[Special] Donald Trump, Environmentalist

Washington Post: Energy Dept. Rejects Trump’s Request to Name Climate-Change Workers, Who Remain Worried by Joe Davidson (December 13, 2016)

“The Department of Energy received significant feedback from our workforce throughout the department, including the National Labs, following the release of the transition team’s questions. Some of the questions asked left many in our workforce unsettled,” said Eben Burnham-Snyder, a department spokesman. “Our career workforce, including our contractors and employees at our labs, comprise the backbone of DOE (Department of Energy) and the important work our department does to benefit the American people. We are going to respect the professional and scientific integrity and independence of our employees at our labs and across our department.

Washington Post: Scientists are Frantically Copying U.S. Climate Data, Fearing it Might Vanish Under Trump by Brady Dennis (December 13, 2016)

The efforts include a “guerrilla archiving” event in Toronto, where experts will copy irreplaceable public data, meetings at the University of Pennsylvania focused on how to download as much federal data as possible in the coming weeks, and a collaboration of scientists and database experts who are compiling an online site to harbor scientific information.

Think Progress: Trump Taps Rep. Ryan Zinke for Interior, Adds Another Climate Denier to the Cabinet by Samantha Page (December 13, 2016)

Zinke’s nomination could be great news for big fossil fuel interests. The congressman has made it clear that he favors coal — over U.S. taxpayers. Zinke opposed efforts to reform the federal coal leasing program, which is estimated to cost U.S. taxpayers billions each year, by undervaluing public land. He was also a strong supporter of the successful effort to repeal the oil export ban, a move that is expected to increase U.S. exports while tying the country even more closely to the international oil market.

Washington Post: Trump Taps Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry to Head Energy Department He Once Vowed to Abolish by Juliet Eilperin and Steven Mufson (December 14, 2016)

His nomination — announced officially by Trump’s transition team a day after sources leaked the decision — stirred further alarm from environmental groups and others worried that the Trump administration will roll back efforts to expand renewable energy and give a powerful platform for officials questioning the scientific consensus on climate change.