Big week for international climate action Presented by National Clean Energy Week

With help from Eric Wolff and Alex Guillén

CRUNCH TIME FOR CLIMATE: It’s a crucial week for international climate policy as President Donald Trump’s White House prepares for a couple of pivotal meetings that may determine whether the U.S. remains a party to the landmark Paris agreement on climate change. Ivanka Trump is scheduled to meet with EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt on Tuesday morning ahead of a broader gathering of close aides. The landmark 2015 climate change pact has divided the White House advisers, and a final decision is expected as soon as this week. And this all comes as the U.S. delegation to an international climate meeting kicking off in Bonn, Germany today.

Are the bonbons in Bonn bon? Or are they gut? While the official schedule for the German gathering starting today is laden with technical questions on implementation of the Paris climate deal, the undercurrent will be focused on two questions: Will the U.S. stay in the agreement, and what consequences will the rest of the world impose if the Trump administration withdraws. Foreign leaders have been trying to persuade the Trump to stay in the deal, but the prevailing winds appear to be blowing for withdrawal. The Bonn meeting is the first opportunity for climate diplomats to get together in one room and talk out their options since Trump took office in January. "There will be a small island states in the forum, and they will take advantage of the [gathering] to meet," Jake Schmidt, director of international programs for the NRDC, told ME. "The U.S. situation will be a hot topic in those meetings."

U.S. will be in hizz-aus: The Trump administration will send a small delegation to the meeting, a State Department spokesperson told Pro's Eric Wolff on Friday, and sources tell ME it will be lead by Trigg Talley, a career diplomat and the deputy special envoy for climate. The spokesperson said the delegation is “focused on ensuring that decisions are not taken at these meetings that would prejudice our future policy, undermine the competitiveness of U.S. businesses, or hamper our broader objective of advancing U.S. economic growth and prosperity.”

The actual agenda: The Paris agreement took effect last year, but there's a mountain of work to ensure proper implementation. The main goal is to get going on the Paris "rulebook," which sets terms for how countries make carbon reductions and how they prove it, the World Resources Institute says in a blog post. "I’d particularly highlight the development of rules on transparency, WRI's David Waskow tells ME. "That was a long-sought objective of the U.S. on a bipartisan basis, and the rules being developed can spell that out fully in terms of the exact modes of reporting and review."

Voices still chiming in: More than 200 investors representing more than $15 trillion in assets released a letter today urging the U.S. and other countries to remain a participant of the Paris agreement. “The implementation of effective climate policy mechanisms and the regular monitoring of outcomes is vital for investors to make well-informed investment decisions that can also better support governments in delivering their national commitments and priorities,” they wrote. Signatories include the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) and the New York State Comptroller’s office. And 19 companies including Adobe, Apple, Facebook, Gap, Google, Johnson Controls, Mars Incorporated and National Grid are out with a full-page ad in The New York Times this morning urging the Trump administration to stay in as well.

Meanwhile, 40 free-market and conservative groups, including the Competitive Enterprise Institute and the American Energy Alliance, sent a letter to Trump this morning urging him to follow through on his campaign vow to withdraw from the agreement.

WELCOME TO MONDAY! I'm your host Anthony Adragna, and the Southern Environmental Law Center’s Nat Mund was first to identify Vermont as the only state without a living former senator. For today: What state did James D. Martin, the oldest living former congressman, represent in Congress? Send your tips, energy gossip and comments to [email protected], or follow us on Twitter @AnthonyAdragna, @Morning_Energy, and @POLITICOPro.

LAST CHANCE FOR METHANE CRA: This week is the Senate’s last opportunity to undo an Obama-era regulation targeting methane emissions from oil and gas operations on public lands using the Congressional Review Act. When the chamber departed last week, it appeared Republicans hadn’t yet been able to rally the 50 votes necessary to nullify the rule, but backers projected confidence it would ultimately pass. Senior Republicans were battling a small bloc of corn-state senators seeking action on a waiver to sell 15 percent ethanol fuel year-round, as well as a group of four other senators — Rob Portman, Cory Gardner, Heidi Heitkamp and Dean Heller — who are publicly undecided on whether to back the CRA.

Speak now: A collection of local elected officials sent a letter to Portman — who is seen as especially crucial to the resolution’s ultimate fate — on Friday urging him not to support its passage. And Taxpayers for Common Sense will send a letter today urging senators to work with the Trump administration to fix any shortcomings in the existing regulation rather than using the CRA on it. “The BLM is the only agency that has authority to charge royalties on lost methane gas. If the rule is thrown out under the CRA, taxpayers stand to lose millions of dollars in royalties from natural gas wasted during drilling on federal lands in coming years,” says Ryan Alexander, the group’s president.

Final appeal: A group of 40 law professors is sending a letter this morning also advising against using the CRA on the methane rule.

J’RECUSE: Pruitt has decided to recuse himself from participating in 12 different lawsuits he got involved in during his time as Oklahoma attorney general, Pro’s Alex Guillén reports, citing a four-page memo obtained by E&E. The lawsuits cover regulations such as the carbon emissions from future plants, the 2015 ozone standard and the mercury rule, a legal dispute over state NO2 pollution plans and ongoing litigation over the Volkswagen emissions cheating scandal, as well as the Clean Power Plan and Waters of the U.S. litigation. Without a Senate-confirmed deputy or general counsel, Pruitt has empowered chief of staff Ryan Jackson "to take appropriate action or refer it with the Agency for appropriate action or assignment, without my knowledge or involvement.”

PRUITT CLARIFIES EMAIL TESTIMONY: A “small portion” of emails on Pruitt’s personal account may have concerned official state business while he served as Oklahoma attorney general, and he’s turned over all messages to state officials as they comply with outstanding open records requests, the EPA administrator wrote in a Friday letter to the Senate EPW Committee. Questions arose after Pruitt testified during his confirmation hearing that he only used an official state-issued account for business, but reports surfaced indicating he used a personal address as well. Pruitt said his initial response was “was based on the best information available at the time and having only four days to complete approximately 1,100 written questions and subparts,” while noting political matters that touch on official business may be discussed on personal email under Oklahoma law.

NOT REHIRED: EPA has opted not to grant another term to 12 of its current science advisers, spokesman J.P. Freire tells ME, though the agency strongly disputes other reports they’ve been fired. Rather, as ME readers learned last week, Pruitt’s opted to reopen the nomination process for outside scientific counselors. One of those affected, Michigan State University professor Robert Richardson, tweeted: “I have had the pleasure of serving on the EPA Board of Scientific Counselors, and my appointment was terminated today." The advisory board at issue, the Board of Scientific Counselors, is currently made up of 18 members that provide advice and recommendations to EPA's Office of Research and Development.

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EPA DEPUTY COUNSEL REPRESENTED UTILITY, STEEL MAKER: One of the Trump administration's first beachhead team members at EPA who is now one of the agency's top attorneys previously represented a major utility and other companies potentially affected by EPA rules and actions, according to an ethics disclosure released to POLITICO. Justin Schwab, who is now deputy general counsel at EPA, provided legal services for Southern Co. as an associate at the law firm BakerHostetler. The utility was included on a list of recent clients Schwab disclosed to EPA. The list also included Big River Steel, a steel producer that recently built a new $1.3 billion "flex" mill in Arkansas, lawncare company Scotts, heavy equipment maker Caterpillar and metal producer Mississippi Silicon. Schwab also revealed his clients included Bruno Iksil, aka the "London Whale," the financial trader at the center of JPMorgan’s infamous 2012 trading losses.

IT’S MACRON! Center-left Emmanuel Macron soundly defeated Marine Le Pen for the French presidency on Sunday. On energy and environment, POLITICO Europe’s Sara Stefanini says you can expect a broad continuation of François Hollande’s plan to gradually move from nuclear to renewables. Here are recent stories on the biggest energy headache he faces — such as the future of the powerful French nuclear sector — and his policies on everything from the EDF-Areva merger to diesel subsidies.

ZINKE’S IN UTAH! Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is in Utah right now as part of a four-day listening tour regarding the Bears Ears National Monument and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Hundreds gathered at the state Capitol on Saturday ahead of Zinke’s visit to encourage him to listen to all perspectives on Bears Ears as he mulls whether to shrink or even rescind the Obama-era designation, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. Interior has not released a list of people Zinke will meet with while in Utah, though he tweeted about meetings with the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition, the state's School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration, Sen. Orrin Hatch and Gov. Gary Herbert.

Broader list announced: On Friday, the Interior Department released a list of 22 monuments Zinke will review under Trump’s executive order from late April, Pro’s Esther Whieldon reports. He’ll have 45 days to look at Bears Ears and 120 days to examine the remaining 21 monuments before offering recommendations, which could include legislative fixes. “There is no pre-determined outcome on any monument,” Zinke said in a statement. “I look forward to hearing from and engaging with local communities and stakeholders as this process continues.”

CHICAGO POSTS EPA CLIMATE PAGE: Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s administration launched its own webpage over the weekend, culling data from EPA’s pulled website, on the science and dangers of climate change, POLITICO’s Edward-Isaac Dovere reports. “The Trump administration can attempt to erase decades of work from scientists and federal employees on the reality of climate change, but burying your head in the sand doesn’t erase the problem,” Emanuel said. The mayor promised to expand and build upon the site over the coming weeks.

LET ME BE BRIEFED: Top Energy and Commerce Democrat Frank Pallone sent letters Friday to 19 top officials in various EPA office and departments seeking briefings on the Trump administration’s proposed cuts to their budgets. “The Committee has serious concerns that such severe budget and personnel cuts would undermine the agency’s critically important work at the expense of human health and the environment,” he wrote. Pallone sent the letters because an earlier briefing request to Administrator Scott Pruitt has yet to receive an answer.

FLORIDA’S ENERGY FIGHTS: A closely watched statewide fracking ban didn’t go very far and several other bills that emerged late in the session went nowhere, but Florida’s legislative session proved to be surprisingly active on energy-related issues, POLITICO Florida’s Bruce Ritchie reports. Arguably the most consequential was legislation that extended from residential to commercial a property tax break for renewable energy source devices. "The final bill wasn't a bulls-eye, but it came very close to the mark and is a win for solar in Florida,” Scott Thomasson, southeast region director for Vote Solar, told Bruce.

TAKING INPUT ON FUTURE OF NAVAJO GENERATING: Interior announced Friday it will hold four listening sessions in Arizona during the week of May 15th on the future of the Navajo Generating Station. The 2,250 megawatt power plant, one of America's largest coal plants, supports hundreds of tribal jobs but is slated to close in 2019 unless another solution is found. The four utilities that operate the plant announced in February they’d shut it down because coal was too expensive a fuel in the face of cheap natural gas.

QUICK HITS

— As coal jobs decline, solar sector shines. NPR.

— Divestment movement builds against Dakota Access Pipeline. Mashable.

— Trudeau considers retribution against U.S. over lumber tariffs. Fox News.

— EPA administrators eye Bird Creek, lay out plans to find contamination source. Tulsa World.

— Al Gore Calls Media Coverage of Climate Change a "Nature Hike Through the Book of Revelation". Hollywood Reporter.

THAT'S ALL FOR ME!

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