California’s climate disclosure laws survive preliminary injunction request

The ruling means companies won’t see a reprieve from the coming deadlines in California Senate Bills 253 and 261, says Juge Gregg, partner at the law firm Crowell & Moring.

By Lamar Johnson • Aug. 20, 2025

Waste and recycling groups ‘disappointed’ by lack of plastics treaty

Recycling groups will monitor the next round of talks for clues on infrastructure and end-market impacts. Plastics groups will push recycling over environmentalists’ calls for plastic production caps.

By Megan Quinn • Aug. 20, 2025

Explore the Trendline➔

Top 5 stories from ESG Dive

This year has shaped up to be a formative one for ESG, from the U.S. pulling out of major climate agreements to federal agencies recalibrating their approach to sustainability under the new administration.

By ESG Dive staff

Energy demand, permitting top of mind at Congressional renewables expo

Speakers from industry and national labs warned of obstacles to meeting the surge in energy demand expected in the next five to 10 years at July’s Congressional Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Expo.

By Lauren Schenkman • Updated Aug. 22, 2025

Wind, solar must show ‘significant’ work but ‘no fixed minimum’ under new Treasury rules

To qualify for tax credits, projects will need to meet less cut-and-dried physical construction requirements instead of spending at least 5% of project costs to prove construction had commenced.

By Diana DiGangi • Aug. 19, 2025

DOT relaunches EV charging fund with stripped-down guidance

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said he does not "agree with subsidizing green energy," but he will run the NEVI program "efficiently." Critics said all he did was delay implementation.

By Robert Walton • Aug. 18, 2025

Navigating sustainability in business in the era of regulatory fatigue

Companies aren’t asking for less scrutiny from regulators — they’re asking for rules that make sense, and that help them focus on real results, says an EcoVadis executive.

By Pierre-Francois Thaler • Aug. 18, 2025

GOP attorneys general probe Science Based Targets initiative

A coalition of 23 state attorneys general are seeking information on SBTi and its recently rolled out net-zero standard for financial institutions.

By Lamar Johnson • Aug. 15, 2025

Homeowners rush to install solar ahead of expiring tax credits

Business is booming for residential solar installers, but with an important residential tax credit expiring at the end of this year, the increase could be short-lived.

By Meris Lutz • Aug. 15, 2025

Battery recycling facilities and programs ramp up in U.S. and Canada

Princeton NuEnergy’s black mass facility has opened, while Washington seeks comments on its battery EPR rulemaking and two Canadian programs join forces on battery recycling education.

By Megan Quinn • Aug. 14, 2025

Renewable power purchase agreement prices rising in wake of One Big Beautiful Bill Act

The average price of new wind and solar power purchase agreements is up 4% since the OBBBA’s passage. Almost a third of developers surveyed said they plan to suspend or cancel projects as a result of the reconciliation bill.

By Emma Penrod • Aug. 14, 2025

Truck manufacturers sue CARB over zero-emission vehicle plan

Four truck manufacturers filed the lawsuit in a move to bring clarity regarding a state and federal conflict over which emissions regulations the companies must follow.

By David Taube • Aug. 13, 2025

Countdown to compliance: Decoding California’s climate disclosure FAQs

As the California Air Resources Board works to finalize the state's climate-risk disclosure regulations, companies should work to understand how the laws apply to them, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius says.

By Ari Selman, Elizabeth Goldberg, Levi McAllister, Rick Rothman, Carl Valenstein, Rachel Mann • Aug. 13, 2025

BlackRock, Vanguard, State Street bid to dismiss coal antitrust case fails

A federal judge ruled that the case against the nation’s largest asset managers can proceed, as the states have alleged plausible claims.

By Lamar Johnson • Aug. 11, 2025

Trump takes aim at alleged debanking of conservatives

An executive order the president issued Thursday demands that regulators remove reputational risk from evaluations and review complaint data for instances of religion-based debanking.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • Aug. 11, 2025

European Union seeking input on proposed Circular Economy Act

Part of the EU’s Clean Industrial Deal, the act aims to make 24% of the region’s materials circular by 2030.

By Lauren Schenkman • Aug. 11, 2025

Over 300 organizations ask EU to preserve scope and rigor of sustainability legislation

Financial institutions, companies and advocacy groups released a joint statement calling for the European Union to maintain key aspects of the CSRD and CSDDD.

By Lauren Schenkman • Aug. 8, 2025

EPA considers terminating $7B Solar For All program

If the Trump administration moves forward to claw back the funding, “we will see them in court,” said Kym Meyer, litigation director at the Southern Environmental Law Center.

By Diana DiGangi • Aug. 7, 2025

State finance officials press US asset managers to denounce ESG, climate

A coalition of 26 Republican state finance officials sent letters to executives at 25 firms, pushing them to denounce climate and net-zero commitments.

By Lamar Johnson • Aug. 4, 2025

US states have passed 11 anti-ESG bills in 2025 so far: report

A total of 106 bills opposing ESG were introduced in state legislatures this year, but few were passed, according to a report from Pleiades Strategy.

By Lauren Schenkman • July 31, 2025

Trump approves emissions exemptions for some chemical, taconite iron ore facilities

Dow, BASF, U.S. Steel and Cleveland-Cliffs are some of the companies that received two-year delays from complying with the Environmental Protection Agency’s air pollutants regulations.

By Sara Samora • July 31, 2025

EPA aims to revoke ‘endangerment finding’ underpinning power, auto sector climate regs

The effort to end greenhouse gas-related rules that address climate change will likely face "significant legal pushback,” according to research firm Capstone.

By Ethan Howland • July 30, 2025

ISS, Glass Lewis sue Texas AG over state’s newest anti-ESG law

The nation’s top two proxy advisory firms are seeking a preliminary injunction to stop a Texas law targeting such firms from taking effect in September.

By Lamar Johnson • July 29, 2025

Paramount promises to abstain from DEI programs to secure Skydance merger

The FCC hinging its approval of the merger on Paramount decommitting from DEI is the latest example of public-sector agendas affecting private-sector talent strategy.

By Caroline Colvin • July 28, 2025

Trump’s SEC distances itself from Biden-era ESG, climate rulemaking

The Securities and Exchange Commission has looked to withdraw proposed ESG regulations introduced during the previous administration or stop defending them in court.

By Lamar Johnson , Zoya Mirza • July 25, 2025

SEC declines to confirm whether climate disclosure rule will be upheld if it survives litigation

The agency told an appeals court it “does not intend to review or reconsider” the rule but did not confirm whether it would enforce it if legal challenges against the rule fail.

By Zoya Mirza • July 25, 2025