Go Green: Climate Change – The Year in Review (Good & Bad News)

By Tom Last

In this article, I will highlight some of the good and bad news related to climate change in 2025. New technologies on the renewable energy front and scientific discoveries give us hope that we will be able to have a livable planet in the future. However, horrific storms and the continued warming of our planet are a reminder of what our planet may be like in the future.

The first piece of good news affects all of us here, in the Rockaways. The congestion pricing program started in NYC on January 5, 2025, and has had positive results on all levels. New research from Cornell University confirms that congestion pricing is reducing harmful air pollution not just in the five boroughs, but across the region. According to the study, pollutants like nitrogen dioxide – linked to asthma and cardiovascular disease – dropped significantly in areas where congestion pricing has been in effect. Particle pollution dropped 22% in the congestion zone. These are real health benefits for all NY city residents. In addition to the health benefits, the MTA is on track to beat its target of generating $500 million of revenue after expenses (Michelle Kaske and Aaron Gordon; Bloomberg News; Dec 22, 2025). Fears of a negative economic impact on businesses were unfounded, as neighborhoods south of 60th saw an increase of visitors of 3.4% and a 6.3% boost in sales tax revenue.

Another promising success story is that the ozone hole over the Antarctic is shrinking because of the phasing out of the destructive chemicals known as CFCs following the Montreal Protocol of 1987 – International Treaty (Sara Tonks; Weather Channel; Dec 30, 2025).

Also, for the first time on record, renewable energy sources like wind and solar produced more electricity than coal in the first half of 2025, marking a major milestone in the global transition toward cleaner power.

A team of scientists has found that they can reduce the amount of methane produced (from cow burps) in each new generation of cows by 2% by using DNA analysis and in vitro fertilization (IVF). This may seem like an insignificant reduction, but this project known as “cool cows” can result in a 40% drop in emissions over 20 years. This is important as methane is a powerful gas that traps significantly more heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide.

AI is providing climate benefits too, as the explosive power demand from AI is driving an uptick in green technology investment. Global clean tech investment for the first three quarters of 2025 has already surpassed all of 2024.

The bad news – 2025 was a record year for storms, heat, and wind marked by significant “once in a lifetime” weather events.

Heat – 2025 was one of the hottest years on record. In fact, the last 11 years have been the hottest years in history. From June 19-25, over 3,000 high temperature records were set in the U.S.

Wind – Almost every city east of the Rockies had its windiest March on record, the National Weather Service said. This peaked on March 14, when extreme winds in the Central U.S. led to destructive wildfires, sun-blocking dust storms and massive pileups.

Major storm events in 2025:

• Hurricane Melissa, which made landfall near New Hope, Jamaica, on October 28, causing extensive damage.
• Record breaking snowfall in various locations, including Florida and New Orleans, with snow totals reaching up to 25.4 cm.
• In North Dakota, the first EF5 tornado in years tore through the town of Enderlin with winds of 210 mph.
• Wildfires in Southern California, which destroyed thousands of homes and businesses.
• Tragic floods in Texas, resulting in over 100 fatalities.

More bad news:

The evidence for global warming due to human influence, especially since the start of the industrial revolution, has been recognized by the national science academies of all the major industrialized countries with nearly all actively publishing climate scientists saying humans are causing climate change and most feel that the planet is on the brink of an irreversible climate disaster.

Even with all the scientific evidence on climate change, the administration in D.C. still embraces fossils fuels and is shunning green energy. It has also taken aim at other climate policies and has even downplayed or denied climate change itself.

Let’s hope that 2026 will be a year of more progress with renewable energy solutions and other scientific breakthroughs to help fight climate change, along with a change of heart in D.C. to abandon most fossil fuels and accept the fact that the only way to save the planet is to invest in green energy and climate change solutions. Let’s put our planet’s future before “profit.”