundreds of school districts around the U.S. may have to abandon plans to acquire electric buses after the EPA froze the latest round of money that was part of President Biden’s infrastructure law.
 
A motorist charges his electric vehicle at a Tesla Supercharger station in Detroit, Nov. 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)
US electric vehicle industry is collateral damage in Trump’s escalating trade war
One big loser in President Donald Trump’s escalating trade war is likely to be the U.S. electric vehicle industry. Electric cars are already more expensive to make in the U.S. and more expensive for car buyers than vehicles that run on gasoline.
 
A car drives through a flooded section of road near Lions Park Beach Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in St. Joseph, Mich., after heavy storms moved through Southwest Michigan. (Don Campbell/The Herald-Palladium via AP)
When heavy rainfall threatens flooding, you can protect yourself. Here’s how
Extreme weather is dangerous weather, and that’s particularly true for the heavy rainfall events that experts say are becoming more frequent with climate change.
 
New vehicles are seen at an auto-processing facility at the Atlantic Terminal of the Port of Baltimore, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Trump’s latest auto tariffs explained: What car buyers should know this year
President Donald Trump’s 25% tariffs on autos not made in the U.S. and certain auto parts will send ripple effects through an industry that is already being pummeled by steel and aluminum import duties and on-again, off-again 25% levies on Canada and Mexico.
 
Environmental Protection Agency employees take part in a national march against actions taken by the Trump administration, Tuesday, March 25, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Democrats say EPA illegally canceled hundreds of grants aimed at boosting ‘environmental justice’
Senate Democrats accuse the Environmental Protection Agency of breaking the law when they cancelled grants worth more than $1.5 billion focused on improving the environment in minority communities hit hard by pollution.
 
A person on a scooter crosses a street in a residential area located right next to the Port of Los Angeles, Tuesday, March 11, 2025, in San Pedro, Calif. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent)
America’s ports have labored to clean up pollution. Will that continue?
America’s ports have long struggled with dirty air that chokes nearby neighborhoods and jeopardizes the health of people living there.
 
This image made from a May 24, 2016 video by KWTV-KOTV, shows a funnel cloud moving across the field near Dodge City in Ford County, Kan. (KWTV-KOTV via AP, File)
What causes tornadoes and how to decipher watches and warnings
When severe weather hits the United States, there are ways people across the country can prepare for the potential impact of hail, rain, damaging winds and more.
 
Traffic flows on Interstate 435 on Sept. 25, 2024, in Leawood, Kan. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)
A breakdown of major EPA deregulatory moves around water, air, climate
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin on Wednesday announced nearly three dozen deregulatory moves that he said would spur the U.S. economy by rolling back rules that have unfairly burdened industry.
 
Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., left, greets Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, right, before President Donald Trump addresses a joint session of Congress at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, March 4, 2025. (Win McNamee/Pool Photo via AP)
Trump DOT chief rejects inclusion of environmental justice factors in infrastructure decisions
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has rescinded two Biden-era memos that had state agencies consider social and environmental justice factors when making decisions concerning critical national infrastructure work.
 
President Donald Trump addresses a joint session of Congress at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, March 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
Why automakers’ short reprieve from tariffs isn’t enough to weather Trump’s escalating trade war
President Donald Trump granted U.S. automakers a short reprieve from stiff new tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada this week.
 
President Donald Trump speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. (Pool via AP)
US auto industry could be collateral damage in Trump’s trade wars
President Donald Trump’s trade wars threaten to claim a casualty on the home front: the American auto industry.
 
Ilmenite, a key element used to produce titanium, is collected in the country's leading titanium mining company in the central region of Kirovohrad, Ukraine, Feb. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky, File)
Why the Trump administration may want Ukraine’s minerals
A deal this week will give the United States access to Ukraine’s mineral wealth. The country has a number of minerals critical to manufacturing including titanium, lithium and uranium.
 
An employee works on the production line at the Martinrea auto parts manufacturing plant that supplies auto parts to Canada and U.S. plants, in Woodbridge, Ontario, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP, File)
Trump steel, aluminum tariffs likely to drive up car costs, industry leaders say
President Donald Trump’s tariffs on steel imports this week are likely to wreak havoc on American auto manufacturing, industry leaders say.
 
A 2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E charges, March 8, 2024, at an electric vehicle charging station in London, Ohio. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel, File)
Trump is trying to halt the EV charger buildout. Experts say it’s not that easy
Experts are questioning President Donald Trump’s latest effort to slow the electric vehicle charging buildout in the U.S.
 
Wind turbines at the Buckeye Wind Energy are diffused by heat vapors as the are silhouetted against the rising sun, Sept. 30, 2024, near Hays, Kan. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)
Forget saving the planet. Clean energy interests sharpen a different message: Money and jobs
Saving the planet is so 2024. Clean energy leaders across the globe are now emphasizing the greener side of green: wealth-building. It sells far better in the new world of nationalism and tycoon leaders.
 
Traffic flows on Interstate 435 on Sept. 25, 2024, in Leawood, Kan. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)
Things to know about the Trump administration order on miles per gallon for cars and pickups
Hours after being sworn in as the new U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Sean Duffy took aim at the main way the federal government regulates miles per gallon for cars and pickup trucks — also a principal way that it controls air pollution and addresses climate change.
 
Myrtle Felton, from left, Sharon Lavigne, Gail LeBoeuf and Rita Cooper, members of RISE St. James, conduct a live stream video on property owned by Formosa on March 11, 2020, in St. James Parish, La. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)
In policy reversal, Trump eliminates help for Black and Latino communities hit harder by pollution
President Trump is reversing his predecessor’s efforts to clean up areas hardest hit by pollution from heavy industry, ports and roadways – communities that are often largely Black, Latino and low-income.
 
A motorist charges his electric vehicle at a Tesla Supercharger station in Detroit, Nov. 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)
‘We’ve got to move forward’ - Michigan electric vehicle industry responds to Trump policy changes
President Trump has slashed a slew of EV-related policies, which could affect many states that have received billions of dollars in investment for electrification, notably Michigan.
 
A toilet is displayed for sale that uses less water, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)
President Trump wants to make showerheads and toilets flow greatly again, but so may utility bills
On his first day in office, President Donald Trump announced plans to pull America from the Paris Agreement and expand the production of oil, both campaign promises.
 
President Donald Trump talks about the Endurance all-electric pickup truck, made in Lordstown, Ohio, at the White House, Sept. 28, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
What’s next for EVs as Trump moves to revoke Biden-era incentives?
President Donald Trump has signed an executive order promising to eliminate what he incorrectly labels “the electric vehicle mandate” imposed under former President Joe Biden.
 
Ford shows off some its vehicles before the start of the Detroit Auto Show at Huntington Place in Detroit, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (Daniel Mears/Detroit News via AP)
Honda Civic hybrid, Ford Ranger and Volkswagen ID. Buzz win 2025 North American vehicle awards
The Honda Civic hybrid won the 2025 North American Car of the Year award, while the Ford Ranger took the crown for the truck honors, and Volkswagen ID. Buzz won the utility award.
 
A worker does checks on battery storage pods at Orsted's Eleven Mile Solar Center lithium-ion battery storage energy facility, Feb. 29, 2024, in Coolidge, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)
Climate-friendly electricity sees big battery projects soar again for 2024
2024 was another banner year for a source of electricity that is better for people’s lungs, better for climate change and may be reaching your home now when you turn on the lights or turn up the thermostat — large banks of batteries.
 
Ricky Leath, an outreach specialist with the City of Miami, talks with Bei Zhao, right, as he works with the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust to distribute bottles of water and other supplies to the homeless population, helping them manage high temperatures, May 15, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File)
Climate change added 41 days of dangerous heat around world in 2024
Scientists say human-caused climate change added an average of 41 days of dangerous heat worldwide in 2024. The analysis from World Weather Attribution and Climate Central comes after a year likely to be the world’s hottest on record.
 
A sign is displayed at an electric vehicle charging station, March 8, 2024, in London, Ohio. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel, File)
Five facts about electric vehicles in 2024
Here are a few takeaways on electric vehicles in 2024: As of November, the global EV market grew by 25% year-over-year. That is for both battery EVs plus hybrids that plug in but which also have a gas tank.
 
A first generation battery swapping station by China-based CATL battery manufacturing company, is seen in Xiamen, Fujian province, China, Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
China’s getting a big electric car battery swapping boost in 2025. Would that work across the globe?
Global battery maker CATL says it will expand its electric vehicle battery swapping in China in 2025. Wednesday’s announcement was a reminder of a technology that has been around for some time and periodically tried.
 
A detailed model of Riyadh's proposed sports infrastructure is on display at the Saudi Arabia World Cup bid exhibition in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Dec. 11, 2024. The exhibition highlights the Kingdom's plans for hosting the 2034 World Cup. (AP Photo/Baraa Anwer, File)
Saudi Arabia’s plans to host the men’s World Cup 2034 will be harmful for the climate, experts say
Saudi Arabia says that to host the 2034 World Cup in men’s soccer, it will build or renovate 15 stadiums, create a futuristic city and expand airports and public transport in a massive buildout to accommodate millions of athletes, coaches and spectators.
 
Electric vehicle charging stations are seen in Beijing, Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Caroline)
After fast start, electric cars need a recharge as range limits, cost leave some drivers skeptical
While sales of electric vehicles surge in China, the spread of more environmentally friendly vehicles is stumbling in the United States and Europe as carmakers and governments struggle to meet years-old promises about affordability and charging stations.
 
FILE - Residents are illuminated by the headlights of a car during a blackout after a major power plant failed in Havana, Cuba, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa, File)
Sweeping blackouts in Cuba raise the question: Why has the island’s solar buildout been so slow?
Cuba’s large-scale blackouts that left 10 million people without power this month wouldn’t have happened if the government had built out more solar power to boost its failing electric grid as promised, some experts say.
 
The Google logo, left, is displayed at the company's headquarters in Mountain View, Calif., on July 19, 2016, and the Amazon logo is displayed on the exterior wall of the Amazon OXR1 fulfillment center in Oxnard, Calif., on Aug. 21, 2024. (AP Photo)
Amazon, Google make dueling nuclear investments to power data centers with clean energy
Tech giants Amazon and Google are investing in the next generation of nuclear reactors. Both companies are seeking new sources of carbon-free electricity to meet increasing demand from data centers and artificial intelligence.
 
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