Today: Tropical Forest Forever Facility will limit deforestation and reward investors—if it can secure enough money; U.S. appeal court halts California climate rule; EU plans to curb aluminum scrap exports to boost recycling.

Welcome back: The host country of this year’s global climate conference is working on a $125 billion plan to save the world’s rainforests. It thinks tapping Wall Street’s bond traders is the way to go. The only catch: it first needs to convince the world’s wealthy countries to chip in.

The Tropical Forest Forever Facility aims to mix sovereign-wealth money and private capital, and use the proceeds to protect rainforests. And unlike most rainforest protection projects, which rely on grants or the selling of carbon credits, this one is designed to make money for its investors, WSJ Pro Sustainable Business's Yusuf Khan reports.

But, with just over $5 billion so far committed, there are worries that it might not get off the ground.

Kenneth Lay, former treasurer at the World Bank who was instrumental in developing the TFFF, said: “It was clear from the very start, when we started thinking about this 16 years ago, scale is a key factor here.” 

“To generate a meaningful incentive for all of the global tropical forest, that’s where you get to these very large numbers. Either way, if it produces profound changes in behavior in tropical countries it’s a bargain,” he added.

• Barclays hails Brazil forest fund success, even at $5 billion. (Bloomberg)
• Brazil, WWF to expand world’s largest forest conservation project. (WSJ)
• California governor berates absent Trump at U.N. Climate talks. (WSJ)

Tell me what you think: Send me your feedback and suggestions at perry.cleveland-peck@wsj.com or reply to any newsletter. If you were forwarded this newsletter, you can sign up here.

A U.S. court has, for now, blocked a rule in California requiring companies to divulge how changes in the climate put their business at risk.

The U.S. Court of Appeals granted a request, pending appeal, to bar the law. Companies were preparing to comply with the legislation in just a matter of weeks. The court is still allowing a related rule mandating companies to report their greenhouse gas emissions, but this isn’t due until the summer, WSJ Pro Sustainable Business's Clara Hudson reports.

The California regulations, which apply to companies that do business in the state, were set up by state laws SB 253 and SB 261: the Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act and the Climate-Related Financial Act. The California Air Resources Board, which is overseeing the state’s climate reporting, didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the plaintiff of the lawsuit, said in a statement that it is still hoping to block both laws.

• Exxon Mobil says rules requiring it to disclose climate risks infringe on the company’s right to free speech. (WSJ)

The European Commission plans to restrict exports of aluminum scrap amid concerns that rising outflows of the resource could leave Europe short of a critical input for its decarbonization efforts.

About 15% of EU recycling furnace capacity is currently idle due to insufficient domestic scrap availability, according to trade body European Aluminium, threatening both production continuity and future investments in the recycling sector, the WSJ's Giulia Petroni reports.

President Trump’s decision to double tariffs on imported aluminum and steel this year, while exempting scrap, has led to rising volumes of European scrap being diverted to the U.S., as suppliers could sell it there without facing the higher tariffs applied to aluminum. Sustained demand from Asia has further exacerbated the shortage, according to the organization.

Producing aluminum from secondary raw materials requires far less energy and results in significantly lower carbon-dioxide emissions, making secure access to scrap crucial for decarbonization efforts.

• U.K. overtaken by Denmark as world’s most ambitious country on climate with target to cut emissions by 82% by 2035. (Bloomberg)

• Toyota is investing $912 million to expand hybrid vehicle production across five U.S. manufacturing plants. (WSJ)
   
• Airlines and engine makers are implementing new measures to address toxic-fume leaks in cockpits and cabins. (WSJ)
   
• Boeing signs 100,000 ton carbon removal deal with climate solutions provider Charm Industrial. (ESG Today)
   
• Hemp ban in spending bill threatens farmers' livelihoods and their access to banking services. (Dow Jones Risk Journal)
   
• South Korea aims to support a shift away from coal-fired power as it pursues a goal to shutter its own plants by 2040. (Bloomberg)
   
• The Trump administration would like to limit the Environmental Protection Agency’s authority to limit pollution in wetlands. (NYT)
   
• Tom Steyer steps down from decarbonization investment platform Galvanize to run for governor of California. (ESG Today)
   
• The American West is in the grip of a tumbleweed takeover. (WSJ)

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.