Abortion feud snags New Orleans flood aid

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Aug 19, 2022 View in browser   By Arianna Skibell Flooding in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005. | Mark Wilson/Getty Images Louisiana is withholding flood-control funding from New Orleans in retaliation for the city's refusal to enforce the state's abortion ban. It's the latest example of how unrelated fights on political and social issues can hamper the effort to curb climate change. Louisiana's ban on abortion is strict, with no exemptions for rape or incest. But in New Orleans, a progressive bastion in a conservative-leaning state, city officials have declined to enforce the ban, writes POLITICO's E&E News reporter Ariel Wittenberg in a story today. Now, Republican Attorney General Jeff Landry — who called the refusal a "dereliction of duty" — is spearheading the delay of a $39 million line of credit for a flood mitigation project the city is counting on to protect its 384,000 residents from increasingly severe deluges. "It is my belief that a parish or municipality should not benefit from the hard-working taxpayers of this state while ignoring laws validly enacted by the people through their representatives," Landry wrote in a recent letter. New Orleans city officials this summer passed a resolution asking law enforcement not to carry out the state's abortion ban, which garnered national attention this week when doctors refused to perform an abortion on a woman whose fetus had a fatal skull defect. The city's sheriff said she would refuse to jail people accused of violating the ban, and the district attorney said he would not prosecute abortion providers or patients. Despite the retaliatory funding delay, City Council President Helena Moreno said New Orleans — which happened to issue a flood advisory Thursday — would not back down from its abortion stance. The mitigation funding is designated to build a power plant that would run hundreds of drainage pumps throughout the city. Those pumps are now powered by outdated turbines, the first of which was built around 1910, when William Howard Taft was president. The turbines, which are also used to power the city's water and sewage system, are stretched thin. And when heavy rains fall, operators are forced to choose whether to use the generated electricity for flood control or other sanitation needs.   Thank goodness it's Friday — thank you for tuning in to POLITICO's Power Switch. I'm your host, Arianna Skibell.  Power Switch is brought to you by the journalists behind E&E News and POLITICO Energy. Send your tips, comments, questions to askibell@eenews.net. Today in POLITICO Energy's podcast: POLITICO's Catherine Morehouse explains why green energy incentives aren't just for big utilities anymore and what this means for electricity providers across the country. Listen to today's POLITICO Energy podcast Real World Impact Left to right: Joe Raedle/Getty Images; FanFan61618/Flickr; Sean Gallup/Getty Images Hot deals — President Joe Biden's massive climate bill signed into law this week includes tens of billions of dollars intended to directly benefit American consumers. But getting those benefits to consumers could prove challenging. POLITICO's E&E News reporters Corbin Hiar and Benjamin Storrow explain the best way you can take full advantage of the new law in this consumer's guide. Power Centers Permian Basin drilling rigs in Odessa, Texas. | Joe Raedle/Getty Images Manchin connections Biden's climate law includes a provision that could financially boost an energy company with ties to Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, writes Scott Waldman. The company opened a field office in West Virginia and contributed more money to Manchin than any other candidate in this election cycle. Read the story here. Pipeline promises A proposal backed by the White House and Democratic lawmakers to speed up federal pipeline permitting is despised by many environmentalists, write Mike Soraghan and Carlos Anchondo. While some oil and gas companies are optimistic the plan will move forward regardless, others aren't holding their breath. Read more here. Let the Russian gas flow! The vice president of the German parliament is calling for the activation of a pipeline that would carry Russian gas to his country in time for winter, writes Wilhelmine Preussen. Wolfgang Kubicki's comments drew fierce criticism from from Kyiv, where Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said "addiction to Russian gas kills." Here's the story. In Other News Screenshot News void: The oil giant Chevron has launched a pro-fossil fuel news website in a region of Texas that has seen one-third of its newspapers close over the past two decades. Price cut alert : Economists project the new climate law will save consumers more than $200 billion on their electricity bills over the next decade. Question Corner The science, policy and politics driving the energy transition can feel miles away. But we're all affected on an individual and communal level — from hotter days and higher gas prices to home insurance rates and food supply. Want to know more? Send me your questions and I'll get you answers. Subscriber Zone A showcase of some of our best subscriber content. A herd of cattle gathers in the shade at a farm in Owings, Md. | Mark Wilson/Getty Images Researchers have found that an ancient Indigenous practice of putting cows in forests could protect livestock from climate change. Biden's sweeping climate law has entered the U.S. into the ring to battle China on clean energy. But the U.S. solar industry is  sounding the alarm about the law's potential pitfalls. That's it for today, folks. Thanks for reading, and have a great weekend!   Follow us on Twitter Arianna Skibell @ariannaskibell   Follow us

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