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The Colorado River basin has lost 27.8m acre-feet of groundwater in the past 20 years, an amount of water nearly equivalent to the full capacity of Lake Mead, the largest reservoir in the United States, a new study has found.The research findings, based on Nasa satellite imagery from across the south-west, highlight the scale of the ongoing water crisis in the region, as both groundwater and surface water are being severely depleted.“Groundwater is disappearing 2.4 times faster than the surface water,” said Jay Famiglietti, a hydrologist at Arizona State University and the study’s senior author.“Everyone in the US should be…

Labour prosecutors allege that workers were brought to Brazil illegally and toiled in ‘slavery-like conditions’.Brazilian labour prosecutors have filed a lawsuit against the Chinese auto manufacturer BYD and two contractors over allegations of illegally trafficking labourers to live and work under conditions “analogous to slavery”. On Tuesday, the prosecutors, charged with enforcing labour laws, said in a statement that they would seek 257 million reais ($45m) in damages from BYD as well as contractors China JinJiang Construction Brazil and Tecmonta Equipamentos Inteligentes. They accused the three companies of trafficking Chinese workers to build a BYD plant in Camacari, in the…

Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for freeYour guide to what Trump’s second term means for Washington, business and the worldThe US has said it will not renew Chevron’s oil licence in Venezuela, as Donald Trump’s administration hardens its stance towards President Nicolás Maduro’s authoritarian government. The decision, announced by the US state department on Tuesday, follows conflicting messages from senior figures in the Trump administration over Venezuela policy and efforts by the US to secure the release of Americans detained there. “This is the last hurrah here,” Tammy Bruce, the state department spokesperson, told reporters on Tuesday.“We are going…

In the era of AI saturation, OpenAI’s former VP of marketing expects human taste and craft to distinguish between success and failure as businesses implement the technology.”Taste is going to become a distinguishing factor in the age of AI because there’s going to be so much drivel that is generated by AI,” said Krithika Shankarraman, a former OpenAI and Stripe employee who is currently an entrepreneur in residence at VC firm Thrive Capital, on a recent episode of Lenny’s Podcast. “That power is at anyone’s fingertips.”AI tools, in theory, make it that much easier to deploy and market a product.…

WASHINGTON, DC – MAY 23: U.S. President Donald Trump holds up a signed executive order in the Oval … More Office of the White House May 23, 2025 in Washington, DC. President Trump signed executive orders related to the nuclear power industry. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)Getty Images The policy moves made last week by Congress and the White House signal an increasingly dramatic shift in U.S. energy policy since the November 2024 elections. While lawmakers aren’t moving towards a full repeal of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, which Democrats herald as one of the Biden presidency’s signature achievements, the…

Sales of drilling rights in the oil sands of Alberta are on the decline, reversing an earlier boom. The trend, attributed to Trump’s tariffs and the consequent oil price dive, was aggravated by OPEC+’s decision to unwind its cuts faster than expected. It’s also not going to affect production outlooks for Canadian oil.Land prices in Alberta’s oil sands are down 18% from last year to C$771 per hectare, or $561, Bloomberg reported this week. The trend reflects a wider decline in land lease prices, at 25% from a year ago, and, per the report, the impact of President Trump’s tariff…

Saudi Arabia-based REDA Hazard Control has been exploring strategic options including a full sale, according to people familiar with the matter, offering a rare opportunity for investors to buy into a privately held firm in the kingdom. The fire safety and equipment company has been working with Moelis & Co. on the potential transaction, the people said, asking not to be identified as the talks are private. It has approached prospective buyers — including both regional and international private equity firms, the people said.   No final decision has been made and discussions could still fall through, they added. Representatives…

Oil slipped as the looming prospect of another major OPEC+ production increase overshadowed easing trade tensions between the European Union and the US. West Texas Intermediate fell 1% to settle below $61 a barrel after a quiet session on Monday due to holidays in London and New York. The dollar advanced, making commodities priced in the currency less attractive. Oil has trended lower since mid-January as OPEC and its allies have pushed to restore idled supply faster than the market had expected, just as the global trade war threatens demand. Prices have largely stabilized near $61 as traders await the…

I wanted to go to the Solana Accelerate conference as soon as I saw the trailer for the crypto confab.The video ad showed “America” at a therapist’s office, where the country described its urge to innovate and was met with resistance from a “woke” therapist, who encouraged America to “channel this energy into something more productive, like coming up with a new gender.”The ad was so over the top in its culture war stance that the Solana organization pulled the video a few hours later.I was curious: Would the tone of the conference, which was late last week, match the…

With six little words, Elon Musk has relegated the oil industry to a historical footnote. This, despite the oil industry underpinning the workings of the entire world.“Compared to solar, oil is small-time,” Musk posted on X, delivering a withering verdict on the fossil fuel era. No charts, no caveats. Just a blunt assertion that the sun—not crude oil—will define the future of global energy. From a man whose fortunes straddle both electricity and ambition, the message was clear: oil may have powered the past, but it won’t own what comes next.The statement from Musk, however, doesn’t mean that fossil fuels…