The Senate has voted to block California’s landmark law phasing out gasoline-powered cars by 2035 in a bid to combat air pollution and the climate crisis. The vote was 51 to 44, with Democratic Senator Elissa Slotkin of Michigan joining Republicans, who used a procedural maneuver to avoid the Senate’s filibuster rules, a process Democrats described as a “nuclear” option. California Governor Gavin Newsom called it an “unconstitutional attack on California” and said the state would sue in federal court to block the federal mandate. Eleven other states were set to follow California’s lead with similar phase-outs of fossil fuel vehicles, accounting for 40% of the U.S. auto market.

In more climate news, a new study from University of Maryland researchers finds the world’s forests were destroyed at the fastest rate ever recorded last year, with an area the size of Italy lost to fires, as well as agriculture, logging and mining.