Today: Agroforestry initiative aims to improve the lives of more than 100,000 people living in the Amazon; U.S. Chamber of Commerce asks Supreme Court to end looming climate rules; the antimony mining rush. 

Welcome back: The planet’s largest tropical forest conservation project is set for expansion as the World Wide Fund for Nature, the Brazilian government and the World Bank, among others, take new measures to support local communities in the Amazon through agroforestry.

WSJ Pro Sustainable Business's Yusuf Khan writes that the project aims to benefit the working lives of 130,000 people who live in the Amazon and reduce deforestation in an area about twice the size of Ohio. By protecting nearly 67 million acres of forest and improving the management of 120 Brazilian protected areas, the initiative has avoided an estimated 104 million metric tons of carbon emissions, according to the WWF.

Agroforestry, the practice of integrating trees and forests into farming systems, offers a sustainable approach to land management. The goal is to support communities through the expansion of renewable-power generation and efforts in building the bio-economy, by providing solar panels, for example, or by encouraging local farming of Amazonian produce like açaí, rubber and cacao, among others. 

Forests have been a huge focus for Brazil, which is hosting this year’s United Nations climate talks, known as COP. It is looking to secure more financial assistance from other countries for forest protection. Some forestry projects have come in for criticism because they ignored the local population, often bypassing indigenous communities in terms of planning.

• Brazil is pouring money into saving one of the world's most vital carbon sinks and these startups are rushing in. (Bloomberg)
• Brazilian academic Carlos Nobre believes Amazon tipping point is “much closer” but he retains his optimism about the next generation. (FT)

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce filed an emergency request with the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday asking it to shut down rules requiring companies to report their climate risk and greenhouse gas emissions in California, Clara Hudson reports for Dow Jones Risk Journal.

Companies have a matter of weeks to publish some of their inaugural reports by 2026 to the California Air Resources Board, an agency tasked with overseeing pollution.

Reports next year will lay out details from energy used at corporate sites to indirect emissions from suppliers. The law applies to companies across the globe operating in California.

The regulations were set up by state law SB 253, the Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act, requiring greenhouse gas emissions disclosure, and SB 261, the Climate-Related Financial Act, which mandates reporting on financial risks tied to climate.

The Chamber said in its filing the effort is part of California’s “open campaign to force companies into the public debate on climate issues and pressure them to alter their behavior.”

• Exxon Mobil says rules requiring it to disclose climate risks infringe on the company’s right to free speech. (WSJ)
• Businesses making everything from plastic utensils to takeout cartons will reveal how much waste they are responsible for in California. (WSJ)

Until recently an obscure element widely used in the defense industry and often found in gold mines was treated as detritus. But now antimony is at the center of the bitter U.S.-China trade fight, the WSJ's Jon Emont writes.

Last year, China put in place heavy restrictions on antimony exports, including banning all shipments to the U.S. in retaliation for restrictions Washington put on the export of American technology products to China.

That is squeezing defense companies, which use antimony to harden bullets and strengthen armor-penetrating projectiles. Antimony prices have quadrupled from two years ago and supplies are now scarce, just as defense companies need to replenish stockpiles of armaments exhausted by the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine.

The U.S. hasn’t been a significant miner of antimony for many years. Now, companies are dusting off sites in Alaska and Idaho that last produced antimony during the 20th century. The Defense Department is pouring money into jump-starting projects. In September, it announced $43 million in funding to accelerate production at an Alaska antimony project.

• A new rare-earths plant in Europe shows how hard it will be to break China’s grip on the global supply chain. (WSJ)
• The Trump administration said oil and gas drilling would be allowed in a fragile expanse of tundra and wetlands in northern Alaska. (NYT)

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• Tesla is now requiring suppliers to exclude China-made components from its U.S.-manufactured cars due to geopolitical tensions. (WSJ)
   
• Microsoft, Land O’Lakes launch AI partnership to cut farm costs and strengthen U.S. Agricultural resilience. (ESG News)
   
• Jaguar Land Rover reported a quarterly loss of almost $750 million after shutting down in September to manage a debilitating hack. (WSJ)
   
• TotalEnergies chief executive Patrick Pouyanné backed the scenario of a potential extended life for fossil fuels in the energy system. (FT)
   
• TotalEnergies to form flexible power joint venture with Kretinsky’s EPH in $5.9 billion deal. (WSJ)
   
• Federal immigration agents arrested 81 people in Charlotte, N.C., as part of increased enforcement efforts. (WSJ)
   
• The world’s largest companies are once again setting net-zero goals across their value chains, after pausing in 2024. (ESG Today)

WSJ Pro Sustainable Business gives you an inside look at how companies are tackling sustainability. Send comments to bureau chief Perry Cleveland-Peck at perry.cleveland-peck@wsj.com and reporters Clara Hudson at clara.hudson@wsj.com and Yusuf Khan at yusuf.khan@wsj.com. Follow us on LinkedIn at perrycp, clara-hudson and yusuf_khan.